Vancouver Lighting

[Vancity]

I've always wondered, in terms of lighting, Vancouver hasn't done very well. When I look at places like New York, Toronto, Hong Kong, London (England) - many of them are very bright cities at night. I find Vancouver to be very dull, and dead. Is it the culture?

I found some pics that demonstrate these cities at night.







I didn't want to start a new thread on the Canada Line, but is there going to be some lighting on the bridge (North Arm)? Because at night, the bridge seems really dark. Doesn't really stand out at all. Was it designed to be like that?

**Pictures are not my own**

[LeftCoaster]

Originally Posted by Vancity

I've always wondered, in terms of lighting, Vancouver hasn't done very well. When I look at places like New York, Toronto, Hong Kong, London (England) - many of them are very bright cities at night. I find Vancouver to be very dull, and dead. Is it the culture?

It might be the fact that the smallest city you compared us to is more than twice as large, with the largest being almost 10 times the size of vancouver. Pick some other cities and im sure you will see Vancouver does just fine for its size, perhaps even punches above it's weight.

The only main issue vancouver faces with regards to a dim skyline (if that is what you meant by bright cities) is its lack of large office towers, as the lighting and glazing designs of office buildings are much brighter at night. They also tend to keep their lights on at night while the cleaners/keeners are hard at work. There isn't much that can be done about this problem however, as we just have to hope Richard Floridas ramblings about creative economies are true and businesses flock to vancouver.... dont hold your breath though.

welcome to the fourm btw.

[Distill3d]

i took this the other night:



i'd say we've done fairly well for ourselves

[DKaz]

Ehhh seeing how the Canada Line isn't open yet, I wouldn't speculate on anything yet.

In regards to lighting in general, I think we tend to be more aware to the effects of city lighting on birds.

[Vancity]

Originally Posted by LeftCoaster

It might be the fact that the smallest city you compared us to is more than twice as large, with the largest being almost 10 times the size of vancouver. Pick some other cities and im sure you will see Vancouver does just fine for its size, perhaps even punches above it's weight.

The only main issue vancouver faces with regards to a dim skyline (if that is what you meant by bright cities) is its lack of large office towers, as the lighting and glazing designs of office buildings are much brighter at night. They also tend to keep their lights on at night while the cleaners/keeners are hard at work. There isn't much that can be done about this problem however, as we just have to hope Richard Floridas ramblings about creative economies are true and businesses flock to vancouver.... dont hold your breath though.

welcome to the fourm btw.

That's true. My apologies for making comparisons to such larger cities. And your right, LeftCoaster, those other cities I mentioned have far more office towers and an economic presence (globally, even) than Vancouver does. Perhaps in time, Vancouver will be a part of the global economy (in terms of having more of a head office presence in the downtown core) - in time.

Thanks for the welcome

[Yume-sama]

I'll leave my balcony light on for ya.

[Vancity]

Originally Posted by Distill3d

i took this the other night:



i'd say we've done fairly well for ourselves

Wow. that is a pretty bright picture of the downtown. Vancouver in general, though is not very "bright" - pretty dim. Richmond, though, if your coming from Vancouver on the Oak bridge, and your looking at Richmond - the city is getting there, and I can only imagine Richmond is going to grow into a pretty solid community to live, work and play

some projects though, are in doubt

[agrant]

That picture is very saturated or over-exposed. A polarizer might help in that situation, or a better camera. In reality it would look much less bright.

The kind of lighting that I'd like to see more of are neon signs, bigger the better. Also, maybe a few more Shaw Tower type of lighting that runs the length of the building. I could care less for seeing lot's of lights through people's offices or homes.

[Vancity]

Originally Posted by agrant

That picture is very saturated or over-exposed. A polarizer might help in that situation, or a better camera. In reality it would look much less bright.

The kind of lighting that I'd like to see more of are neon signs, bigger the better. Also, maybe a few more Shaw Tower type of lighting that runs the length of the building. I could care less for seeing lot's of lights through people's offices or homes.

when I said Vancouver lighting, I meant lighting effects within the city that would help make it more lively, and bright. Neon lights certainly would help that cause. I'm in favor of that. In fact, there was a picture before of a treeless Granville. I like that streetscape. It allows for the stores on Granville to show off its signs, and it also makes it a lot like an entertainment district. I hope the city when it "redevelops" it, doesn't plant too many trees there. I'd like for the signs to stand out a bit

[Distill3d]

Originally Posted by agrant

That picture is very saturated or over-exposed. A polarizer might help in that situation, or a better camera. In reality it would look much less bright.

i agree, but cell phone camera's aren't the highest quality anyways..

Vancouver used to have a large amount of neon. all one needs is to look at some of Fred Herzog's pictures of downtown to see that.

[SpongeG]

my friend was complaining about the city and its lighting the other day saying its so dull here

even portland is better lit and more interesting than here he said

[Vancity]

Originally Posted by SpongeG

my friend was complaining about the city and its lighting the other day saying its so dull here

even portland is better lit and more interesting than here he said

I think it's partly because Portland probably has more offices in their downtown? From what LeftCoaster was saying, much of the "brightness" is because most of the offices always have their lights on. But yeah, Portland is a fair comparison, I think, to Vancouver - they are both mid-sized cities, and have several similarities.

A couple of shots from google, that I found on seeing Portland at night:

[Metro-One]

Everyone knows how i feel, vancouver needs many more neon signs and LCD screens, especially in the main commercial zones (along with a few more lighting effects on towers). Same with Metrotown. Richmond is doing a nice job though and will probably become the best city in the Metro for lighting displays in the years to come.

[SpongeG]

he just means lighting effects on buildings

he said vancouver condos are so boring

he said the same thing after going to Miami - he said the condos in miami were all lit up and why can't boring vancouver do something more interesting

[crazyjoeda]

I think Vancouver should have more decorative lighting, but I disagree with you about it being "dull" compared to other cities. Vancouver is not Paris or NYC, but compared to Portland or Seattle and other cities near the same size as Vancouver the city does well.







Flickr

[ravman]

well since it is a bridge that is near low-flying aircrafts, there should be something....

[SpongeG]

that one condo next to the granville has been lit up lately - looks good

last time i crossed it was purple

[zivan56]

Originally Posted by Distill3d

i took this the other night:

http://i79.photobucket.com/albums/j1...k/100_1118.jpg

i'd say we've done fairly well for ourselves

Well according to the picture EXIF data:
# Camera Make = EASTMAN KODAK COMPANY
# Camera Model = KODAK CX7530 ZOOM DIGITAL CAMERA
# Exposure Time (1 / Shutter Speed) = 4/1 second = 4 second
# Lens F-Number/F-Stop = 27/10 = F2.7

With a 4 second exposure, you can make a completely dark area of the city look like it has decent lighting. Plus, most of that lighting is coming from the suburbs and reflecting off the clouds. If you look above the downtown core, you can barely see anything there.

Likewise, the following:
http://farm1.static.flickr.com/75/16...e175dd34_o.jpg
# Camera Make = NIKON CORPORATION
# Camera Model = NIKON D50
# Exposure Time (1 / Shutter Speed) = 300/10 second = 30 second
# Lens F-Number/F-Stop = 90/10 = F9
Even with F9, it is still extremely long.

Using the same settings in New York, Hong Kong, etc would probably result in an almost completely white skyline.
So Vancouver hardly has a bright skyline as the photos make it out to be.

[agrant]

Originally Posted by Distill3d

i agree, but cell phone camera's aren't the highest quality anyways..

Vancouver used to have a large amount of neon. all one needs is to look at some of Fred Herzog's pictures of downtown to see that.

Yea, I bought my father the book. That's what I'd like to see brought back. Not only in the entertainment area of Granville, but any restaurant/theatre filled street.

[raggedy13]

I like the new lighting on that one Gastown building. I would love to see more stuff like that around Vancouver. Hopefully I'll get to check it out in person sometime soon.

Originally Posted by agrant

The kind of lighting that I'd like to see more of are neon signs, bigger the better. Also, maybe a few more Shaw Tower type of lighting that runs the length of the building. I could care less for seeing lot's of lights through people's offices or homes.

My sentiments as well.

Originally Posted by SpongeG

that one condo next to the granville has been lit up lately - looks good

last time i crossed it was purple

Is "the granville" the name of a building? I'm not familiar with it if so. Which condo are you referring to? Sounds like something I'd be interested in looking out for.