Westcott uLite 3 Light Lighting Kit good enough for beginners?

Valery Lawrence

Valery Lawrence

Member
Hey people,

Still putting my starter kit together. I came across this lighting kit (http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/610081-REG/Westcott_403_uLite_3_Light_Video.html) which looks good enough for a starter to me but would like to get a more experienced opinion. From reading the comments, it seems like it's good enough for beginners. I also plan on getting this (http://www.amazon.com/LED-CN-160-Dimmable-Camcorder-Panasonic/dp/B004TJ6JH6/ref=pd_rhf_se_shvl1) for each of my cameras. I plan on shooting indoor and outdoor. Please let me know what you think and feel free to provide better suggestions.

Thanks much.
 
@Gonzo...Don't know if you were asking a question but I plan on shooting live performances (music, poetry), documentaries, TV shows....So you think that would be good enough?

@Gary...Your vids are blocked at work so I'll check them out at home.

Thanks for responding guys.
 
My beginner's kit advice: try to go daylight if at all possible. Unless you need a lot of throw and a lot of lumens (where tungsten is king for low $$), go for the reduced heat and reduced amp-draw of daylight. There are lots of biax flo's in dual and quad setups out there starting around $200; and the spiral-style flo bulbs (especially the big guys in the 80-100 watt range) really put out some light, and the low-heat modifiers (softboxes in particular) are way, way less expensive.

A small step up is the 150 watt HID lights (cool lights or Alzo) which put out something around 600-900 watts equivalent, in open faced or fresnels; or the cool lights or Alzo bulb/ballast combos which you can retrofit into an old fresnel if you're handy. They're cold-strike lights but man - they are killer until you reach the 2k HMI phase of your career.

And don't get a bunch of softboxes unless you're doing head & shoulder interviews. To get soft light for, say, a small-room sized setup... you need large bounce sources or framed diffusion. IE, foamcore, white bedsheets (bounce) or a PVC frame and some ripstop (diffusion). Newbies tend to buy a softlight, aim it at half of a room, and say "why ain't it soft??"
 
The uLite Kit works extremely well when you are shooting video! One bonus about the uLite Kit is it can go from Fluorescents to Tungstens. Also, the Fluorescents you can buy for it are 90+ CRI, so no flicker worries! Great videos Gary! If anyone has any further questions, please feel free to email me at amccoy@fjwestcott.com - I'm Amber.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top