Hello,
This is my first post here. I am new to video and video lighting. I do have several years' experience as a still photographer. I am interested in building a kit that would be useful primarily for digital video but also supplement digital still photography (especially indoor portraits and macro). I already have quite a bit of grip gear for my Nikon speedlight kit. I really like the Strobist/minimalist speedlight approach to still photography and hope to emulate that somewhat in my selection of continuous lighting gear. I am interested in video only as a hobby, possibly doing some pickup corporate interviews/portraits for my company down the road. I would like to keep in mind lights and gear that would be of use to still photography, while also minimizing the size and weight of the kit. One hard case and/or one carry on bag is probably my limit for the short term.
I am moving to Saudi Arabia in two months and living in an expat compound that is 110V, although nearby areas that I will visit frequently like Bahrain are 230V. I also travel internationally about 3 times per year. Because of this I would like to focus on gear that is variable current (and/or that lets me swap out bulbs if it is a tungsten option), portable, reasonably rugged, and travels well. I have about three weeks to research my kit before ordering. My initial budget is around $2,000-$2,500, but I realize I could end up spending much more down the road.
Due to the above considerations, not to mention the heat in the part of the world where I will be living, I am strongly considering including LEDs and flourescents as a big part of my kit. I have read up on the Cool Lights options and there seem to be some good choices there. One big concern is the limited softbox options at this time. It also seems like combining a softbox with either LEDs or flourescents might be a little too soft, especially for still photography. So I am thinking about adding a couple of hard lights, possibly also from Cool Lights, or Lowel, so I have the hard light option and/or enough light to shoot through a softbox.
I welcome any thoughts from more experienced readers who can offer some advice to someone like me who travels a fair bit, will live in a very hot country, and also enjoys still digital photography.
Thanks!
This is my first post here. I am new to video and video lighting. I do have several years' experience as a still photographer. I am interested in building a kit that would be useful primarily for digital video but also supplement digital still photography (especially indoor portraits and macro). I already have quite a bit of grip gear for my Nikon speedlight kit. I really like the Strobist/minimalist speedlight approach to still photography and hope to emulate that somewhat in my selection of continuous lighting gear. I am interested in video only as a hobby, possibly doing some pickup corporate interviews/portraits for my company down the road. I would like to keep in mind lights and gear that would be of use to still photography, while also minimizing the size and weight of the kit. One hard case and/or one carry on bag is probably my limit for the short term.
I am moving to Saudi Arabia in two months and living in an expat compound that is 110V, although nearby areas that I will visit frequently like Bahrain are 230V. I also travel internationally about 3 times per year. Because of this I would like to focus on gear that is variable current (and/or that lets me swap out bulbs if it is a tungsten option), portable, reasonably rugged, and travels well. I have about three weeks to research my kit before ordering. My initial budget is around $2,000-$2,500, but I realize I could end up spending much more down the road.
Due to the above considerations, not to mention the heat in the part of the world where I will be living, I am strongly considering including LEDs and flourescents as a big part of my kit. I have read up on the Cool Lights options and there seem to be some good choices there. One big concern is the limited softbox options at this time. It also seems like combining a softbox with either LEDs or flourescents might be a little too soft, especially for still photography. So I am thinking about adding a couple of hard lights, possibly also from Cool Lights, or Lowel, so I have the hard light option and/or enough light to shoot through a softbox.
I welcome any thoughts from more experienced readers who can offer some advice to someone like me who travels a fair bit, will live in a very hot country, and also enjoys still digital photography.
Thanks!
