How about this light kit?

Depends on what you are using it for, they certainly are cheap. Those umbrellas are going to cut the amount of light on the subject a lot if you are looking for diffused lighting. Exposed hot bulbs... don't set anything (or yourself) on fire with them.

"Buy quality, and only cry once at the price. Buy cheap and cry every time you pull them out of the bag."
I think I read someone say this on this board and it couldn't be more true.
 
Ya I understand the "Buy quality, and only cry once at the price. Buy cheap and cry every time you pull them out of the bag." but these don't seem half bad and are more professional looking then work lights. My current lighting is a few clamp lights, a few old work lights, a 500 LED panel and i ordered a 200 watt CFL bulb (outputs like a 600-700 bulb) for a 30" china bulb. I could get a nice Lowel Light kit but that is the price of a 11-16mm lens which I also plan on buying. I plan on doing short narratives as hobby and some freelance work this summer after i graduate high school, so I guess corporate videos and local band music videos.
 
Maybe you could slowly build up a kit? Buying used gear here and there. There are almost always decent deals on ebay for used fresnels and most of the time people have taken good care of them. I just bough a 650w Arri, and basically if the damn delivery company hadn't bumped the package so the in-line switch cracked, it would almost be as good as new.
 
I did the same thing - a fresnel here and there and built up on used stuff. I still can't help looking on craigslist and ebay. It's like a disease! Be careful not to buy something that may need fixing that you can't fix. For instance I had to find a strain relief grommet for a pepper. Once fixed, all good. Also the bargains are few. Check coollights.biz. They have good prices on fresnels.

However if you decide to go this way, look at the soft box based ones. I have a friend who was doing a few small things for herself and she had a very limited budget. We picked up a pair of soft boxes with 250w incandescent bulbs. I think it was impact, it came with a short kicker, and they were pretty good. It's not a ton of light but it was pretty good for the small interviews she was doing.
 
Used equipment here and there on eBay is also what I've been doing as well. I just can't put up with gear that has the potential to fall apart while I'm on set. The other thing I'd recommend is looking at rental houses that are renewing equipment or going out of business. Also, sometimes rental houses will take a whole bunch of equipment from production companies that are renewing equipment or going out of business, that's how I've gotten some really good deals.
 
Moseph said:
Used equipment here and there on eBay is also what I've been doing as well. I just can't put up with gear that has the potential to fall apart while I'm on set. The other thing I'd recommend is looking at rental houses that are renewing equipment or going out of business. Also, sometimes rental houses will take a whole bunch of equipment from production companies that are renewing equipment or going out of business, that's how I've gotten some really good deals.
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I picked up a pair of totas and an omni with barndoors and the extension cords for 100 bucks plus tax from a rental house. And each came with a working bulb. Not saying Lowel is the best in the world but for 100 bucks I gave the ability to to lighting. I picked up a couple of used clamp reflector lights for $4 bucks each and a few china balls. Just need to get some bulbs for them. Gonna get a white umbrella off of ebay for $5 bucks from Hong Kong. It takes some time but I enjoy the hunt. I do it when I need a break from work.
 
Moseph said:
Used equipment here and there on eBay is also what I've been doing as well. I just can't put up with gear that has the potential to fall apart while I'm on set. The other thing I'd recommend is looking at rental houses that are renewing equipment or going out of business. Also, sometimes rental houses will take a whole bunch of equipment from production companies that are renewing equipment or going out of business, that's how I've gotten some really good deals.
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I have been doing the same thing. Put together a really nice kit really cheap with a couple Mole 1K fresnels, 420 peppers, and a couple smaller mole and arri fresnel fixtures all complete with barn doors and more, used on ebay and from film lighting company that went out of bussiness... I had to fix a switch or a wire here or there, but saved alot of money and ended up with good equipment (plus the knowledge to fix anything that could go wrong with my kit on set).

Finding cheap decent used stands was/is a PITA... had to break down and get a couple new c-stands as used ones seemed to be going for nearly the price of new ones. Still trying to find a couple more complete sets of c-stands.
 
Oliver Rush said:
Finding cheap decent used stands was/is a PITA... had to break down and get a couple new c-stands as used ones seemed to be going for nearly the price of new ones. Still trying to find a couple more complete sets of c-stands.
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I've given up on used stands. I am buying new C-stands and light stands from now on. New stands are a pleasure and a lot of the used ones I've found to be beat. I have a couple of beefy stands that are "OK" but I've found used stands to be a disappointment, and as you say, not much of a bargain. I have used fresnels. The moles are great. The peppers a little more work. But all in all, buying used fresnels has been great. I bought one used kino diva and one new one. The kino was in a studio so it wasn't that beat. I'd be wary of used kinos too because they're pretty fragile.
 
Same here, used Mole Richardson. A midget, a mini, a 1K solar. Still looking for a tweeie at the right price to round out my kit. Situations beyond that I usually rent.
 
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