Abstract: A lighting apparatus for use with line scan cameras in plants for detecting and recognizing objects in a flow of materials such as goods to be sorted, in which several separately controllable diodes and an optical device are provided, with the diodes being disposed at least in one row next to one another over the width of the respective section of the plant and the optical device regularizes the light emitted by the diodes in such a way that a secure detection of the objects and its properties such as material composition, color, size or the like is ensured by cameras. The optical device comprises two diffusers and an interposed lens.