In regards to miscellaneous documentary videography,

any suggestions on an economical but good quality starter 3 pc. light kit
to use with the GL-2?

Thanks,
Dan

Most options in lighting depend on budget and knowhow.
You can consider anything from a smith vector kit or lowel kit or jtl and other people make kits.
Long range view of your artistic goals is a important consideration in what you buy.
Cheap is cheap. Sometimes cheap is good.
EX. Tota lights..... if you take care of them, under most use situations they will serve for many years.
They work great in LIGHTBANKS, you can put gels on them, bounce them off ceilings or through LIGHTPANELS.
Now, this could go on forever but besides being a CHIMERA guy, I worked at BH, I worked for other lighting companies.
I like to help people.
If you email me I will help you as much as I can.
Chimera is making a 24x32 kit with LIGHTTOOL grids that could be a part of an overall set up. It is called ITEM 8000.
Peace.

ok, thanks Rich. Maybe I'll check out your website and email you. :) Dan

If anyone else has any ideas, feel free to drop them by.

Anyone else have any suggestions for a light kit for digital video?

I'm pretty sure that cameraman Wayne Orr recommended this kit from JTL months ago here or elsewhere:

http://www.adorama.com/JTELK.html?promocode=A

It's USD$500, with three lights, three small soft boxes with connectors, three stands, three 500W lamps and a soft carry case. It's on my short-term wish list right now.

David Hurdon

Thank you David for nice words. Indeed, I recommended the JTL Everlight Kit as a good value for the novice cameraman on a budget. So far nothing has caused me to change my opinion. It is not the rugged, top-of-the-line, quality of Chimera, but it allows you to get three lamps at a reasonable price. And you can do a lot with those three lamps. For a short tutorial check out http://www.digitalprods.com/LSmontage

Dan can find a great deal of comment about this kit by searching this forum.

Wayne Orr, SOC

anyone know anything about briteks? they're all over ebay... seem similar to the jtls>?

Hey...I just picked up a 3 pc Lowel Pro Light kit for myself. I chose it because I don't need clunky OMNIs and I am not lighting up stadiums anytime soon. I like the Pro Lights because they are small and offer good light control for most productions. They also are pretty rugged and easy to transport as well. But...that's my opinion and look around for what suits your needs and price. You can always get accessories and make your own odds and ends as well. Good luck...



B K

I read of a guy who got this one and liked it. You can
get accessory barndoors for it, too. He related that the stands are sturdy. Kit with barndoors would
be about $300.

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/bnh/controller/home?O=productlist&A=details&Q=&sku=298604&is=REG

I curious about the advantage of big company light kits (such as from Mole-Richardson or Chimera) vs. cheaper ones that seem to be comparable.

I have an XL1S and would like to shoot some docs and shorts in the future. I don't need to shoot huge scenes, lots of people, or long dolly shots. Just more basic set-ups. I know little about lighting but want to learn. The best way is to read a book and then practice hands-on, right?

I don't have a lot to spend but I'd like a 3 piece kit. I see companies on Ebay offering this type of kit for about $400-$500: 2 500watts (with cables and cooling fans), 1 250watt (with cable and cooling fan), 3 light stands, 3 umbrellas, 3 barndoors.
I see the basic equivalent on Mole's site for about $1900.

Shouldn't I buy a cheaper kit to learn with and in the future switch to a more comprehensive, heavy-duty kit?

Dirk, I hope you will read my earlier post in this thread and check out the JTL Everlight Kit, which is my recommendation for folks in your position. This is a decent starter kit that should serve you well as you learn lighting. You can add to it with a LTM Pepper 400, which will give you a good fresnel for more directional light. Use one of the JTL light stands till you need to add an additional light stand. You can find the Everlight kit at adorama.com or on e-bay. But DO NOT purchase the JTL kit or any other light that comes with a cooling fan. The fan will make enough noise as to render sound recording impossible. Fire up three of them and it will sound like you are shooting in the midst of a hornet's nest.

There are lots of good links in these pages to lighting tips and tutorials.

Wayne Orr, SOC

Wayne,

You say not to purchase any that use a cooling fan, but an earlier post recommended this unit:
http://www.adorama.com/JTELK.html?promocode=A

When I followed the link, it says one of the features is "Ultra quiet cooling fan." So, is this a good one or not?

Are there one's where you can control the cooling fan separately? Maybe run the fan and light while you are setting up the lights, then switch the fan off during takes?

Dirk, there is a great deal of information on this kit in these threads, which discuss just about everything. I am sorry if one misled you to believe you should use the units with the fans, but I am here to tell you, absolutely not. The supplied 500 watt bulbs do not put out so much heat that it becomes an issue, and the units with the fans will not shut off, as I recall. Please, be sure not to get the units with fans. You will not be happy. There are a couple of other "typos" in that blurb at Adorama. There are no 250 watt bulbs available, and the highest wattage you should use in them is 750 watts. You will need to open up the top a bit extra with the 750 bulbs to let the heat out, or the circuit will trip eventually. So far, no one has found this to be a problem, to my knowledge.

You can find these kits at a few photo shops in the Los Angeles area. I originally found them at Reseda Photo, in Reseda (Sherman Way, just west of Reseda Blvd.)

But check the posts in this forum for more information. And you can see some pictures I shot with this kit at http://www.digitalprods.com/LSmontage

Wayne

sorry wayne, i'm a little confused. so is the link dirk gave the correct version without the fans? and are there any 500 watt 3200k bulbs i can buy? i'm ready to buy! thanks!

http://www.adorama.com/JTELK.html?promocode=A

James, I suggest you phone Adorama direct and question them about the kit, and let them know you do not want the fans. Others have had good service from Adorama, so I am sure you can get what you are looking for.

In regards to the 3200K versus 3000K bulbs, there are a number of options out there, but I would not be in a rush to go to the 32K bulbs. The difference is so slight as to be practically zero. Remember that 32K bulbs burn brighter, and therefore last a significantly shorter length of time.

But if you feel you can't live without the 3200K bulbs, one source (courtesy of Will Fastie) is: "I bought two FLK 575W bulbs from Production Advantage, a source often mentioned here, for $15 each, about $1 more than the EHD."

Also, you can try Bulbtronics for the EHD bulbs with a G-9 base.

And please let us know your reaction to the Everlight Kit after you crank it up, James. Same goes to Dirk.

Wayne Orr, SOC

Check out this link.

http://www.dvinfo.net/conf/showthread.php?s=&threadid=7023

As was suggested there, I went the Tota/translucent umbrella route, and it has proved to be one of the best purchases I've ever made. The whole setup is very portable and sets up in seconds. Another nice thing about this strategy is that there are a number of other ways to use a Tota, and If you ever upgrade to a real softbox, you will already have a decent stand and you can use the Tota with your new softbox. Another cool thing about umbrellas is that there are different sizes to choose from, and you can cheaply go from silver, to gold, to translucent.

hey thanks wayne and marco! i will look into both solutions. i have a little over $1000 to spend and was thinking of going w/ the jtl softboxes or the tota/umbrella solution. in addition, i was thinking of going w/ the lowel dv creator kit 1. i shoot w/ the dvx100a and need a lighting solution not only for interviews but location lighting as well. portability is a must since i'm mostly alone in my shoots. is this money well spent? thank you very much for your comments/suggestions!

Hi James. I'll be happy to help you spend some money. Of course, I suggest you go for the JTL Everlight Kit versus the Tota combination. I would stronly recommend adding a LTM Pepper 420, with a set of barndoors. This will add a around $300.00, additional. You might want to include a single and double scrim to knock down the output when necessary, for an additional twenty bucks. This compact fresnel is a professional lighting instrument, unlike anything in the Lowel kit you are looking at. With the Pepper you can focus light for a harder source when necessary, to give you a strong backlight, key, or background source light. The glass fresnel lens puts it so far ahead of any of the Lowel lights in the Creator kit, as to be in another universe. You can pull one of the JTL lights and softbox out of the kit, and replace it with the Pepper to keep your kit tight. The Pepper will mount nicely on the third JTL stand.

Hey, we still have some money left over. If you want to add a more exotic lamp to your kit, I highly recommend the ETC Source Four Jr. with a 50 degree lens. (http://www.etcconnect.com/) You can lamp this unit with a couple different size bulbs. This ellipsoidal lamp will allow you to add break-up patterns, which make wonderfully interesting backgrounds for interviews. This is a very versatile lamp with many uses, including standing in for a follow spot! The downside is that it is a somewhat large unit, and requires a sturdy stand to support it. The lamp, with proper cable, a couple of patterns, bulbs, and stand, will run between $350-400.00.

If that is too much, you can spend a couple hundred dollars on various grip equipment that will make your life and your lighting much better.

You would do well to search these posts for comments on the Lowel product line. You will find a number of posters who have had problems with Lowel. As of yet, I have not received one major complaint with the JTL Everlight Kit from anyone who has used it. And I continue to welcome comments on the Kit.

Happy hunting!

Wayne Orr, SOC

thanks for the suggestions wayne! so if i go w/ the pepper and possibly the etc source four jr, will this give me a pretty complete lighting set up? what about eyelight/hairlight?

also, what do you think of the b&m 650's? and 2 maclite 200's as opposed to the pepper 420?

"if i go w/ the pepper and possibly the etc source four jr, will this give me a pretty complete lighting set up? what about eyelight/hairlight?"

If you go with these lights in combination with a JTL kit you will have an excellent kit for interviews and various other scenarios. Is it a "complete" lighting set-up? Obviously, no. But it is a great beginning, that will give you many years of service, and grow with you.

I don't really know why you think you need an eyelight. One of the reasons for using a softbox is to get a nice wrap that eliminates the need for an eyelight. If you are talking about getting a nice "glint" in an eye, you can use anything for that, including a bare household incandescent that is dimmed way down, or a Maglite with the lens removed to expose the bulb.

As far as a hair light, use one of the softboxes in close and tilted down. Gives a great wrap. Also, the Pepper can be used for a harder source back light or kicker. But you don't always want to do the "hair light" thing. It really is kind of passe. Check out the stills at http://www.digitalprods.com/LSmontage which were done with the JTL kit, the Pepper, and bounce boards. A spare grip stand to hold a bounce board is a good investment. Also, the grip stand can be used as a boom to get your back light in closer to the subject.

I don't personally recommend any of the Bardwell and MacAlister products. Just my choice.

You might also want to order John Jackman's book, "Lighting for Digital Video," if you are new to all this. It's not great, but it does provide a reasonable introduction to the craft.