ALA Lighting Specialist Practice Exam

Light intensity in a specific direction is measured by the term "candlepower." Candlepower quantifies the luminous intensity of a light source in a particular direction, making it a crucial concept in understanding how intensely a source emits light along a specific angle. This measurement allows professionals to evaluate lighting performance in various applications, such as in spotlighting or in directional lighting fixtures.

Lumens, on the other hand, measure the total amount of light emitted by a source in all directions, not focusing on a specific direction. Footcandles measure illuminance, denoting how much light falls on a surface area, rather than the intensity of light output from a source. Color temperature describes the hue of the light emitted by a source, which influences the perception of warmth or coolness of the light but does not relate to intensity in a directional sense. Therefore, candlepower is the appropriate term that directly correlates with the intensity of light in a specific direction.