Halloween Blacklight Photography

Blacklights are lights that have been specially coated so they transmit UV light. Because our eyes cannot see this spectrum of light, rooms lit with blacklight appear dark. The notable exception to this is that white objects and some other light colors seem to glow when exposed to blacklight. It is this weird glow that makes blacklights so popular at Halloween.

What makes the glow is substances called phospors. Phospors emit visible light when exposed to UV radiation. Phospors occur naturally and are in many laundry detergents. Phospors can occur in objects that are not white but they do not emit enough light to shine brightly against dark subjects. This leaves the white and light-colored objects to glow under blacklight.