Does the Inverse-Square law apply with SLA Printing? I was adjusting the position of our projector to allow for bigger prints to be generated. I encountered a problem that at larger distances, our prints are not seeming to adhere as desired. Does the inverse square law of light apply to DLP projectors? I am aware that the inverse-square law only is 100% applicable when you have a point as your light source. But I assume close to the same holds constant for other real world light sources. Unless DLP projectors compensate for distance with their power output. Is this the case? * * * Cross-Post: @ Physics.SE

Yes, of course it does. The same amount of light is being spread across a wider area, so there's less light per area. Once you're past a few 10's of filament diameters, a point source is a highly accurate representation of most light bulbs. Even more so when there's a lens setup that causes the light to go through a point focus.