Back-lit Poster Light Boxes

Poster lightboxes add a unique finishing touch to your home theater, or in that case anywhere you want to display a poster.

The classical way to illuminate movie posters for display is from behind.

Most poster lightboxes operate in this manner by having a warm or 'daylight' light source mounted on the rear side of a box frame. A diffuser plate is used to help eliminate the formation of possible hot-spots of light over the movie poster area.

These poster light boxes are also referred to as 'backlit poster boxes' and are normally designed to take '1-Sheet' poster sizes.

The latter are typically 27 inches in width by 40 to 41 inches in height, depending on whether it is a pre-1983/1985 poster or otherwise.

Single-sided or Double-Sided (DS) 'One-Sheet' Posters?

While it is possible to mount either type in a light box, yet the best posters to use in backlit poster light boxes are double-sided posters. These are normally designated as 'DS' 1-Sheet posters.

DS 1-Sheet posters have printing on both the front and the back of the paper stock, with the printing on the backside being in precise alignment with that on the front and a mirror image of the printing on the front side.

Light from behind the 1-Sheet poster will have to pass through both prints, with the poster acting as if it is a strip of film. The two prints on either side of the poster will render for a more robust and rich illumination of the poster art.

That is not to say that the cheaper and more common single-sided posters are not suitable for use in backlit light boxes. It is just that one-sided 1-Sheet posters look somewhat washed-out when illuminated from behind.

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DIY Poster Light Box: Tips to help you build your own movie poster light box

Well... building your own poster light box should not be difficult in that you do not need to be neither a carpenter nor an electrician.

By building your own poster light box, you will be able to save some money since good quality off-the-shelf poster light boxes designed to take 1-Sheet size posters could easily cost a few hundred dollars. In addition, opting for the do-it-yourself route gives you the opportunity to get the finish you want.

It is not the scope of this article to go into the actual step-by-step process of building your own light box since there are various ways of how you can proceed, ways that are mainly a matter of preference.

However, what we would like to present here are a few design guidelines worth following when designing and building a back-lit light-box. And even if you are not taking the DIY route, opting for a product that follows through these design considerations will help ensure that light from your backlight source does not damage the movie poster on display:

	Being Slim - not necessarily the best way forward... While a slim design lends itself to a stylish unit that integrates better with the surroundings, yet care should be taken to ensure that there is always enough space between the backlight source and the back of the poster. This will help both reduce any hot-spots of light on the poster area as well as reduce any damage that may result from the heat generated by the light source.
	Use of Fluorescent light source: Use of low temperature fluorescent tubes is mandatory to maintain as low enough operating temperature as possible to avoid damaging the poster artwork even after long hours of continuous use. High operating temperatures will damage both the stock paper on which the poster is printed, as well as accelerate the fading process of the artwork itself.
	Mounting your posters inside a Light Box: The best way to hang your poster inside a light box is between two sheets of Plexiglas set approximately 1/8 inch (a few millimeters) apart to allow your poster to simply slide in a pocket of air without being tight between the plates. Support your poster from the top with either miniature clips or a few small pieces of transparent Scotch tape, and let gravity do the rest.
	Ultra-violet radiation and Fading: Ultra-violet rays need to be filtered out before the light reaches the poster, otherwise your precious print will slowly fade as a result of being bombarded by UV radiation. In particular, great care should be taken with DS sheets. Some Plexiglas sheets come with a UV protection coating and therefore, can easily serve as a UV filter. This means that if you are using the two-sheet Plexiglas pocket design to slide your posters, then you do not need to do anything. Otherwise, you will have to find some UV-filtering product. A suitable alternative is to apply some non-yellowing archival protection lacquer spray (available from most arts stores), used for the protection of paintings and acrylics; these are normally UV resistant and should do the trick. But do not apply the lacquer direct onto your precious movie poster. Instead, spray a uniform coat of lacquer to the lamp-side face of the inner Plexiglas panel.

 

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Adding style to your home theater with elegant yet affordable off-the-shelf Backlit Poster Light Boxes

A full section of Movie Poster light boxes is available at MovieGoods.

DIY is not your way? Well, building your own backlit poster light box is surely not a job for everyone even though it does not require any special skills. Luckily, it is possible to find affordable professionally-made back-lit poster light boxes at both MovieGoods and amazon. These backlit light boxes are made by River City Theaters, specifically designed with the home theater enthusiast in mind. These handcrafted back-lit poster boxes will elegantly display 1-Sheet movie posters of up to 27" x 40" in size - though other sizes are also available.

Overall design of these poster light boxes is rather discreet - with a sort of seamless appearance from the side. This better helps promote your movie poster rather than the light box itself. In addition, the minimalistic design allows these boxes to blend in with any furniture and room décor while beautifully illuminating any movie poster — single-sided or double-sided.

The casing of these back-lit light boxes is made from high-quality wood and smooth matt or satin finished either in stylish black colored wood, dark-stained maple wood, or in a beautiful clear pine finish.

1-Sheet size poster light boxes use two or four (depending on model) high output 36-inch low temperature fluorescent light bulbs for a uniform lighting over the whole poster area while maintaining a low enough operating temperature. 1/2-sheet size poster light boxes use two 24-inch bulbs instead. The use of low temperature fluorescent bulbs makes it possible for these units to stay lit for hours without damaging your posters. Hot running light boxes can easily result in faded posters.

To further protect your posters from light damage, these light boxes include a special light diffusing acrylic backplane - which acts both as a diffuser and as a UV absorbent filter.

Poster loading is easy thanks to the use of a side loaded spring system while electrical connection of the poster light box can be either through a hanging cord or internal wiring - depending on or your needs.