Smaller, focusable, soft-edged spotlight with a distinctive front lens, stepped in concentric rings, which is the basis for its name (pronounced freh-NEL, as the "s" is silent); typically used in on-stage positions In studios, normally used for key and back lighting
Moulded plastic sheet used beneath many focusing screens to improve evenness of illumination Consists of a series of concentric rings, shaped to direct light toward the viewfinder eyepiece
(frah-NELL) a type of focusing system made up of hundreds of prisms which amplify and focus the light from a lighthouse into a narrow beam so that it can be seen miles away Invented by Augstin Jean Fresnel of France
French physicist who invented polarized light and invented the Fresnel lens (1788-1827)
Wash luminaire using Fresnel lens; modifying the spacing between the lens and the lamp/reflector assembly can change field angle, named after French inventor, Augustin Jean Fresnel (1788 1827)
Pronounced "fra-nell" Traditional stage lighting instrument with fresnel lens and barn doors for fine tuning They are rarely used in live touring situations Submitted by Karl Kuenning RFL from Roadie Net
Series of concentric rings, each consisting of a thin part of a simple lens, assembled on a flat surface. G.-L.-L. Buffon (1748) first had the idea of dividing a lens surface into concentric rings to reduce the weight. In 1820 his idea was adopted by Augustin-Jean Fresnel (1788-1827) for the construction of lighthouse lenses. Fresnel lenses have the optical properties of much thicker and heavier lenses. They are used in spotlights, floodlights, railroad and traffic signals, and decorative lights. Some thin Fresnel lenses are molded in plastic, the width of the rings being only a few thousandths of an inch; such lenses are used in cameras and small projectors