What are some decent LED panels out there nowadays?

M

meauounji

Well-known member
I'm using a 4-light LED kit now. They're cheap, the colors aren't great, and I'd like to upgrade. Wondering what people find to be decent LED panels nowadays?

My budget is about $4000 for 4 panels. I'd prefer the lights to have barn doors, but I already have stands. I'm considering Dracast, as I've seen them in action and was quite impressed with the output and color, but I wanted to check with people in the forum first before plunking down on a set. I'm thinking about this, in particular: http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/produ...dr_lk_3x1000_dv_led1000_pro_daylight_led.html

Also, let's not have a discussion about whether or not LED's are any good. LED panels' combination of size, portability, and lack of heat fits my situation right now. I just don't have the room to carry around multiple kino banks or fresnel kits. I'm just looking to get the most bang for my budget.

Thanks ahead of time, peeps.
 
Big fan of the F&V LED panels I have - they're great for interview/doc. style work. My one complaint would be that the diffusion that comes with them isn't conducive for any quick setups, and they lack barn doors. But otherwise they're cool, dimmable, easy to put some CTO on if needed (I have the daylight balanced ones), and accept V-mount batteries so I can take them anywhere without worrying about power. Plus the company's customer service has been fantastic thus far.

Adam
 
there is an ikan 3 light kit of 1x1' lights that are bi color and dimmable with barn doors that a lot of my colleagues in town really like that runs about $3000. not sure what a 4th light would add to that.
 
How are you guys attaching gels to the F&V's? Do you find you have to add minus greens to get the color to be acceptable?
 
It's not only the panels but also the camera you shoot with. Canon looks great with LEDs, RED looks horrible even with high end panels.
 
I just got this absurdly cheap Yongnuo YN600 for $107 on the web. says the CRI is 95 and yes on my Sony cameras it seems to need no correction exempt for color temp ( daylight is 4800) but on a RED it was awful needed 3/8 to 1/2 minus green.
This light is amazing by the way - very very very bright and for very verity cheap.
 
Lenilenapi said:
I just got this absurdly cheap Yongnuo YN600 for $107 on the web. says the CRI is 95 and yes on my Sony cameras it seems to need no correction exempt for color temp ( daylight is 4800) but on a RED it was awful needed 3/8 to 1/2 minus green.
This light is amazing by the way - very very very bright and for very verity cheap.
Click to expand...
Great price! How they compare to Apurture? They're similar in price.
 
Who knows . Its all chinese. These are so bright you can use them for daylight fill on an interview. I'm buying a second to put on an arm next to each other outdoors.
They make a brighter one now - a 900LED but i'm not sure I can get a power supply for it. They have a fan that comes on intermittently but if you jam a stick in it stops and the light seems OK - that is as long as you don't use the little plastic diffusion or CTO "gels" that slip in the light- that makes it hotter. Even has remote control. I got all daylight.
 
I also own F&V lights, the R-300. Color was better than most units when it came out and output is great for the size. Still, there is a green spike. I chose them because I could use them on camera (well rods...) as a soft fill/eyelight AND on stands. On the C100/300 the ring light balances more nicely than sth up on the handle, but the way a ring light works, it can cause nasty highlights on oily skin.
They pack smaller than 1x1's and can be powered with a single Sony FN battery. I bought them mainly for traveling, but often grab them now, even when I have my Divas at hand.
IMHO, current LEDs still are like miniDV right before the HD turn. I guess most people are waiting for more remote phosphor units becoming available, like this unit:
http://www.cineolighting.com/index.php/pages/product_hs/89
But this is like first generation, right now, I would`t spent 4000$ on LED fixtures and rather look whats happening in the next two years.
By then buying a 1000$ fixture could be a similar lifetime investment as HMI was and is...
 
I own a few LED panels and use them when needed. But Like the above, I am not going to invest serious money into LED lights until they really come of age.

My roll-along lighting package I keep in my van is now mainly HMI.
 
On every job i bring three 1x1 LitePanels and i use it EVERY time. Never as a key light but rather as a quick accent light to spice up the BG here and there (where color accuracy is almost insignificant). As long as you understand the limitations, LEDs can be a powerful addition to your lighting arsenal. As always be smart and know what you are doing - EVERY light has its application.
 
jixkk,
That looks pretty good. I like the barn doors and the fact that it has a remote dimmer as I like to use these as backlights & with a remote dimmer you don't need a n extra hap air of hands to adjust for interviews.
I have the 900 from ephor that looks the same.

3 questions
- How is the color, do you need to add -green to it?
- I noticed the same company sells what they call a cheap 1260 LED but the lux/m is lower?
Any idea what the difference is? I like the wider shape for backlights . No remote dimmer apparently.
- How do you like the bag that comes with it?

The output seems similar to the Yongnuo 900 but its bigger (softer) and doesn't have the fan issue.

lenny
 
I have a bunch of 12X12 gels that I'll clip on with a 2" spring clamp (1 at the top, or 1 on each side) or with a little strip of gaf tape. That's one downside to the lights is they don't currently have, or at least I'm unaware of, an easier way to attach gels/diffusion.

Adam
 
+1 for the F&V K4000 1x1 panels, they are bright with pretty good color. F&V are bringing 90+ CRI panels to market but they are going to be double the price of the K4000 model.

Aputure released their 95 CRI "iPad" sized panels a few weeks ago: Aputure Amaran HR672W High CRI95+ 672 Led Video Light Panel w Remote & Batteries : $278

I bought a couple of the tiny 4x5 inch Aputure 95+ CRI lights a few months ago and they have the best color of any LED light I own, so I imagine that the "iPad" sized models should have really good color too.

I am also interested in the new more affordable ( $1,350 ) LitePanels Astra 1x1 light which are supposed to be 4 times brighter than their previous models with 90+ CRI, but right now all that is shipping is the bi-color model, when what I want is the daylight model which should be twice as bright. ( most of what is shoot is daylight )
 
I bought a Dracast LED light at NAB this year. I've been very, very impressed with the build quality and the color of the light. I went to the show leaning towards the F&V lights, but I thought Dracast beat them hands down. My next light purchase will be a couple of Bi-color 1'x1' LED panels. I want to check out the new LitePanel Astra lights - I feel it's either those or Dracast.
 
I'm thinking of buying a few Dracast panels too. Not sure if I will buy daylight or bi-color though. It would be nice not to have to use some gels to dial the color. But is the output of a bi-color at 5600k is half the output of a daylight panel?
 
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