Lighting kits

[Phil]

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=3860&item=38162480 25&rd=1&ssPageName=WDVW

any good? I know, normally I post an ebay auction, and you guys tell me how bad it is :) and the next thing I know I go out and buy a ME66 K6 with Carbon Fiber pole... ;D

But I need a lighting kit, and was wondering if this one would be better than a "Lowes" or "Home Depot" kit...for now?

Thanks

[Barry_Green]

I know people have been asking about the Briteks on various boards, but I haven't heard from anyone who's bought 'em yet.

They look comparable to the JTL's. Two advantages to the Britek: bigger softboxes (32x32 instead of 24x32) and a wheeled carry bag. A little more expensive per light, but still, two softbox setups for under $400 is hard to argue with.

Somebody's gonna have to buy this rig and report back on how useful/pro it is! The price is irresistible, and it looks like it'd be infinitely more usable than the worklight solution, although to be fair it's a lot more money than the worklights...

[Barry_S]

Barry's right about these being infinitely preferable to worklights. It looks like someone took the worklight design a step further and added a stand mount and brackets for light modifiers. You can't beat the price and they're probably fine for light use. With a little velcro and some plastic board you could add some mini barn doors to the softboxes or rig a holder for an egg crate. Flush front softboxes tend to really spill light, but this is just a suggestion. Even as-is, this is orders of magnitude more useful than raw worklights.

[Phil]

Calculated expenses on a worklight kit, to get anything good, I was spending near 300...so the price isn't too far off.

Thanks for the help guys, I'm going to put some thought into this one...
I wish I could buy them, and ship them to one of you to test! :)

[Terry_Lasater]

I agree with Barry_S's comment on the need to control the spill of those flush front softboxes.

At the very least, you could make some 'flags' from cardboard and spring-clamp them on a light stand and position them near the sides (or top or bottom) of the softboxes.

Remember, it's not only about where you put light but its also about where you don't put light. A nice tonal range is most pleasant.

Chiaroscuro, baby!

[taubkin]

On the subject of soft light kits...

I heard good things here on the JTL Everlights. how do they perform without their softboxes (Open faced)? Are they decent for improvising harder more focused lights?

[Barry_Green]

The JTL's are not supposed to be used without the softboxes, unless you get an additional part (a reflector). *I haven't used them in that configuration, but I wouldn't expect them to perform much better than a worklight. *Better than nothing, certainly... but not much.

Those Briteks at least look like they have barn doors for a little bit of light control. *If they're focusable on top of that, it might make for a decent low-cost hard/soft light solution.

[Scott_Spears]

Those soft lights are way better than work lights. Video loves soft light.

Scott

[taubkin]

From the photos I've seen, I'm sure they aren't focusable... In fact the briteks seem to be nothing more than spiced up set lights...

[Phil]

Final Verdict? "Worth a shot?" or "Better not"?

Below is about what I'd be buying instead. This is Daniel Runyons set up, it seems to be the cheapest and most accessible...

2 1500 Watt Worklights
2 500 Watt floor or table top lights with little built in stands w/handles and adjustable angles
2 Mainstays Home Garment Racks w/ friction bars adjustable 38 to 69 inches high x 36 to 66 inches wide
- 2 frosted shower curtain liners
- 2 white twin size bedsheets
- 2 sets of shower curtain rings
Grand Total $228.34

[Barry_S]

I'd go for the Briteks over a set of worklights. The Briteks aren't focusable, but to me it's no big deal with open-faced lights. They have barndoors--an essential basic light control, and softboxes--very useful for soft wraparound lighting. Even with the improvised modifiers listed in Daniel's kit, you're going to be spilling light all over the place.

Don't expect great build quality with the Briteks, but with a little creativity, they should make a good starter kit.

[Rogue Crew]

I know people have been asking about the Briteks on various boards, but I haven't heard from anyone who's bought 'em yet....

Actually Barry, that fixture doesn't look like any Britek I've ever seen, either on eBay store or on their own website. It might be worth sending a message to the eBay seller and asking.

[Barry_S]

I thought the exact same thing and sure enough--Britek doesn't list it on their web site. However, if you look at the large version of the eBay pic, you can clearly see the Britek logo molded into the handle of the light. Of course what's the difference really? It's an inexpensive light, probably made in China. It's not like Britek has that great of a name :-)

[Raptor3400]

I just bought 2 Britek 1K's with the 32X32 softboxes and I have to say they look pretty good. I havent used them on a shoot cuz I just got them, but just testing them, I think they're a good deal. Don't seem to get as hot as some other 1K's ive used. I dont think they offer any spill control though, so I might try the cardboard thing. 8) One other thing, the softboxes are pretty heavy, so it really makes them front heavy, so you might need to sandbag the stands a little.

[Zoomforce]

I bought a whole crapload of Britek stuff last week.. only because I bought the 600w new version 2 weeks ago and was very very impressed,, this is the new Britek lights, really nice barndoors and focusable. This new version is heads and heels over the last version

http://www.rostronics.com/proddetail.asp?prod=G600W

I really need to say.. for a $110 light it looks like britek got it right.

that rostronics place is really cool, they ship the same day as well, and are very friendly.

http://pix.auctiva.com/pix/11/69/34/600light.jpg

[taubkin]

Looks very good!

Tell me are those gel holding clips on the barndoor? If they are, great concept!

[Barry_Green]

I used a Britek set a couple of days ago. For a low-budget kit, they were not bad at all. The light itself is basically a glorified "worklight", a non-focusable open-face unit. The build quality seemed a little lightweight, but there were some nice touches (like the raised offset rear handle, which lets you manipulate/position the light without getting burned!)

The softboxes were very large -- I think 32 x 32. The stands were quite lightweight and light-duty, but they managed to hold up the softbox and light head, so they did the job.

The obvious comparison is to the JTL's. They're about the same, with what differences I saw going in the Britek light's favor: the Briteks can take hotter lamps (1000 watt), the softboxes are bigger (32x32 instead of 24x24, so almost twice as big = much softer light). The Briteks can take barn doors, and be used as regular open-face lights without needing an additional "reflector" assembly. I think the JTL stands are better than the Briteks.

If the price is comparable, I'd get these Briteks over the JTL Everlights now.

The drawbacks are that they're very hot (as all tungsten lights are) and there's a very lengthy assembly/disassembly period for the softboxes, etc. If you've got the money, but not the time, skip these and go for a CaseLite or a Kino Diva. If you don't have the money, but do have the time, these Britek and JTL lights are about six hundred times better than homemade worklight kits and they work really well for the price.

[Rogue Crew]

...I bought the 600w new version 2 weeks ago and was very very impressed...

Jarred,

What is the quality of the softbox and the light from it? Can you attach the softbox with the barndoors still in place?

[Zoomforce]

Barry.. those you used are the old Briteks... these new ones really kick ass, and are focusable. They are also made out of an injection moulded composite carbon compound and stay relatively cool and cool down very fast.

Yes those are Gel clips.. to be honest I didnt use them, Clothes pins are deeply imbred in me.

Softbox Is coming actually tommorow.. that was in the second order I placed.

I cant stress enough, that these things really are nice... I would have no problem paying $300 for them.

[Phil]

I'm a clothes pin user too. Thanks for the heads up on those lights, if you recommend them I'll have to pick up a couple, they look nice!!

How much is the soft box? How much is shipping on these?

[Zoomforce]

Im in canada and I paid $30 to ship softboxes, lights, stands and cases via UPS, so Its pretty reasonable. * Believe it or not he has Air cushioned 7' stands for $30. .. good for tweenies. The softbox 24" x 24" was 60 bucks If I remember correctly.

[Rogue Crew]

Jarred, Raptor,

Any problems with light leaks? I doesn't look like a tight fit at the head.

[Rogue Crew]

From the photos I've seen, I'm sure they aren't focusable... In fact the briteks seem to be nothing more than spiced up set lights...

The information on the Rostronics site claims that they ARE focusable anf the picture shows a focus knob on the bottom.

[Barry_Green]

Yeah, these Briteks are certainly not the ones I was talking about. What I was using looked almost exactly like a repackaged halogen worklight. These look much more useful...

[Zoomforce]

yeah.. im telling you I was completely shocked.. I bought one 600 at first because I was actually gonna steal the barndoors for something else, but these ones really are pretty sweet. In fact, compared to the open faced Arri 600watts, IMHO theses are better, even down to the barndoors. They musta hired some new guys down at Britek because its a completely different level of light.

Light leaks are pretty much the same as an Arri.. I mean of course there is a little because there is a tray for scrims there.

[Guest]

Don't know if people are still checking on this thread, but I've got a question.

Are there scrims for the new Britek lights? Also, how do they compare to Lowell Omni and DP kits?

thanks.

[Barry_S]

Finding scrims shouldn't be a big deal--maybe Jarred can tell you if a 5" or whatever sized scrim will fit. I've used Lowell Omnis, but there's nothing special about them. They take a maximum 500 watt bulb as opposed to the 600 watts of the Britek. The Omni with barn doors is more expensive. The equivalent Arrilite would be over $300 and I agree the Arrilites are nothing wonderful. Why not buy one or two of these and see how you like them? For $110 with barndoors, you can't beat the price.

[Zoomforce]

Yes.. it takes scrims as well as Softbox Mounts. Tell me what size of light you want and I will tell you the size of scrim.

Also, is anyone here interested in the Briteks? I can beep Rostronics and see if they will give us a DVXuser member discount.

[Phil]

Im in canada and I paid $30 to ship softboxes, lights, stands and cases via UPS, so Its pretty reasonable. * Believe it or not he has Air cushioned 7' stands for $30. .. good for tweenies. The softbox 24" x 24" was 60 bucks If I remember correctly.

Wait a sec...You're Canadian??!!

[Phil]

;D Definitely find out about a discount and let us know...Please.

[Zoomforce]

I just talked to them.. and they are working out a special price.. I should have the breakdown in a few minutes.

[Phil]

Wait a sec...You're Canadian??!!

Not even a smiley from you Jared?? :(

[Zoomforce]

oh ha ha I dont know what I am anymore :)

Anyways.. DVXuser discount applies to rostronics.com now, you can go there and enter DVXuser in the coupon box and save an instant 5%. :) not bad considering thier prices.

[Phil]

Nice. Every little bit helps!

Thanks Jared for the deal.

[dmitriandsnow]

Hey Jarred and all who had experience with Britek. Take a look at this!
http://www.briteklight.com/qw1000.html
Three barndoors for each light, two umbrellas, bags for everything. Add on your size Soft boxes and you got yourself a 3k kit. Anyone had experience with that exact set up i find that to be most profitable right now...

[Zoomforce]

Thats the old ones.. I think Barry may of used them. The build quality is nowhere near the new models. Funny enough, those lamps in that link are called "white lighting" but have a color temp of 3200k :)

ask rostronics about thier new 1k's that have dual lamps in them that you can turn on and off to get 500w/1000w output without a color temp change.

They also have some very good kit deals, with softboxes, stands etc.

[DVX100Shooter]

How Legit is that Rostronic's place? $135 for a thousand watter??? $110 for a 600 watt light? Am I reading this correctly? Is this stuff new or used? Good Quality or bad? It must be pretty good stuff if Jarred bought a boatload of stuff from them. Hmmmm I may have to consider getting some stuff from them.

[Zoomforce]

Hey I know how you feel.. I ordered one 600 watt as a test.. Got it, brand new, and it kicks ass, so I ordered an entire kit from them. Its not that they are cheap... its just that they are priced more "realistic", as when you think about it there is no reason a 600watt light should cost $300., when a halogen worklight at homedepot that is basically the same thing costs without barndoors cost $15

[Guest]

Jared, thanks for the discount.

I just ordered my Britek kit. I'll be like a little kid checking my mail box for the secret decoder ring.

Also, what size scrims for the 600W lamp?

Thanks.

[iml]

about to order a kit from Rostronics I guess if we get a discount

are the kits the best route to go?

[Guest]

I just ordered my "kit" yesterday. Basically, if you send an email to Rostronics.com they will configure any kit you want. I got
2 600W, 2 barn doors, 2 stands, 2 soft boxes for $360 and then I applied the 5% discount to that. Shipping was round $30. Tom was very helpful and friendly.


I consider that a very good deal and the think the lights will work nicely for my purposes.

[Zoomforce]

you just put DVXuser in the discount box to get the discount.. and Im glad you guys are having good experiences.. Tom is a kick ass guy.

[Barry_Green]

Looks irresistible. I just ordered a couple of the 250's, I'll let you know what I think when I get 'em. I like the Lowel Pro-Light okay, but for a focusable 250 with barn doors it's twice as expensive as the Briteks. Two Britek 250's with doors (and lamps? Wasn't clear on that) cost (after DVXUser discount!) $150. How can you beat that?

[Rogue Crew]

Two quick questions:

- When we order these lights, should we be ordering at the Rostronics home site or their eBay site?

- Has anyone ordered the lights with the stands and are they any good? The stands, I mean.

Thanx

[iml]

not sure if anyone here does digital still shots but I am wondering if 2 250s would be enough for portrait shots in addition to standard video interviews etc etc...

[Woodson]

so whats good to get...

I'm planning to spend about $200-$400 on lighting kit that will last me for a long time.

[dvlisarrr]

so whats good to get...

I'm planning to spend about $200-$400 on lighting kit that will last me for a long time.

Ummm... have you read this thread.... ? Rostronics are tough to beat and a fabulous price point! * :D

[Woodson]

Ummm... have you read this thread.... ? *Rostronics are tough to beat and a fabulous price point! * :D

Definetly agree... what kind of Rostronics though?

[Barry_Green]

Okay, I just got the Britek 250's.

At first glance I was a little skeptical -- the stand mount is a plastic thing that seems to combine the tilt, pan, and grip all in one... what's the big idea?

Then I used it -- it's cute as heck! The stand mount is actually quite clever, simple to use, it's one knob that does all the functions -- quite crafty!

It's a focusable unit, not quite like a fresnel but close enough. The pattern doesn't vary very much, but it's enough to give you some much-needed control. And the unit stays cool! That is so important -- I left it on long after my pro-light would be frying eggs on its surface, and the Britek was cool to the touch.

Comparing it directly to the Lowel Pro-Light: the Pro-Light is much smaller, the Britek is a lot bigger. As for focusing, the Pro-Light has a lot more range, can go much wider and a little tighter. And the Pro-Light has a lot more punch -- I tried the Britek pointing at a white wall and the DVX gave me readings of f/5.6 to f/9.6 (wide to spot) whereas the Pro-Light, also a 250-watt light, gave me readings of f/11 to f/16. Truth be told I usually find the Pro-Light too strong for the situations I want to use it in, so the Briteks being wider and smoother and less focused is just fine, but if someone's looking for a tight powerful beam from a small fixture, the Pro-Light definitely splashes more light on the scene.

The Britek has a much larger face to it, which should mean slightly softer light, but if you want soft light get a softbox, these are hard lights we're talking about.

The barn doors on the Britek are so superior to the Lowel that it's laughable. I hate the Lowel barn door contraption, the Britek has a good, large, solid, usable, fully adjustable barn door system, and they include gel clips right on 'em! Nice design.

Lastly, the Briteks included bulbs and barn doors and cost about half what the Pro-Light does.

For such an incredibly inexpensive product, I'm quite impressed (based off initial reactions). Obviously I haven't used them in any sort of production yet, I just got the things, but we're shooting something Mon/Tue where they should probably get a workout, and we'll see how they hold up.

However, with quality lights like these available for $76 (after DVXUser discount), let me loudly proclaim: WORKLIGHTS ARE DEAD. Anyone who tries to light a scene using worklights instead of these Briteks is being just plain silly. The Briteks are very impressive for the price. I may pick up a few 600's to round out my tungsten kit now, and at less than half the price of the B&M 650's, it's quite compelling. And the B&M's were less than half the cost of Mole's or Arri's. These small Briteks are not fresnels (meaning, they don't have a fresnel lens), and I don't think the 600's do either, but for the price they appear to be a fantastic deal.

[Woodson]

okay.. Britek 250's are the way to go!

[Phil]

(Question for Barry and lighting pro's)

Great! Thanks for the review Barry. If you say:


Then I used it -- it's cute as heck! *

Then I gotta get them! :)

Actually...I'm using a studio's lights right now. They're REALLY expensive...Which means two things:
1. If I break them, I have to buy them, and they still won't be mine!
2. And since they're not mine, I have to ask everytime I need to use them.

So do you think I should keep using those because they're probably better than these? Or would you buy a Britek kit?

Thanks for your help.

(Just looking for opinions.)

[Barry_S]

AmPro--

No contest for me there. If it's between borrowing top quality lighting instruments for free and buying cheap open-faced lights--the first option is a lot more appealing :). You don't need to own everything--you just need access to everything. The exception would be if the borrowing is causing friction between you and the lender or is extremely inconvenient.

[Phil]

Word. Thanks Barry. If anything it'll teach me to treat everything with extreme care...even more than I do now, right?

Thanks.

[Barry_Green]

The Briteks are not superb lights, but they are superbly inexpensive. *What I'm saying is, nobody should ever buy a Home Depot worklight again, now that the Briteks are available.

I certainly wouldn't recommend them over traditional professional lights like Mole's or Arri's. *But then again, at 1/5 the price, they do warrant a look.

If you can use professional instruments, do so. *If you're looking to put a kit together of your own, and you can't afford professional instruments, these are quite a bit of bang for the buck, and not much buck at that. *I may get a few more to supplement my kit, but then again I've got Mole, B&M, Ianiro and LightTech fresnels, HMI's and fluo's. *I don't know that I would want my whole kit made up of nothing but Briteks, especially as I've only used 'em a couple of times... but if all you had was $500, you could put together a decent kit from Briteks.

And they're definitely more useable and cost-effective than Lowels.

But Lowels are a lot smaller, if that's a factor.

[Phil]

Gotcha. These are the cheapest, good quality lights, still being best bang for your buck. Thanks Barry.

[Barry_S]

...What I'm saying is, nobody should ever buy a Home Depot worklight again, now that the Briteks are available...

Amen to that! If you need to buy lights--the Briteks are worth considering. I get tired of seeing some people only offer expensive options for equipment recommendations. The majority of us have some real budget constraints and real creativity is finding good low-priced options. It's good to see what the options are for *your* budget.

[Barry_Green]

Yes, these Briteks are fantastic for people with limited means. They act like real professional lights, and they have controllability, and they don't get too hot... my only real question about them will be durability, we'll see how they hold up in a few years. Mole lights are a buy-it-and-forget-it prospect, some fixtures have been in use for, what, 30 years or more? I don't know how durable the Briteks will prove to be, only time will tell, but I'd much rather see someone try to learn lighting using these rather than cobbling together some crappy worklight solution. After all, most of the art of lighting is CONTROLLING light, and worklights offer no ability to control light. The new Briteks (the box says "BriFocus" on it) offer focusability, barn doors, gel clips, and a frame that could accomodate scrims. I think someone could actually learn the art of lighting using these things, and that's a good thing.

I'm certainly not above using cheap equipment, if it gets the job done (I still use a skateboard dolly I made for $60!) The Briteks look like the best entry-level light system I've seen yet. If they prove to be durable as well, they'll get a high recommendation from me for anyone wanting to learn lighting or who's just starting out and on a limited budget.

[mc]

I'm certainly not above using cheap equipment, if it gets the job done (I still use a skateboard dolly I made for $60!) *


pics? I want to build one and I have been collecting info lately...


thread hijack attempt!

[Barry_Green]

I posted the link to the plans earlier in a different thread...

[Rogue Crew]

Barry, do the Briteks have any kind of lens in front of the bulb? Safety glass, even?

Either way, what's to prevent you from buying a "replacement" fresnel lens from another manufacturer and putting it on the Britek? Most of th sizes a pretty standard, otherwise, you could slip it into the scrim holder, which I noticed the Britex has.

Whaddya think?

[Barry_Green]

They have a sheet of glass in front of the bulb, might be UV protection, might just be an optical flat. The only initial annoying thing about the Briteks, to me, is that the glass is fastened with like four phillips-head screws. When it comes time to change bulbs, you can't just pop a bulb out and put a new one in, you have to actually unscrew the glass first. Even the Lowel allows quick access to the bulb. Oh well, it's a very minor thing, just curious.

I don't know if there are accessory fresnel lenses that would work with these or not, but it's possible you could mount something in the scrim holder, I guess...

[Rogue Crew]

It might make for an interesting weekend project, not that I don't already have enough of those.

Barry, can you give me a couple of dimensions (inches or mm)?
- center to center of two opposing screwheads
- overall interior width of the scrim holder
- interior depth of the scrim holder

Modern short focus fresnels are made of a polycarbonate, so they are easy enough to drill. We already know that there is a focusing mechanism and that has to be lamp and reflector moving together since the glass is fixed. And if they used machine screws instead of the wood-type screws, then they could be replaced with knurled finger screws.

This has possibilities. Now where did I put the Professional Lighting Sourcebook.....

[Barry_Green]

The lamp and reflector don't move together. The lamp moves, the reflector doesn't...

The gear's all packed up for a shoot. I could maybe get to it on Wednesday, so if anyone else wants to answer and help Rogue Crew out, please do...

[araujofh]

So which of the kits do you guys advise?

I was thinking of buying one of the Lowel kits, but since I read this post, I just got sort of confused.

So, which kit do you guys advise? In terms of Britek kits and Lowel kits.

All the best

Fidel.

[Barry_Green]

Only go with Lowel if you need tiny sized lights. The Briteks spank the Lowels as far as usability and price.

[araujofh]

So what sort of kit should I put together?
I mean what sort of lights should I include in the kit.


I found this on the web: http://www.skaeser.com/continuous_lt_kits.html

But don't know if any of those kits is what I should really buy.

I just want to put together a kit for low budget productions.

Thanks in advance

Fidel.

[araujofh]

Would one this be handy in the kit too?
http://www.shutterbug.net/test_reports/0699sb_britek/

Thanks in advance

Fidel.

[Barry_Green]

Those Dayphotos would be nice, if they existed. They were discontinued by Britek, so you can't buy them anymore.

I'd say a reasonable kit would include two Britek 250's and two or three Britek 600's, all with barn doors, two with softboxes, all with stands. You could handle quite a few circumstances with a kit like that.

[araujofh]

Thanks Barry!

Is there an equivalent to the Dayphoto?

All the best

Fidel.

[Beat Takeshi]

Which stands do you use from them? Im getting ready to order some light but wasnt sure if i needed the top o' da line stands for the 650s.

[HorseFilms]

I can't speak for the other stands they offer, but I went with the heavy duty stands (the $36 variety) and they are built like tanks. I could easily beat 6 or 7 dozen people to death with them without worry. For the extra couple dollars, I think that was the right way to go.

[Barry_Green]

Is there an equivalent to the Dayphoto?
There are many other HMI systems out there... but "equivalent" as far as equivalent in price? Not by a country mile. Most other HMI systems are four to eight times as expensive as the Dayphoto system was.

Still don't know why they discontinued it, either the product wasn't up to snuff or their marketing totally missed the boat. A $750 HMI with stand & softbox? I'd buy a dozen of 'em! :)

[araujofh]

There are many other HMI systems out there... but "equivalent" as far as equivalent in price? Not by a country mile. Most other HMI systems are four to eight times as expensive as the Dayphoto system was.


Not really in price. I was talking about the same effect. But, HMIs are expensive. So, I guess I'll go just with the ones you have advised, since I don't think I am going to be using HMIs at the moment.



Still don't know why they discontinued it, either the product wasn't up to snuff or their marketing totally missed the boat. A $750 HMI with stand & softbox? I'd buy a dozen of 'em! :)


Yes, they are very cheap. It is a shame.

Thanks for the suggestion.

All the best

Fidel.

[Zoomforce]

yeah they are jewels to find on ebay everyonce in a blue moon.. it looks like Britek totally overhauled thier product line though so perhaps there will be a new system soon ??? ???

[LUXGAP]

Looking at Ebay, a seller, Saferseas96t4 has the following light kit for sale: http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&rd=1&item=3830186106&ssPage Name=STRK:MEWA:IT

Does anyone here have this kit, would you recommend it?

Thanks

[Barry_Green]

Those are Briteks, but they're not the ones we've been raving about. Those are just open-face units, whereas what we've been talking about are the BriFocus focusable lights.

[araujofh]

Does anyone know of a Britek supplier in the UK?

Thanks in advance

Fidel.