Questions on building a lighting kit

E

ewsmith89

Member
Hello everybody - pretty new to the forum and had a question about building my lighting kit.

I'm an independent filmmaker shooting a Sony FS7 with two kino flo 4banks. As great as the 4banks are, the throw isn't so great and the light isn't very shapeable, so I'm looking at building a Tungsten kit. Interested in a 2 or 3 light set-up that's flexible, essential, and can grow with me. What would you guys recommend? ARRI Fresnels? HMIs (ridiculous, maybe?)? If fresnels, what wattage combination (1000s, 650s, 300s etc.)? I had a friend recommend getting either all 1000s and 650s and just using dimmers, but seems a bit overkill. Also, if I want to get some beautiful soft light (really love the latest House of Cards look) what kind of diffusers should I be looking at? Diffusion panels? Softboxes?

I know this is a highly subjective questions with a lot of variables at play, but I know very little and would appreciate any advice or personal insight ya'll might have. Thanks so much.
 
Lowel kit (2x 1k, 2x 500w, 2x 250w) transported in medium rolling Arri case.
Or if you care to carry heavier loads, Arri kit (1x 1k, 2x 650w, 1x 300) in large Arri rolling case.
 
Isn't the proper question, what am I going to be using it for?

Run & gun, or a first run motion picture, or something inbetween? My personal opinion, which is not based upon a lot other than as a stills photographer, would if it is more than the R&G, hire a grip truck as needed.
 
graywolf said:
Isn't the proper question, what am I going to be using it for?

Run & gun, or a first run motion picture, or something inbetween? My personal opinion, which is not based upon a lot other than as a stills photographer, would if it is more than the R&G, hire a grip truck as needed.
Click to expand...

Assuming he meant R&G / 2-man crew, Arri fresnels are what I use. ( supplemented with Kino fluorescents and LitePanel LED's ) With the sensitivity of cameras these days, I'd skip any 1k's. I recommend a kit consisting of:

* Arri 650w fresnel

* Arri 300w fresnel x2

* Arri 150w fresnel x2

And then of course some black wrap for making cookies and snoots / controlling light leak, a basic gel pack ( CTB, CTO, diffusion, some party gels ), and a small RoadRag kit. Stands, Boa Bags, assorted low cost and small grip gack- mafers / cardellinis / 2 1/2" grip heads, Pony clamps, clothespins or 1.5 clips, at least two C-stands, a small boom arm, stingers w/ cube taps, a consumer dimmer that can handle everything but the 650w, scrims for the Arri fresnels, a collapsible frame with silk cloth, flex fill style collapsible reflectors- one sunlight / white and another that is negative fill / black. Oh, and some pieces of duvetyne cloth of various sizes.

This used kit, selling now for $1200 is exactly the start you want:

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Arri-Softba...078931?hash=item3f6b1e2b53:g:SZ4AAOSwAuZX3WR0

Start with that and build it up as you can afford to do so. LED is all the rage but old school hot lights are more affordable and everyone got on just fine with them for decades. I think every shooter should have meat and potatoes tungsten fresnels before going wild with LED's. Building an equivalent kit with LED fresnels is very expensive.

If you don't have the funds for a used kit like that $1200 one, do it piecemeal. Here is an Arri 650w for $300:

http://www.ebay.com/itm/ARRI-650w-P...075288?hash=item2cb3153fd8:g:voAAAOSwknJXxPD5

As tempting as the low prices are, I'd stay away from the chinese knockoffs of the Arri's. I'd rather have a used but functioning properly ARRI fresnel than a brand new knockoff of an ARRI fresnel.
 
Thanks for the thorough response, JP. Very helpful. Do you think $1200 for that kit would be a good deal?

I currently have two 4 x 4banks with C stands, stingers, a roll of duvetyne, and some clamps. Going to go for a 3 light arri fresnel kit, some daylight/tungsten gels, a roadrag kit, and some clothespins to start. I was also thinking of picking up one of those 5 in 1 reflectors, although it seems like the white and black options would be most useful.
 
Patryk_Rebisz said:
Lowel kit (2x 1k, 2x 500w, 2x 250w) transported in medium rolling Arri case.
Or if you care to carry heavier loads, Arri kit (1x 1k, 2x 650w, 1x 300) in large Arri rolling case.
Click to expand...

Arri calls this, at least one variation, the softbank IV kit. I have had one and used it often for almost twenty years, great kit to begin with. Tungsten still looks better on skin tones than even the best LED panels and for my money most HMIs. Arri fresenels have been the industry standard for a long time, they make great lights. My kit used to fly all over the world with me all of the time but in the past few years, the overweight charges have become too high so I take LED panels.
 
Just one an opinion on JP's kit, I find Arri 150s, in the real world, to be of limited use and here's why. They are expensive for the output and by the time you gel them or but a cucloris/cine foil in front of them to throw patterns, the output become so low as to not be very useul except in a totally dark room where you can modulate the relative ouput. Most gaffers and DPs will say to make the Arri 300 fresnel your small light, with one exception. The 150 is very nice as a hair light, it' smaller and lighter, easier to fly in from on high on a C-stand arm or on a boom pole, if you like the harder light edge of a bare fresnel, good for glamor and fashion, a little too much for more serious looks for most docs, etc. I usually use a small source through a small softbox as a hair light, I like the glow and spread more than the hard edge of a bare fresnel but it all depends on the situation. When you are shooting talent with black or dark brown hair on a black or dark BG, that hard edge hair light is perfect.

Nothing wrong with the Arri 150, I have one but over the years, I find I use my Arri 300 a lot more.
 
Same here, i recently made a joke to the director as i used my Arri 150 2nd time in 4 years i owned it... 300s, 650s and 1ks i use all the time.
On small productions though i tend to bring my Lowel lights as in one (MEDIUM) case i can pack 6 lights and in one (LARGE) case i can only pack 4 Arri lights.
 
JPNola said:
With the sensitivity of cameras these days, I'd skip any 1k's.
Click to expand...

Well, we do have quite a wide range of what would be considered a sensitive camera (Sony and Canon yes, Red and Blackmagic no) so that's something, plus there are situations where one has to work with existing light levels where more firepower is needed. Adding a deep gel (from full CTB to party gels) will knock the stuffing out of the output as well. I can see where it is a "luxury" in a run and gun package but I think having one for certain occasions would be helpful.

Along those lines--I'm looking to unload my Arri kits because I don't use them any more and need the storage space. (Kit 1: 1K, (2) 650, (1) 300. Kit 2: (2) 300, (2) 750 open face). If the OP or anyone else is in Los Angeles and interested, let me know.
 
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