First few lights

those are decent lights. and like folks say a lot, cool lights is a reputable company.
but thats not a lot of light. all youre really going to be able to do with them is head and shoulder interviews or very, VERY small scene fill.
 
no, i wouldnt buy that kit. unless it was absolutely all i could afford. primarily because the price is to good to be true.
and things that are too good to be true - usually ARE. it also looks pretty flimsy.

a similar kit from even a somewhat un-respected manufacturer is nearly 5x that price:
http://www.lincostore.com/product/Britek-FK2800-1618.html

i had the big brother of that kit for a few years:
http://www.lincostore.com/product/Britek-FK8000B-1679.html
and it worked ok. was a LOT of light for the money and it paid for itself like 6x-8x over. but it was a huge, HUGE pain in the butt to set up in the field. as most budget softbox kits are. usually better suited for studio use...

if you can afford it. id get that 2x cool light and a 4x version, then maybe a lowel 250 prolight as a hair light. i used that type of setup as a 3-point stand up kit for a local tv client for about 3 years with complete success.

but if you buy a budget softbox kit. go with the briteks, any cheaper and you risk just throwing your money away...
 
actually i think i might just rent local lights instead lol
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now thats something to think about. its what i do for higher end shoots.

the only problem ive ever had with renting is availability. there are times when you'll get a call from a client for a shoot TODAY and you may not have time to rent them or they may not be available.

OR on the other end of that discussion. what if its a budget client and they cant afford the stuff the rental house has? thats why i keep a set of small LEDs and 3 lowel pro 250s around.
 
Unless you are going to always be doing green screen I wouldn't buy your first lights based off one shoot you have to do. Rent for this particular project.

If you need lights and want to start building a good kit and want to learn to light well, I would go with fresnels over anything else. Buy some second hand Arri or Mole 300s, 640s, and 1ks and go to town. You can blast them through diffusion, gel them up easy, scrim then down easy, bounce them off whiteboard, have a wonderful shadow quality and punch, and it is a great tool to start learning light. Fluorescent, LED, HMI, daylight balanced and so on sounds wonderful, and really a good kit will have flavors of all of them (but then you should buy a grip truck and decide if you are a gaffer or DP) but to start out and learn on, fresnels.
 
im thinking
these knockoffs if they work

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Cool-Studio-...ht_2532wt_1037

or would the britek be better in your opinion?
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thats definitely a knockoff kit. but sometimes knockoffs are just fine - at least until the cheap parts start to break.

the thing about that britek kit that surprised me is that the quality and volume of light was surprisingly good. and they were very durable. i beat the crap out of them. one even fell about 8 feet off a stand and the housing broke - but it still worked like a charm.

the thing i like about williams comment is that fesnels can often be softened with diffusion or bouncing. but youre never going to sharpen a soft source ; )

only real downside of fresnels is HEAT
 
Britek is a waste of money.
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based on what data?

compared to a kino diva kit, im not a huge fan of briteks. but in a budget discussion; i have yet to see a KIT with as good or as much soft light from anyone else and be anywhere near as durable for the price of a single kino fixture.

i used them on a broadcast client for about 3 years. footage looked fine. client was happy. paid for themselves SEVERAL times over.
client was budget-strapped, and was always on the verge of bringing work in house to save money. so keeping costs down kept them as a client.
this one client alone netted me about $50k-75k each year for 3 years.

i'd hardly call that a "waste of money"
 
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Will definitely get a kit for emergency based on the coollights
im thinking of getting arri 650w and 150w?
or do you guys recommend a lowel tota kit and some softboxes?
thanks!
 
I have been looking at trying to get used arris (some 650s) or buying some 650 cool lights, cant decide though honestly, I dont know if the ARRI are worth the extra two hundred bucks a piece though :\
 
I have been looking at trying to get used arris (some 650s) or buying some 650 cool lights, cant decide though honestly,
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two COMPLETELY different lights. a cool light cant do what the arri can. and to a degree vice-versa.
dont let the numbers fool you. they arent apples to apples. 650 of one is not effectively 650 of the other...

and if you shoot ANY modern indoor offices. id go with the cool lights
 
I think the last two posts are talking about two different things. Yes the company Cool Lights carries some "hot lights" like a 650w tungsten fresnel for example and yes its roughly comparable to the Arri 650 and they are both going to emit about the same heat too:

http://www.coollights.biz/cltf0650-650w-compact-tungsten-fresnel-p-57.html

We also have something that is similar output, can be native daylight, HMI-type technology, but less heating up of the room. We call it the CDM 150 and it only draws 150w for similar type output to the 650w hot light.

http://www.coollights.biz/clmf0150-cool-lights-fresnel-p-63.html
 
Cool Lights said:
I think the last two posts are talking about two different things. Yes the company Cool Lights carries some "hot lights" like a 650w tungsten fresnel for example and yes its roughly comparable to the Arri 650 and they are both going to emit about the same heat too:

http://www.coollights.biz/cltf0650-650w-compact-tungsten-fresnel-p-57.html

We also have something that is similar output, can be native daylight, HMI-type technology, but less heating up of the room. We call it the CDM 150 and it only draws 150w for similar type output to the 650w hot light.

http://www.coollights.biz/clmf0150-cool-lights-fresnel-p-63.html
Click to expand...

No disrespect at all intended, but I have heard this, "Equivalent light output as X wattage light" description many times before. The measurements that really means the most to me are the photometrics of a light. I just completed a systematic photometric measurement of a series of lights, including many unconventional lights, that I have for a low budget/guerrilla light kit I am putting together and what I found that lamp and bulb design are what is important to the amount, and quality of, the light any given lamp/bulb combo gives at given distances. I am interested in your lights, but I can not find the photometric data for them. Is that posted on your website. If yes, do you have a link, or suggestions for finding them?
 
ok sorry to resurrect but I'm going to buy some coollights since I need some to test out different lighting schemes

definitely dimmable but would you guys recommend the portable ones or the non portable ones?
im wondering if there was a way to carry the non portable ones?

2x 2x 55 and
1x 4x 55

is what I think im going to purchase unless someone else has other recommendations?
thanks!
 
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