LED Light

[Ray Larson]

Looking for recomendations for a suitable LED light for weddings and receptions. I recently got a LightPanel Micro LED but it doesn't have enough punch for dark reception halls. I still use my i-light 50 watt with an NRG belt but would like to lighten up. I am shooting with a pair of Panny 150's. The Micro is fine for close up shots but the i-light is great for an all around light. Would love some suggestions to get rid of the battery belt and have enough light to do the job.

[Ed Roo]

Lightpanels SOLA ENG

[Chris Harding]

Hi Ray

I'm using Yongnuo YN 160 lights...they have barndoors and awesome punch and last all night on a 2600mah camcorder battery!!

If you want to be "posh" then buy a Comer 1800 but it will cost you a whole lot more

Chris

[Chris Bryan]

I love this light, there's no name on it and I bought it from ebay and it shipped from Japan. It's $40 and packs a great punch. I used the Litepanels lights for years and they don't hold a candle to this light. I love that you can connect multiple lights together as well. Check it out:

4 Way Hotshoe 126 Led Video Light for DV Camcorder E2L | eBay

[Greg Fiske]

Some that I'm eying:
FloLight - Fluorescent & LED Video Lighting

[Chris Talawe]

we also use the 126 LED light from ebay. we use two of them on flash stands. they are very portable, light weight, and very easy to setup. one time we had a photographer ask to use it since he needed some special lighting condition he couldn't get with his flash. it's great all around and having two is even more of a convenience.

[Greg Fiske]

What do people like better, on camera light or light on stands? Pro's vs con's?

[Jeff Harper]

I had two Lowell ID lights year ago, same as the i light, I believe, but with a dimmer. Get rid of your battery pack, Ray, completely unnecessary.

The Comer 1800 by far is the best light available for the money, and quality of light. It is better than lights that cost twice it's price ($350), has a perfect filter for indoor, and a spotlight feature that is hard to beat. It comes with barndoors, but I removed them to lighten it up. If you're coming from a i light, you'd like the Comer.

I have three of the 160 type lights made by various manufacturers, and the filters that come with mine were awful. The lights are not even close to daylight balanced, and are SO bluish, I hate using them anymore. I'm getting rid of all of my lights except the Comer 1800, and buying another. The 160s are very wide, and do not fit so well next to a shotgun on my light bracket.

The 160s have served me well for a few years, but they really are cheap, and I'm ready to move on.

I have had the Comer 1800 for while and I love it, best light ever, and very powerful. I decided after past weekend to go with two of them, as I cannnot stand the cheap ones any longer.

I also have a dimmable fotodiox light that is extremely powerful and small, and I may keep it, and find a gel for it. I just bought it but already wished I had just bought another Comer 1800.

[Katie Fasel]

We have a light similar to that Ebay light as well. I was just wondering about lights this weekend, as we were in a very dark reception venue, and the DJ didn't have much for lights set up. We used this light on a stationary camera for the main dances, but it seemed SO bright to us. We also have one very small cheapo light from best buy that we put a small soft box on...not as bright, and really ONLY useful for closer up shots...

I struggle using lights because we sell our unobtrusive style, and most people ask directly if we'll be walking around with a camera pointing lights in their face and what not.

not to hijack the thread here, but does anyone else struggle with remaining unobtrusive versus getting a much better shot??

[Jeff Harper]

Katie, it's not so much the light is bright, it's harsh. I put the 160s on a light stand up about 9-10 feet up then angle it downward it's fine for dancing footage. The cheap leds such as these are not good for walking around, they work if you are careful and keep them dim but it's better to have a good quality unit with more options.

I have been running the 160s alongside the Comer for a long time, and the differences really show up in the footage from my new cameras, which is why I only recently decided to get rid of the cheap large leds.

In conventional video cameras such as the FX1000, FX1, HMC150, etc, the differences are less noticeable, but with DSLR type cameras it seems more critical to have good quality light than ever.

[Jeff Brewer]

I have two Comer 1800's and must say I love them! They punch out a ton of light, the spot, daylight, and diffusion filters are all great. I would recommend buying the clear diffusion with them and swapping out the filters. Also, they have a brightness control and can quickly add a ton of aesthetic value to your production.

My only wish is that I had a way to power them on and off from a remote or from the bottom of the stand. Currently I throw them up on 13 foot stands and the only way to switch them on and off is to drop the stand all the way down. Not a huge deal, but somewhat of an inconvenience. I'm sure there is a way to rig it up, but haven't looked into it yet.

With the lights being on 13 foot stands I find it to be completely unobtrusive. I will reduce the brightness on the lights about an hour into dancing to allow them a chance to enjoy to mood and give myself a break from filming the repetitiveness. After all, filming more than an hour of dancing means you will be banging your head against a wall when you start logging similar footage over and over.

[Jeff Harper]

Jeff, my stands only go to 10', but same idea, 13' would be even better!

[Don Bloom]

Katie, I'll not discuss the merits of one light over another but you posed a question in your earlier post about being unobtrusive VS. using a light.
OK think about it this way. Video, no matter what the format, DV tape, S-VHS, Beta, or the new solid state including the much heralded DSLRs have one thing in common and that is they require light to accquire a usable image. How much light depends on many different factors but the fact is ALL cameras and media require light. Period. I used to shoot catalogue stuff with an 8X10 Deardorff view camera. Need light? You bet, lots of it. Film ASA was anywhere from 25 to 100 depending on the need. When I was stringing for newspapers, night time shots were a problem. Some had good ambient lighting (street lights/ lights on fire engines and cop cars) others didn't. Run the strobe up to 100w or higher if you had the power, push the film (Kodak TriX) to 800, 1200 or even 1600 and fire away!
The point I'm getting at is that the camera needs light to gather the image. Now I don't know about your area but around here it's not unusual for the lights to get turned down so low they might as well be off and the only lighting you have is the DJs if they have them and if they are using them so you may not have a choice but to use something on camera. Dance floors around here aren't always square. Some are rectangular and big, I mean BIG! so a couple of off camera lights aren't going to cover the floor anyway.
I always tell my brides and grooms during the first meeting that I will be using a small on camera light since my camera doesn't see in the dark and since most of my work is referral or they've been to a wedding I did and saw me, they know and understand.
My take is this, while many hate oncamera lighting sometimes there is no other way and if you control the light with proper filtration and dimming no one will say anything.
Just my way of doing it YMMV

[Alec Moreno]

Comer 1800 for me as well.

[Mark Von Lanken]

Originally Posted by Jeff Brewer

I have two Comer 1800's and must say I love them!...
...My only wish is that I had a way to power them on and off from a remote or from the bottom of the stand...

Hi Jeff,

The Comer 1800 is great.

Contact Darrell at this site.
The Wireless Wedding Reception Light - PRICING INFORMATION

I use Darrell's Reception Lights with traditonal fixtures, but Darrell made a custom cable for me to power the Comer 1800 with the remote and battery system. It works great.