Black and white video...
- Thread starter Yfnb707
- Start date
PerroneFord
Deals in Lead
1. Does black and white need lighting? Same amount color does.
2. Would the ql1000 light kit do the job? Well I had to google the ql1000, but after looking at it, that light kit will rob you of your money and make you look like a noob. Seriously, don't buy crap. The fact that the lights have and need a built in FAN should be a tip off that they are garbage.
2. Would the ql1000 light kit do the job? Well I had to google the ql1000, but after looking at it, that light kit will rob you of your money and make you look like a noob. Seriously, don't buy crap. The fact that the lights have and need a built in FAN should be a tip off that they are garbage.
Paul Hudson
Vacuum Tube Member
Peronne Is absolutely right don't wast your money on the inferior "junk". You are better of buying quality used lighting from ebay or others.
As far as lighting for B&W it often requires more care than color. Review old films and you will see the attention to detail. The rich blacks and the bright whites, this cannot be obtained by playing in the middle of the grey scale.
As far as lighting for B&W it often requires more care than color. Review old films and you will see the attention to detail. The rich blacks and the bright whites, this cannot be obtained by playing in the middle of the grey scale.
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So what lights should i buy? For a reasonable amount?
PerroneFord
Deals in Lead
Well,
In the words of a very powerful former speaker... "That is unknowable".
What may be "reasonable" to us, may perhaps be totally unreasonable to you. And I suspect this is going to be the case.
Second, good and effective lighting calls for a number of different kinds of tools. As do most jobs. If you asked us what clothes to buy we might ask if you live in Alaska or Miami. And so with lights... what are you trying to light?
Lighting a person sitting at a table is vastly different than lighting a scene in a gymnasium or abandoned building. Lighting someone working outside during the day is very different than lighting someone at a dinner table. And it requires different kinds of lights.
So tell us what you want to do, and we can help with what you should buy. You can also use the resources this page provides by clicking each of the yellow links provided as sticky topics at the top of the lighting section where you posted your original message.
RyanT
Veteran
Get some china balls to start out, with varying wattages of bulbs. These can be had for pretty cheap and will give you a nice soft light. They don't pack very much punch, but for small interiors they can be nice. You will need some duvetyne or rip stop nylon to drape around the china ball to control it a bit, but again, you can get a really good set of china balls for under $100
Otherwise, get a few par cans. They're 50 bucks a pop and give you a whole heck of a lot of punch. Bounce them off of a white card, shoot them through diffusion, or heck, you can even use them direct and they look nice. Until you get a bit more experienced and can really appreciate a nice light that you can control, they're good for all around stuff.
Those last two options would be good for interiors...mostly during the night time since they're tungsten balanced...You can gel them though and use them for day time interiors, but you decrease their output a bit by doing that.
If you want to shoot outdoors what you can get is a bunch of showcards or beadboard.
http://www.filmtools.com/showcard.html
If you can manage to get insurance somehow, I would recommend renting a few times. Gives you a chance to use some very expensive stuff for a fraction of the price.
Although Perrone is right that it's difficult to tell you what you should get exactly, this will get you pretty far and it's the cheapest way to do it. I know it's not the fanciest gear, but it's by no means junk. I know a lot of good DP's who keep a bunch of china balls and a few par cans in their kit.
But do yourself a favor and get yourself the Set Lighting Technician's handbook. That'll help you a lot in understanding what each of these lights do and what they're capable of. Good luck!
Otherwise, get a few par cans. They're 50 bucks a pop and give you a whole heck of a lot of punch. Bounce them off of a white card, shoot them through diffusion, or heck, you can even use them direct and they look nice. Until you get a bit more experienced and can really appreciate a nice light that you can control, they're good for all around stuff.
Those last two options would be good for interiors...mostly during the night time since they're tungsten balanced...You can gel them though and use them for day time interiors, but you decrease their output a bit by doing that.
If you want to shoot outdoors what you can get is a bunch of showcards or beadboard.
http://www.filmtools.com/showcard.html
If you can manage to get insurance somehow, I would recommend renting a few times. Gives you a chance to use some very expensive stuff for a fraction of the price.
Although Perrone is right that it's difficult to tell you what you should get exactly, this will get you pretty far and it's the cheapest way to do it. I know it's not the fanciest gear, but it's by no means junk. I know a lot of good DP's who keep a bunch of china balls and a few par cans in their kit.
But do yourself a favor and get yourself the Set Lighting Technician's handbook. That'll help you a lot in understanding what each of these lights do and what they're capable of. Good luck!
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