Cheap light kits - panel vs. fresnel?

G

Greg_E

Veteran
We are in a crunch to spend some money before it is frozen, and for many years we've been discussing that we need to go to LED lighting. We currently have 12 kits with Tota and Omni lights, they are big, heavy, and cut into class time to cool down so they can be packed away.

We were looking at cheap Dracast, iKan Mylo, maybe Aputure LS-20 mini, or maybe even the Lowel kits. About $1000 each kit of 3 lights is the maximum we can go. They want batteries, but batteries on cables don't seem to be a popular choice (not sure why, would work for me). That pretty much cuts things to the iKan and Dracast panels or Dracast fresnels.

Anyone have suggestions for cheap lights that will take some punishment from students? We have some older iKAN lights that we use as camera mounted lights, all plastic and have survived so far. And iKan has been really responsive to questions and the little bit of support we've needed.

Hoping to buy at least 8 kits this summer, and maybe a few more in September when the new budget rolls around.
 
I doubt you'll find any useful Leds that are smaller and lighter than Lowels. I have some Dracast units that are built like tanks, but they're heavier than Lowels, with substantially less output
What types of lighting setups are the students going to be doing?
what ISOs? Do they have to fight window light?
 
I have eight Litepanel Inca 6 LED Fresnels I am selling. They are fantastic. Each is 3200K. No color shift on dimming. DMX-able. All in pelican cases. Let me know if you are interested. They were about $2K per fixture. I am selling for $500 each.

Throwing in the pelican(s) if either purchasing 2, 6, or 8 units.
 
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These are ENG cameras, so no idea what the real or estimated ISO will be. We decided on the Mylo mb4 kits based on features and they come with batteries/chargers. But of course, the administration put a hold on purchases so now we need to convince them to allow it.

In general, just basic 3 point lighting of an object or person, nothing beyond the basics because we just don't have the gear, and the students don't have the room in a vehicle to haul more stuff. We really need the LED lights because it takes too much time from class to let the Omni and tota light cool down at the end. That and the entire industry is moving to LED as fast as they can so we need to keep up.
 
ReelWorksMedia said:
I have eight Litepanel Inca 6 LED Fresnels I am selling.
Click to expand...

Those Inca 6 lights would be a great deal if they were Sola 6 lights instead. Heck, I'd probably buy a couple at that price. But in this day and age, it's mistake to invest in fake tungsten lighting. As Greg says, the the entire industry is moving to LED as fast as they can -- but mostly towards daylight balanced LED lights, not tungsten. Unless you only work in dark studios with no windows, the advantages of daylight balanced lights vs. tungsten lighting is HUGE. I wouldn't even invest in bi-color lights if they cost extra or sacrificed any fire power. I've been 100% daylight LED since 2010 and never looked back.
 
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We are going bi-color, but we do end up in a lot of mixed light situations. My other thought was all daylight because you don't lose that much light with an orange filter. I have a feeling that we really need larger panels or I'd like some of the better cheap fresnels.
 
I've yet to see a led fresnel that didn't disappoint me regarding light output.

Maybe look at something like the Falconeyes RX-18TD in a kit , those look to be at a good price for the output
 
I have a four LED fresnels that constantly amaze me at how handy they are:
Litepanels Sola4
Litepanels Sola4+
Litepanels Sola6 (very powerful)
Litepanels Sola ENG

All are daylight balanced with 0-100% dimmers, focusing controls, barndoors, and I almost always run them from batteries, except for the Sola6. I couldn't light an interview -- or a lot of other setups without at least one of them. It'd be like having a tool box that was missing a screwdriver if I didn't have a fresnel. You absolutely must have at least one fresenel in your kit or you don't really have a full light kit.
 
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