Mole Richardson light kits

Rich Lee

Rich Lee

I shoot Pirates.
Hey guys, i really could use some help. some freinds of mine are trying to make their end of year purchases and want to invest in some lighting gear/camera. im pretty sure they will either go for the dvx or hvx...but as far as lighting goes, i really dont know, i rent not buy, and dont have time right now to do much research for them.

another friend of theirs was recommending these 2 lighting kits.

$2,899.15
Mole-Richardson Tweenie-Mickey Mole 3 Light Pro Kit 58220P
consists of: 1- Tweenie 650W Fresnel, 2- Mickey 1K Open Face Lights, 24 x
32" Softbox, Barndoors, Scrims, Gels, Light Stands, Hard Case, Bulbs

$2,845.05
Mole-Richardson InBetweenie, Betweenie, Tweenie, Mickey-Mole 4 Light Kit -
consists of 4 Fixtures, Barndoors, Scrims, Stands, Hard Case - NO Bulbs

$707
Dedo including the dimmer and barn doors.

So for $6452 they are getting that gear...does that seem cool? i think those are all B&H prices. is there any other place that would be cheaper maybe? just wonderin...

the only thing i dont see area any kino's...which if they got cash to spend, they might want to add 1 or 2...hmm?

they will be doing a curve your enthusiasm stlyle short and some documentries with the idea that they will also do some more visualy interesting shorts later.

any help would be greatly apreciated!

thankS!!!!!:thumbsup::thumbsup::thumbsup::thumbsup:
 
You can usually get some good deals on Moles on ebay. Don't know if they feel like shopping, but compared to buying everything new I think they would save a good amount by shopping around. I don't know enough to be able to tell them what to buy, sorry. Tim.
 
Suggested Kit

Suggested Kit

It kind of depends on what kinds of shoots you will be doing: is portability very important, is low voltage a major concern, interior/exterior, sets on soundstages or industrial/interviews/documentary, etc.

However a good place to start would be:

1. A three light 150w Dedolight kit. About $3000.
2. A Kino-Flo Diva400 kit. About $1050. (a set of daylight and tungsten bulbs will run an additional $200 or so. But you may not need the daylight bulbs.)

Pros: Very portable, low voltage, high output, versatile, excellent resale value if you change your mind.
Cons: Expensive.

--

Use the above fixtures for a little while, see how they meet your needs and where the gaps are. Then decide on the following likely supplements:

1. More Kino-Flos: either more Diva 400s/200s or get into 4banks/Doubles/Singles. It's hard to beat Kinos for convenience, beauty and lamplife.
2. A Mole kit with 3 650w tweenie II: if you're just dying for hot, heavy, inefficient fresnels.
3. A 3-light Dedo 650w kit: More expensive initially than the the Moles, but dramatically more light output for the same wattage. The durability of the bulbs is a very nice feature of these fixtures as well.
4. Background patterns/gobos, either Source Fours or Dedo projection attachments.
5. A professional grade on-camera light.

If you are able to rent lights to other shooters with budgets, then investing in HMIs might start making sense. The Joker series and Blackjack 400 from K5600.com are pretty awesome.

--

My bias, informed by experience, is that fresnels are bulky, heavy, hot, wattage hungry, and the bulbs are fragile and it adds up to replace them. I think lighting technology has moved on from tungsten fresnels, especially for non-soundstage video shooting.

That said, the Moles will definitely work, are popular, bulletproof construction and relatively affordable. And they also do have the mystique of classic Hollywood iconography and thus look professional, which I guess might be meaningful to the owner and client. I just think there are better tools available now.

--

Don't forget grip equipment, backdrops, sandbags, stingers, and reflectors. A good kit has a big collection of accessories.

Good luck.
 
The mole kits will be nice, but I would swap out the dedos for 2' or 4' kino.

-j
 
A 150W Dedo has the output of a 300W fresnel fully flooded. In spot, the output is comparable to a 1K. Due to the laws of physics, low voltage lamps (such as those in 12/24v Dedo's) will last for a lifetime.

Reliability is highly valued in a professional environment.
 
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