Tell Me Your GO-To-Never-Fail Lights

[Brian Rose]

I've been DPing for a few years now, and yet, I feel I've only scratched the surface. I've worked with a fair number of lights, from big mole richardsons to lowel kits, arris and kinos, and all the various accoutrements: soft boxes, umbrellas, fixed, spot, etc.

 

And yet, I still find myself challenged to decide what lights to bring on a shoot. There are so many to choose from, it can be overwhelming!

 

So I thought I'd pose this question to you all:

 

Assuming you're on a shoot with a healthy hodgepodge of lighting situations: interior night and day, exterior night & day.

 

For this shoot, you can choose any light you wish, but you are limited to FOUR or less, for the DURATION of the shoot. Given those conditions, what four (or less) would you want to have?

 

Best,

 

BR

[Adrian Sierkowski]

PAR-64s with VNSP bulbs... and a lot of silks.

[Satsuki Murashige]

Impossible to have 4 lights cover all situations, but if I can have anything I want...

 

1. 18K HMI fresnel - when you need to make your own sunlight or light a big night exterior

2. 4' 4 bank Kino - key, fill, 56K, 32K, set light practical with single tube harnesses, always useful

3. 2' 4 bank Kino - same but 1/2 the width for small spaces

4. Photoflood bulbs in a china ball or table lamp - for night interiors

5.* Lots and lots of grippage.

[Guest Stephen Murphy]

2 x 20K Tungsten Fresnels

2 x 18K HMI

[Brian Rose]

Impossible to have 4 lights cover all situations, but if I can have anything I want...

 

I agree with you it's a fairly unrealistic scenario I've put forth. The idea was, what four lights would you "go to war with" or, rather, you would want on hand for a shoot that could be wide ranging in situations.

 

This all is a huge help for me, because, as I said prior, while I've worked with quite a few lights, I still feel like a novice, like I've scratched the surface. I wonder, "Am I neglecting a light worth using."

 

These posts have given me some new ideas to consider, especially since I've got a feature shoot coming up in the spring, and I wanna do the absolute best job I can.

 

This is all much appreciated!

 

Best,

 

BR

[Alex Malm]

In no particular order...

 

Interior (on location):

 

1. Tweenie 650 Fresnel

2. Baby 1000 Fresnel

3. Inkie 200 Fresnel

4. Dedo 400

5. 2x4 Kino

[Daniel Porto]

God's light