Advise on buying light kit

Hey bus,

Glad to hear you like your DVcreator 55 kit. I helped design the kit to include the components that we use in our "Secrets of Shooting Great DV" workshop. As you know, the kits are pretty versatile, fast to set-up/break down and easy to transport.

Now on the pricing you're comparing a hard case price vs. a soft case price so to be fair.

B&H Photo Price is $1209.50 for the hard case, instead of $1084.50 - But that woulda been a heck of a deal! Check it out http://www.bhphotovideo.com/bnh/con...s&Q=&sku=285927&is=REG&addedTroughType=search

And we'll throw in a free $99 DV Enlightenment DVD


Cheers,

Guy
 
Could someone give me a link to a good dimmer because I'm not exactly sure what they look like. The place I work at has a large dimmer box used for studio shoots, but that's obviously really expensive. Do I want dimmers that are made for individual lights?


Also, is B&H the best place to buy grip gear?


Mike
 
If you're looking for a extremley cheap alternative.
http://www.rostronics.com/
Go here, they have pretty good customer support in my opinion.
The light themselves are not exactly the most sturdiest things in the world. I'm very careful with mine. I have not had any problems yet.
Some people reccomend rostronics, some are highly against it. It's just a cheap alternative to learn lighting before buying something really pro.

Also, I don't really see alot of dimmer boxes. You can make your own dimmer switch at home depot.
 
Guy_Cochran said:
Now on the pricing you're comparing a hard case price vs. a soft case price so to be fair.

B&H Photo Price is $1209.50 for the hard case, instead of $1084.50 - But that woulda been a heck of a deal!
Click to expand...

Ah, my mistake - I didn't see that it was a soft case. But, actually, I don't know if the hard case is all that great a deal - at least the one that I got, which is fairly flimsy. For traveling overseas in a couple of weeks I had to refit my 1650 Pelican case to accommodate the light kit, since it seemed highly unlikely that the hard case from Lowell would hold up.

But beyond that, I do like the kit a lot, and thank you for helping to design it! Since I've already bought the kit, can you tell me how I might get a hold of the DV Enlightenment DVD?
 
Mike:

Why make a dimmer when Harbor Freight has some really nice ones (1500 watt) that they have had on special for $12.00? The are actually router speed controls but work the same as a dimmer. I bought half a dozen of them and use them a LOT and they are the best deal I have found this year on any gear.

http://da.harborfreight.com/cpisearch/web/search.do?keyword=router+speed+control&Submit=Go

I am a cheapskate and I LOVE finding non-video stuff that works well for video.

Best,

Dan
 
Dan,

that is exactly what I was looking for. A cheap alternative that does the trick.

Thanks a lot,

One other question: the Arri D series kits are supposedly better for digital video cameras. I am under the impression that since digital video cameras are more light sensitive, the total wattage of these D series have been reduced - with no loss of control or light quality. But these packs still don't seem as good at the Softbank IV kit (tecnically not designed for digital video cameras). Any thoughts?

Mike

Mike
 
Hi Mike:

You are correct, the D kits are just smaller instruments with smaller wattages. They are a bit lighter and cheaper, they don't look bad but I think that they come with a xtra small Chimera, which in my opinion, does not look nearly as good as a small Chimera.

Either would probably work for you but the Softbank IV will give you more possibilities for larger setups, which in my mind is always a good thing.

Best,

Dan
 
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