Cool Lights LED 600 purchase at DVinfo.net

Jason Bodnar · August 31st, 2010, 10:40 AM

So, I pulled the trigger today on the following kit... I have taken a leap of faith into LED as I have not seen these in person just from what I have read and seen online. I will be shooting with an EX1 and RED I just hope I got the right setup... I will report back on an a two person interview I have coming up on Labor Day. I went with two Floods and one Spot with Soft Box. Since the 256 is out of stock right now my thought is being able to possibily use one of the other 600's as a back/side/hair via stratigic use of banks and or dimmer.... Any comments out there would be appreciated.

I am hoping this will be a good Interview and simialr small shoot setup for a long time for me and that I did not make a mistake going with the two floods and one spot instead of two spots and one flood. I am not a newbie to lighting but to LED's and all other lighting as always been provided for me, never my own kit.

May add a 256 sometime down the road and probably eventually add the battery mounts...but for now I can plug them in. I will say Richard's customer service is fantastic and makes me feel good about my purchase.

1 x CL-SPSB600 LED 600 Speed Softbox Kit (CL-SPSB600) = $99.00
1 x CL-LED600 600 LED Panel (CL-LED600) = $449.00
Battery Adaptation None
Fixture Options 5600K Spot
2 x CL-LED600 600 LED Panel (CL-LED600) = $898.00
Battery Adaptation None
Fixture Options 5600K Flood
3 x CL-LS4 Cool Lights Air Cushioned Portable Stand (CL-LS4) = $195.00

Harry Simpson · August 31st, 2010, 03:43 PM

Just did a commercial shoot with one 600 spot with softbox and it really made a diffference in the final product. Think you'll be pretty happy with the purchase. (NOTE: the softbox fits EASILY over the outside of the frame of the light. I initially tried to pull the frame through the softbox which i think there's a dude that posted a neg comment on the Cool Lights site that mustve done the same thing. I fianally figured out it fit nicely around the frame and was easy to put on and take off)

Be glad when the 256ers are available again - I'd like to get a couple of them.

PS. I shot the commercial with the Belcor (sp) battery pack and everything worked great....

Jason Bodnar · August 31st, 2010, 05:54 PM

Good to know Harry! As I will probably do some commercial shoots as well. I was just torn between spots or floods... still not sure if I will need another spot?? LED's are totally new for me. Well, since we do not have a really clear video showing the real difference between flood and spot and both within a softbox, i will try and do so over the next two weeks to show the differences.

Harry Simpson · September 1st, 2010, 07:27 AM

That will be helpful. I was told if I wanted to use the softbox which I did I needed to get the spot version.
Look forward to see your comparison video.

Dan Brockett · September 1st, 2010, 09:04 AM

Hi Jason:

I have been shooting with the Cool Lights LEDs for over a year now. A few things I have discovered...

1. You definitely need the spot to work effectively with a softbox. The Floods output is just not high enough to use a softbox effectively.

2. You will always want to use the 1/2 minus green filter that comes with the light. I have done color testing and the 1/4 is not enough and if you don't use the minus green, you just have that nasty green spike you have to take care of in color correction.

3. The output is very stable and constant, not to mention the luxury of NOT worrying about tripping circuit breakers brings a whole new freedom to my shoots.

4. I don't like the look of the LEDs directly on talent in most cases. I always use a softbox or bounce the LEDs into a Flexfill.

5. The Bescor lead acid batteries work well. I shot a commercial with Edward James Olmos in a train station a few weeks ago, no power available and we were not allowed to use a generator either. I ran the LED 600 spot through my small Chimera from the Bescor battery and ran the LED 256 with a Sony camcorder battery, acting as a hair light. Director and client were both thrilled with the look I was able to give them with just these two lights and a Flexfill.

You will enjoy the lights, they are great tools and Richard provides first class after the sale service.

Cheers,

Dan

Jason Bodnar · September 1st, 2010, 08:24 PM

Thanks for the tips Dan... Especially the 1/2 minus green as it saves me some time of seeing which one worked better. I figured I would have to use one of them. I got one softbox for the Spot I ordered... I am just not sure if I iwll end up needing another spot. Well I will test this setup out and and see how it goes, I got a flexfill so will see how the LED's look direct and bounced. I will probably add a 256 when they are back in stock based on what others are sayin about it.

James Huenergardt · September 1st, 2010, 10:16 PM

I too have the 600 Spot LED and just bought it to take with me to Africa.

I shot a commercial with it last week and it was great.

I'm very impressed with the build quality of the light.
It also comes with a great case.

I have the v-lock option for batteries and love that.

Shawn D. Caple · September 2nd, 2010, 08:07 AM

Dan,

What kind of Chimera are you using for the 600 light?

Dan Brockett · September 2nd, 2010, 08:35 AM

Hi Shawn:

I had one of the first LED 600s in the U.S. so it was way before Richard introduced the softbox. So I created my own steel speed ring for the LED 600, I had a friend weld up a few versions so I could use my small Chimera Quartz Pro with it. Works like a charm, I used the Arri 1k open face speed ring as my template and fabricated from scratch using angle steel. Richard's setup is much lighter and cheaper but I like my Chimeras, I own six of them.

If I didn't own any Chimeras though, I would buy Richard's softbox, it is a great deal and the end result is going to be the same.

Dan

Shawn D. Caple · September 2nd, 2010, 09:49 AM

Thanks for the input Dan.

Reg Carter · September 2nd, 2010, 10:02 AM

"The Bescor lead acid batteries work well. I shot a commercial with Edward James Olmos in a train station a few weeks ago, no power available and we were not allowed to use a generator either. I ran the LED 600 spot through my small Chimera from the Bescor battery and ran the LED 256 with a Sony camcorder battery, acting as a hair light. Director and client were both thrilled with the look I was able to give them with just these two lights and a Flexfill."

I was wondering if anyone has used the The Duracell Powerpack 300 - 450 - 600 kits as a power source? I think I saw the 300 at Walmart for around $40. If think is a viable option, you could have quite a lot of cheap power on hand.

Dan Brockett · September 2nd, 2010, 11:00 AM

Two issues with the Duracell. You would need to also purchase an adapter cord to go from its cigarette lighter plug to XLR DC 4 pin on the Cool lights. The Duracell 300 provides 12Ah of power, the Bescor lead acid that I have been using provides 18Ah of power. So the Duracell should power the ight okay but I have no idea about how long it will run it and how the power fall off is.

However, if you can buy it for $40.00, heck I would try it. That is cheap enough to experiment with. The Bescor I bought was a little over $100.00 and will power my LED 600 spot for close to 5 hours.

Dan

Matt Gottshalk · September 2nd, 2010, 11:36 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dan Brockett

Hi Jason:

2. You will always want to use the 1/2 minus green filter that comes with the light. I have done color testing and the 1/4 is not enough and if you don't use the minus green, you just have that nasty green spike you have to take care of in color correction.

Cheers,

Dan

This is a good point.

What I did was buy some GAM 1/2 minus green gels and cut them to fit the lights permanently.

I just leave them in there for 5600K output.

If I need 3200K I drop in the hard Full CTO provided.

Otherwise, there's no way to fit two of the hard filters in there, just not enough room.

Jason Bodnar · September 7th, 2010, 08:57 PM

The LED600's worked excellent!!! I used one spot with softbox and the two floods with flexfill. I used a small Par 30 5600k fluorescent as a hairlight. The Talent loved that there was no heat at all and thought the look was perfect! I did use the 1/2 minus green in all three. I will say this worked perfect for a 1-2 person interview. I think If I were to shoot a larger scene say 5 people I would need some additional lights. I plan to get an LED256 and one more LED600 Spot with softbox very soon! That will work for prettty much any setup I will be doing on my own. Richard, top notch service and a great product!!! I will get you some demo footage to use soon!

Tim Hall · September 9th, 2010, 09:11 AM

Great, looking forward to seeing the vid Jason! I'm currently running a kit of various Lowel lights, and looking to switch to LED. Interviews is one of my most common situations. How did you set up in terms of key, fill etc.?

August 31st, 2010, 10:40 AM	#1
Jason Bodnar Major Player Join Date: Nov 2007 Location: Seattle WA Posts: 376	Cool Lights LED 600 purchase So, I pulled the trigger today on the following kit... I have taken a leap of faith into LED as I have not seen these in person just from what I have read and seen online. I will be shooting with an EX1 and RED I just hope I got the right setup... I will report back on an a two person interview I have coming up on Labor Day. I went with two Floods and one Spot with Soft Box. Since the 256 is out of stock right now my thought is being able to possibily use one of the other 600's as a back/side/hair via stratigic use of banks and or dimmer.... Any comments out there would be appreciated. I am hoping this will be a good Interview and simialr small shoot setup for a long time for me and that I did not make a mistake going with the two floods and one spot instead of two spots and one flood. I am not a newbie to lighting but to LED's and all other lighting as always been provided for me, never my own kit. May add a 256 sometime down the road and probably eventually add the battery mounts...but for now I can plug them in. I will say Richard's customer service is fantastic and makes me feel good about my purchase. 1 x CL-SPSB600 LED 600 Speed Softbox Kit (CL-SPSB600) = $99.00 1 x CL-LED600 600 LED Panel (CL-LED600) = $449.00 Battery Adaptation None Fixture Options 5600K Spot 2 x CL-LED600 600 LED Panel (CL-LED600) = $898.00 Battery Adaptation None Fixture Options 5600K Flood 3 x CL-LS4 Cool Lights Air Cushioned Portable Stand (CL-LS4) = $195.00

August 31st, 2010, 03:43 PM	#2
Harry Simpson Major Player Join Date: Aug 2009 Location: Nashville, TN. Posts: 581	Just did a commercial shoot with one 600 spot with softbox and it really made a diffference in the final product. Think you'll be pretty happy with the purchase. (NOTE: the softbox fits EASILY over the outside of the frame of the light. I initially tried to pull the frame through the softbox which i think there's a dude that posted a neg comment on the Cool Lights site that mustve done the same thing. I fianally figured out it fit nicely around the frame and was easy to put on and take off) Be glad when the 256ers are available again - I'd like to get a couple of them. PS. I shot the commercial with the Belcor (sp) battery pack and everything worked great.... __________________ Nashville TN using Canon 5D MK3, Canon 550D, RODE SVM mic, 70-200 f2.8L II IS, 24-105 f4L IS, 50 and 85 f/1.8, Vegas Pro 11, Zoom H4n, Blackbird, Lilliput Monitor, Lightroom

September 1st, 2010, 07:27 AM	#4
Harry Simpson Major Player Join Date: Aug 2009 Location: Nashville, TN. Posts: 581	That will be helpful. I was told if I wanted to use the softbox which I did I needed to get the spot version. Look forward to see your comparison video. __________________ Nashville TN using Canon 5D MK3, Canon 550D, RODE SVM mic, 70-200 f2.8L II IS, 24-105 f4L IS, 50 and 85 f/1.8, Vegas Pro 11, Zoom H4n, Blackbird, Lilliput Monitor, Lightroom

September 1st, 2010, 10:16 PM	#7
James Huenergardt Major Player Join Date: Nov 2005 Location: Chehalis, WA Posts: 513	I too have the 600 Spot LED and just bought it to take with me to Africa. I shot a commercial with it last week and it was great. I'm very impressed with the build quality of the light. It also comes with a great case. I have the v-lock option for batteries and love that. __________________ Reel Inspirations - www.reelinspirations.com Commercials, Dramas, Image Pieces, Documentaries, Motion Graphics

September 2nd, 2010, 10:02 AM	#11
Reg Carter New Boot Join Date: Oct 2005 Posts: 22	Bescor Batteries "The Bescor lead acid batteries work well. I shot a commercial with Edward James Olmos in a train station a few weeks ago, no power available and we were not allowed to use a generator either. I ran the LED 600 spot through my small Chimera from the Bescor battery and ran the LED 256 with a Sony camcorder battery, acting as a hair light. Director and client were both thrilled with the look I was able to give them with just these two lights and a Flexfill." I was wondering if anyone has used the The Duracell Powerpack 300 - 450 - 600 kits as a power source? I think I saw the 300 at Walmart for around $40. If think is a viable option, you could have quite a lot of cheap power on hand.

August 31st, 2010, 05:54 PM	#3
Jason Bodnar Major Player Join Date: Nov 2007 Location: Seattle WA Posts: 376	Good to know Harry! As I will probably do some commercial shoots as well. I was just torn between spots or floods... still not sure if I will need another spot?? LED's are totally new for me. Well, since we do not have a really clear video showing the real difference between flood and spot and both within a softbox, i will try and do so over the next two weeks to show the differences.

September 1st, 2010, 09:04 AM	#5
Dan Brockett Inner Circle Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: Los Angeles, California Posts: 2,109	Hi Jason: I have been shooting with the Cool Lights LEDs for over a year now. A few things I have discovered... 1. You definitely need the spot to work effectively with a softbox. The Floods output is just not high enough to use a softbox effectively. 2. You will always want to use the 1/2 minus green filter that comes with the light. I have done color testing and the 1/4 is not enough and if you don't use the minus green, you just have that nasty green spike you have to take care of in color correction. 3. The output is very stable and constant, not to mention the luxury of NOT worrying about tripping circuit breakers brings a whole new freedom to my shoots. 4. I don't like the look of the LEDs directly on talent in most cases. I always use a softbox or bounce the LEDs into a Flexfill. 5. The Bescor lead acid batteries work well. I shot a commercial with Edward James Olmos in a train station a few weeks ago, no power available and we were not allowed to use a generator either. I ran the LED 600 spot through my small Chimera from the Bescor battery and ran the LED 256 with a Sony camcorder battery, acting as a hair light. Director and client were both thrilled with the look I was able to give them with just these two lights and a Flexfill. You will enjoy the lights, they are great tools and Richard provides first class after the sale service. Cheers, Dan

September 1st, 2010, 08:24 PM	#6
Jason Bodnar Major Player Join Date: Nov 2007 Location: Seattle WA Posts: 376	Thanks for the tips Dan... Especially the 1/2 minus green as it saves me some time of seeing which one worked better. I figured I would have to use one of them. I got one softbox for the Spot I ordered... I am just not sure if I iwll end up needing another spot. Well I will test this setup out and and see how it goes, I got a flexfill so will see how the LED's look direct and bounced. I will probably add a 256 when they are back in stock based on what others are sayin about it.

September 2nd, 2010, 08:07 AM	#8
Shawn D. Caple Regular Crew Join Date: May 2005 Location: NJ Posts: 60	Dan, What kind of Chimera are you using for the 600 light?

September 2nd, 2010, 08:35 AM	#9
Dan Brockett Inner Circle Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: Los Angeles, California Posts: 2,109	Hi Shawn: I had one of the first LED 600s in the U.S. so it was way before Richard introduced the softbox. So I created my own steel speed ring for the LED 600, I had a friend weld up a few versions so I could use my small Chimera Quartz Pro with it. Works like a charm, I used the Arri 1k open face speed ring as my template and fabricated from scratch using angle steel. Richard's setup is much lighter and cheaper but I like my Chimeras, I own six of them. If I didn't own any Chimeras though, I would buy Richard's softbox, it is a great deal and the end result is going to be the same. Dan

September 2nd, 2010, 09:49 AM	#10
Shawn D. Caple Regular Crew Join Date: May 2005 Location: NJ Posts: 60	Thanks for the input Dan.

September 2nd, 2010, 11:00 AM	#12
Dan Brockett Inner Circle Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: Los Angeles, California Posts: 2,109	Two issues with the Duracell. You would need to also purchase an adapter cord to go from its cigarette lighter plug to XLR DC 4 pin on the Cool lights. The Duracell 300 provides 12Ah of power, the Bescor lead acid that I have been using provides 18Ah of power. So the Duracell should power the ight okay but I have no idea about how long it will run it and how the power fall off is. However, if you can buy it for $40.00, heck I would try it. That is cheap enough to experiment with. The Bescor I bought was a little over $100.00 and will power my LED 600 spot for close to 5 hours. Dan

September 7th, 2010, 08:57 PM	#14
Jason Bodnar Major Player Join Date: Nov 2007 Location: Seattle WA Posts: 376	The LED600's worked excellent!!! I used one spot with softbox and the two floods with flexfill. I used a small Par 30 5600k fluorescent as a hairlight. The Talent loved that there was no heat at all and thought the look was perfect! I did use the 1/2 minus green in all three. I will say this worked perfect for a 1-2 person interview. I think If I were to shoot a larger scene say 5 people I would need some additional lights. I plan to get an LED256 and one more LED600 Spot with softbox very soon! That will work for prettty much any setup I will be doing on my own. Richard, top notch service and a great product!!! I will get you some demo footage to use soon!

September 9th, 2010, 09:11 AM	#15
Tim Hall New Boot Join Date: Mar 2009 Location: Brighton Posts: 21	Great, looking forward to seeing the vid Jason! I'm currently running a kit of various Lowel lights, and looking to switch to LED. Interviews is one of my most common situations. How did you set up in terms of key, fill etc.?