LED lighting concerns - looks like an ugly love exposed blob vs hot tungsten lamp

L

lonewolf2koc@hotmail.com

Well-known member
I've been seeing very not so great lighting interviews lately from network TVs. Looks like they are lit by LED. It looks like an overexposed blob or some sort. I myself have quite a few LEDs and do notice that they have this problem. I read somewhere that LEDs generally are not full spectrum color. They are light and convenience but the final result on camera is not always so good vs good old hot tungsten lamp. is there any hope for LEDs in general or that's the way it'll be in exchange for virtually no heat and small size.
 
LED's have had this problem in the past, but the newer designs are delivering a MUCH more complete color spectrum. But good ones are still a lot more expensive than tungsten lights.

Overexposed blobs are nothing more than the result of overexposure. The type of light you use doesn't really make any difference in that department.

Over the next couple of years LED lights are going to catch nearly all the way up to tungsten. There is some reason to believe they still won't ever be right there at full 100% - but 96% or 98% sure is darn close.
 
You can get some with virtually no color issues, but you have to pay the price for them.

Cineo and BBS Lighting are amongst the best. Im not impressed by Arri in spite of a price point that would lead you to think otherwise...
 
Using my 3D printer and optics like the ones they use for presctiption glasses, I have made some DIY-ish LED fresnels. The LED itself is a CREE 3000K 50W unit with CRI of 90+ (95 typical). The light has a fan and heatsink, but it's set at a slow speed and makes very little noise. It's very small, made of plastic (except for the heatsink), and doesn't get hot at all (confortable to touch even after hours on). Total power consumption, measured at the wall, is around 80W, and side-by-side measurements with a light meter say the unit has the same power as a 500W tungsten fresnel. To my eye, the light looks pretty good.

I still have to make the power supply a bit more "pro" looking (less DIY), and I have to get it barn doors. After that I'll have to run the final numbers, but my aim is to be able to sell these for around $350-$400 (or $1000 for a set of three).

If anybody is interested in getting a review unit, I think I'll be able to ship it by early June.
 
I'm using Lime Lite (Bowens) and Lite Panels for flight situations where I can't bring too much gear on plane. They're fairly OK. Using it on 1/3 and 2/3" CCD, CMOS sensor cams, they are not at all bad. But I've seen worse yesterday on Date Line NBC broadcast. And with the recent smaller stage LED craze, it's sad that I have to bring my own 1K Fresnel to cover up the unpredictable nature of the venue's LED. Planning to buy a spectrometer but they're too expensive. Best to bring cheap hot tungsten and have a peace of mind that the footage will not look like it was shot on Mars. The skintones on those cheap LEDs are unbearable to me. It's very misleading because our eyes can't detect it. It looks just fine in the real world but when recording on camera, it's a a completely different story.


legrevedotcom said:
You can get some with virtually no color issues, but you have to pay the price for them.

Cineo and BBS Lighting are amongst the best. Im not impressed by Arri in spite of a price point that would lead you to think otherwise...
Click to expand...
 
Yeah....the same thing goes around here where the owner operator news shooters favor Ledgo because of the pricepoint.

But Im also biased since I own three Area 48s so Ill jump any oportunity yo justify the buy ;)
Having said that they are awesome if your main job is interview situations or detail shots.
 
The problem with LEDs is how broad the spectrum of quality is. There's vast quantities of crap out there, but the latest and greatest (and most expensive) fixtures, are now at a point where they've eclipsed the colour quality of HMIs and fluorescents, whilst having the added advantage (and it's a BIG advantage) of 0-100% dimming without colour shift.

At that level, there's really very little to worry about.

My my advice is simply to scrimp and save until you can afford the good stuff. Because the good stuff is at a level now where it'll remain relevant for the next 15-20 years (in terms of light and colour quality) ala HMIs and Flouros. The crappy stuff will just annoy you until it breaks.
 
Samuel H said:
Using my 3D printer and optics like the ones they use for presctiption glasses, I have made some DIY-ish LED fresnels. The LED itself is a CREE 3000K 50W unit with CRI of 90+ (95 typical). The light has a fan and heatsink, but it's set at a slow speed and makes very little noise. It's very small, made of plastic (except for the heatsink), and doesn't get hot at all (confortable to touch even after hours on). Total power consumption, measured at the wall, is around 80W, and side-by-side measurements with a light meter say the unit has the same power as a 500W tungsten fresnel. To my eye, the light looks pretty good.

I still have to make the power supply a bit more "pro" looking (less DIY), and I have to get it barn doors. After that I'll have to run the final numbers, but my aim is to be able to sell these for around $350-$400 (or $1000 for a set of three).

If anybody is interested in getting a review unit, I think I'll be able to ship it by early June.
Click to expand...

Would love to test them out and do a review. Unless they are terrible would probably purchase to keep. What's the color temp?
 
geffyb said:
Would love to test them out and do a review. Unless they are terrible would probably purchase to keep. What's the color temp?
Click to expand...
LED spec is 3000K, but I'll measure it with the final design (glass and others can make a small difference). I'll keep you posted :)
 
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