using LED work lights for decent lighting

M

matt9b

Well-known member
Are there any color temperatures to avoid when getting lighting for a film set? Obviously all the temps need to be the same, but my question is.. will this work:

http://www.ebuyer.com/product/134676

reason being, it has no temperature in the specs. Are there any temps to avoid?

or am I right in thinking just using a white bit of paper and manually white balancing in camera will do the trick..
 
Most basic LED lights are day light balance which is around 5600K. If you just use this without any gel to correct it, the scene you shot indoor will be very blue. You can take a look at this in my blog http://lacolorshop.com/blog/view.asp?id=42

For any LED light if they don't specify color temp, it's most likely to be 5500K/5600K. Tungsten light is 3200K. But that will make the scene very orangey. So some LED light will give you something like 1/4 CTO gel so it goes between 4000K to 5000K. In that range, you will get great output from the light.
 
As long as you don't mix color temperature, it really doesn't matter what color temp the bulb is because manual WB will equalize them. The problem with LED is that they tend to be very low CRI and you will probably see a shade of green in your light unless you use Minus Green gel to correct.
 
I have tried shooting with 5600K LED light and perform manual white balance in camera. It fixes the object a few feet near the camera. Then everything else in the far turns into too orange.
 
You'd have to do some tests with the light in question. Often those types are higher than 5600K because that gives it a brighter appearance and that's what they want in a worklight--as bright and efficient as possible. Even if higher, if thats the only light you're using and you white balance to it, its fine. As for 5600K being trouble or whatever, that's nonsense.

Let's separate into people that want to and can control their lighting circumstances and those that can't or won't control it. Perhaps some event videographers can't control all aspects and they might feel that 4500K or whatever is ideal--but that is far from the way that most of the industry feels. 4500K is not a standard in that world. 4500K is some median that someone chose for some LED on camera light to try and come half way between common indoor 2900K lighting and daylight coming in through a window. Most knowledgeable narrative filmmakers and those wanting to do interviews and other types of controlled videography and filmmaking want as much control as they can get and they want to use standards like 3200K and 5600K, not 4500K. Can 4500K work? I'm sure it can as long as you know what you're doing.

5600K is the photographic standard for daylight. White balance to all 5600K light in a room and you get white as white. Even white balance to all 3200K light in a room and you also get white as white. You CAN get into trouble if you mix and don't know what you're doing or can't / won't control the circumstances. Light doesn't appear blue when you use 5600K preset or manually white balance and all the light is one even 5600K color temp. If you're mixing color temperatures there will be issues and the camera will be confused and give unsatisfying results.

For many on this site doing interview work, narrative filmmaking, etc., they are indeed controlling the circumstances of their lighting and its appropriate to use all 5600K or all 3200K. And you can mix if you know what you're doing and how you do it and which way you white balance for what you're trying to achieve. Just try the light in question and white balance to it and see if you like the results, I'll bet its fine as long as you don't try to mix other flos, tungsten worklights, daylight, etc. with it.
 
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