Litepanels Astra Compared to 1st Gen 1x1 and others at DVinfo.net

Jon Roemer · March 29th, 2015, 11:13 AM

I recently started using the new Astras and after having found the color rendering to be noticeably improved.

Blog post here: Hitting the Astral Plane

Two videos from within the blog post:

Neither is a perfect test - I can't get rid of all the daylight in my studio when filming during the day. So, the background has ambient ext. daylight mixing in. But I think one can see the differences.

Adrian Tan · April 2nd, 2015, 11:38 PM

Just wanted to link anyone who's reading this thread to the News Shooter article on "TLCI" -- "Television Lighting Consistency Index". All the technical stuff is over my head, but the gist of it is that TLCI was developed by a respected BBC camera tester, and is said to be a better gauge of colour than CRI.

Reason for the link: Litepanels Astra is the top of the colour heap for 1x1 panels.

News Shooter | BVE 2015: How accurate are your LED lights? Ex-BBC expert Alan Roberts has the surprising answers

Test results here: The Guild of Television Cameramen : Current TLCI Results

Adrian Tan · April 3rd, 2015, 05:00 AM

Just noticed the new post on Newsshooter!

Jon, by the way, it might it be worth mentioning -- I think the Astra comes in three varieties -- tungsten, bicolor, daylight. From what I understand, the daylight has higher output and slightly better color rendition than the bicolor. Not sure about the tungsten. There was a PDF that compared all the different models, but I'm having trouble finding it at the moment.

Jon Roemer · April 3rd, 2015, 07:39 AM

Adrian - thanks. I actually link to the News Shooter Alan Roberts info in my blog post.

In the post I also mention some of the other flavors of the Astra to come. The daylight only model is on slightly higher output that the bi-color model, ~1/4 stop at best. Alan Roberts did not measure the daylight only model but there is really no reason for it to be different in its color rendition. The daylight LEDs on the bi-color are the same ones on the daylight only model.

What's interesting is that it used to be the case that some bi-color lights were most powerful when set to 50% tungsten, 50% daylight. At least with the Astras that's no longer the case. There's a slight dip in power at 100% Tungsten, ~1/3 stop, but that's it.

Similarly, at least with Litepanels, bi-color used to be much more expensive than daylight-only or tungsten-only. That again is no longer the case. If one were to get the daylight-only Astra and then bought Litepanels' CTO filter set - it's a wash vs. just buying the bi-color. With the price no longer a factor it becomes a question of convenience vs. a slight difference in power. Does one want the ability to dial in the color or would one rather lose that but have the 1/4 stop more in power?

Here is the link to the pdf with all of the Astra line: http://t.co/bxFRSaTEOC.

March 29th, 2015, 11:13 AM	#1
Jon Roemer Regular Crew Join Date: Mar 2012 Location: Princeton, NJ Posts: 123	Litepanels Astra Compared to 1st Gen 1x1 and others I recently started using the new Astras and after having found the color rendering to be noticeably improved. Blog post here: Hitting the Astral Plane Two videos from within the blog post: Litepanels Astra Bi-Color vs. 1st Gen 1x1 on Vimeo Litepanels Astra Bi-Color vs 1st Gen 1x1, Sola 4, Sola ENG, & Lowel Omni Lights on Vimeo Neither is a perfect test - I can't get rid of all the daylight in my studio when filming during the day. So, the background has ambient ext. daylight mixing in. But I think one can see the differences. __________________ Site

April 2nd, 2015, 11:38 PM	#2
Adrian Tan Trustee Join Date: Oct 2012 Location: Sydney, Australia Posts: 1,149	Re: Litepanels Astra Compared to 1st Gen 1x1 and others Just wanted to link anyone who's reading this thread to the News Shooter article on "TLCI" -- "Television Lighting Consistency Index". All the technical stuff is over my head, but the gist of it is that TLCI was developed by a respected BBC camera tester, and is said to be a better gauge of colour than CRI. Reason for the link: Litepanels Astra is the top of the colour heap for 1x1 panels. News Shooter \| BVE 2015: How accurate are your LED lights? Ex-BBC expert Alan Roberts has the surprising answers Test results here: The Guild of Television Cameramen : Current TLCI Results

April 3rd, 2015, 05:00 AM	#3
Adrian Tan Trustee Join Date: Oct 2012 Location: Sydney, Australia Posts: 1,149	Re: Litepanels Astra Compared to 1st Gen 1x1 and others Just noticed the new post on Newsshooter! Jon, by the way, it might it be worth mentioning -- I think the Astra comes in three varieties -- tungsten, bicolor, daylight. From what I understand, the daylight has higher output and slightly better color rendition than the bicolor. Not sure about the tungsten. There was a PDF that compared all the different models, but I'm having trouble finding it at the moment.

April 3rd, 2015, 07:39 AM	#4
Jon Roemer Regular Crew Join Date: Mar 2012 Location: Princeton, NJ Posts: 123	Re: Litepanels Astra Compared to 1st Gen 1x1 and others Adrian - thanks. I actually link to the News Shooter Alan Roberts info in my blog post. In the post I also mention some of the other flavors of the Astra to come. The daylight only model is on slightly higher output that the bi-color model, ~1/4 stop at best. Alan Roberts did not measure the daylight only model but there is really no reason for it to be different in its color rendition. The daylight LEDs on the bi-color are the same ones on the daylight only model. What's interesting is that it used to be the case that some bi-color lights were most powerful when set to 50% tungsten, 50% daylight. At least with the Astras that's no longer the case. There's a slight dip in power at 100% Tungsten, ~1/3 stop, but that's it. Similarly, at least with Litepanels, bi-color used to be much more expensive than daylight-only or tungsten-only. That again is no longer the case. If one were to get the daylight-only Astra and then bought Litepanels' CTO filter set - it's a wash vs. just buying the bi-color. With the price no longer a factor it becomes a question of convenience vs. a slight difference in power. Does one want the ability to dial in the color or would one rather lose that but have the 1/4 stop more in power? Here is the link to the pdf with all of the Astra line: http://t.co/bxFRSaTEOC. __________________ Site