Lighting Decision Opinions Please

G

ggrantly

Veteran
Hello Listers,

Mostly I do corporate and commercial, never have done anything dramatic. My venues seem to be getting larger, so I want to add a couple of 1000k fill lights.

Presently, I have a typical Arri kit with 5 lights = 2750 watts, three soft boxes, and other controls. I would like to add some wattage in the form of soft fill, and at first was considering a couple of 1k ArriSofts. My thinking was they are mostly for utility, they are pretty small, take several different wattage bulbs (FS7), filter frames, egg crates, and won't break my bank.

Having an inquiring mind, I began looking at other options at around the same price and found the Cool Lights CL-455. With 3200k bulbs, they would mix with the tungstens, and I would be in soft light heaven. The claim is that these will be equivalent to 900 watts of softened tungsten. Another attraction is that in an interview situation, they are cooler for the talent. Two of these and a 150 fresnel kicker should make a pretty nice interview kit.

To anyone that has used either of these, I would value your opinion regarding quality and function.

TIA
Grant
 
These days, 9 times out of 10 when I've got my lights out, I'm shooting an interview. A couple of years ago, I bought one of Richard's CL-455P lights (the portable version of the one you referenced) and since then it has been my workhorse. It's my go-to key light in most interview situations (clean or through a large diff frame or with the grid, etc.). On gigs when there's virtually no setup time, I bring the just 455, a couple of flexfills for fill and edge and I'm done. On bigger docs, I've got the 455 with some peppers, a couple of pro-lights and a slew of other sorts of stuff. Either way, it is a great foundation for an interview lighting package.

This is all a long-winded way of supporting your idea of going the fluorescent route. Yes, it's cooler for your talent. If you need to, you can lamp it for daylight. Also, for less than $100 more than the 455 Studio, you can get the portable 455P version, which is lighter and, in my opinion, easier to transport than an Arrisoft.

In terms of quality, the 455P is great. I've been lugging mine around for 2 years and it is as good now as it was the day I got it. And you can't beat the price. The light paid for itself in a week.

Hope this helps. Good luck!

~~Dave
 
Davdo,

Thanks for the great info. Could you answer a couple more questions?

Do you think you are getting around the claimed 900 watts, diffused of course?

Would these serve as venue lighting in addition to my fresnels for say a music video?

On the website, it looked to me like the portable version has different barndoors; 2 instead of 4, and not as reflective.

Grant
 
I have a CL-455P. It is a couple years old. Although the light quality and temperature is good, the housing is very poor quality. Mine is falling apart. The pieces around the barn doors split and fell off, and now it has sharp exposed corners. The grid does not fit very well on the front. I've had problems with it when plugged into a GFI outlet. I also have an old Cool Lights soft box which has fallen apart, and when I inquired about replacement rods, I was told "no". So I also feel the product support can also be spotty.

Perhaps you get what you pay for. A have used Kinos and Chimeras and they last for years, but they do cost!
 
Metrospace, you're just talking about the rubber gasket and that's easy to replace but you do have to contact the customer service to get them.

Thanks.
 
metrospace said:
I have a CL-455P. It is a couple years old. Although the light quality and temperature is good, the housing is very poor quality. Mine is falling apart. The pieces around the barn doors split and fell off, and now it has sharp exposed corners. The grid does not fit very well on the front. I've had problems with it when plugged into a GFI outlet. I also have an old Cool Lights soft box which has fallen apart, and when I inquired about replacement rods, I was told "no". So I also feel the product support can also be spotty.

Perhaps you get what you pay for. A have used Kinos and Chimeras and they last for years, but they do cost!
Click to expand...

I have one of the first cl-455p and I have to agree the build quality was not very good, the plastic parts of the light are cracking and splitting all over. I've also replaced the ballasts after a couple of years. You really need to baby the light if you want it to last. The metal housed coolight has been much more durable althought I've had to replace both ballasts.
 
After research and some contact with Richard at CoolLights, I purchased a CL455p. My initial thoughts are that the light is ok, but built pretty light. The case material seems to be a honeycombed lexan or acrylic sheet with some type of internal framework. I don't mind the light build, but I do have concern about the mounting scheme. The screws that hold the "popsicle" mount on the back really flex the case. I am going to open the case and make sure this connection is adequate. Though it would limit the ability to rotate the light, a simple 2 point yolk type mount would make me feel more confident. I wish I had purchased the metal housing version instead realizing that they are around 5# heavier.

Not to be overly critical, I like having the flo-light, the light quality is great and compared to the cost of a Kino, I think value was received.

Grant
 
Its supposed to be light for portability and it is well built. The studio models are all metal and heavier of course. The plastic doesn't bear any weight at all. The lollipop is mounted to an internal metal skeleton which is very sturdy. People always equate plastic with cheap but if you want light, there really aren't too many choices, and plastic is about all you can do.
 
Richard,

I was not flaming your light, no pun intended. I will be buying another so as to have a set. Coming from someone who has designed aluminum, stainless, and plastic hardware in another life, I am not at all against light; it is a virtue so long as it holds together in normal use. I did report that the back of the plastic case flexes when mounted to the lollypop, which is fact. Your response indicates the case wrapper is unrelated to the lollypop mounting, so that is good.

I didn't say the light was cheaply constructed, I did say the light was lightly built, which is not a bad thing.

Grant
 
For corporates etc i love 4X4 kinos. Not the biggest output but really versatile and can take both tungsten and DL tubes... The main bodies are also really light weight so they are great for setting up in working environments in a hurry etc. Also when you are doing interiors with maybe lots of windows, its great having a 5600k option (without output killing gels) which i prefer trying to stick to whenever i can.

Great for interviews as fills and also keys and then maybe a small tungsten head as a rim light. IMO

Tom
 
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