solange reyner Posted March 10, 2011 Share Posted March 10, 2011 I'm deciding whether to build a light kit or buy one intact and needed feedback from others on what selection was best. I was looking into the Kino Flo series, mainly because I'll be shooting in close quarters a lot of the time and don't want the subjects to start sweating on camera. Has anyone had experience with Kino Flo lights, or LED light kits - and which do you suggest, if so. Can the lights be used for background spot lights, too, and is there anything specific/extra I should be looking for? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Premium Member Adrian Sierkowski Posted March 10, 2011 Premium Member Share Posted March 10, 2011 Kinos are nice, if a bit bulky on occasion (and i personally dislike their skin-tones) but for a documentary shoot quite useful. You'll get better output -v- LEDs and better colors as well. I'd go with a Diva Kit, good for interviews and dimmable as well. Also, as they don't consume a lot of power, you needn't worry as much about blowing breakers in, say, an office building, or a house. Price is kinda steep, but if you can afford to purchase/rent it, I'd go for it. Also very useful as you can change tubes between D and T depending on what you need. If only using 1 tube-set I'd go with Daylight tubes as you loose less through CTO than CTB. Also, what are you shooting on? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brian Rose Posted March 10, 2011 Share Posted March 10, 2011 Why do you want to buy, may I ask? Light kits are pretty cheap to rent. For example, the my local rental house offers a nice, four light Arri kit for $75 daily. I've seen comparable kits sell retail for $1,800 to $2,000. So in that case, you'd need to be in production for 25-30 days before it'd make sense to buy the same kit. From my own experience having worked with a range of lights, I LOVE using ArriLights of the tungsten variety. They were versatile, rugged, and offer great coverage. I never felt for want of lighting when I had a kit on hand. But they can be a bit pricey to buy. A cheaper alternative which I've turned to lately is buying Mole-Richardsons. They come pretty cheap if you buy just the light and not the stand. I got a 2K for $200 bucks. The stand itself costs MORE, but I can rent it for 5 bucks! It's an easy choice, so maybe that might be an option for you too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Premium Member Adrian Sierkowski Posted March 10, 2011 Premium Member Share Posted March 10, 2011 While I love Arri kits, and Moles, and they are cheaper, Brian, I believe that for this doco shoot, the heat a T unit will put out is why they're erring towards Floros/LEDS. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brian Rose Posted March 10, 2011 Share Posted March 10, 2011 While I love Arri kits, and Moles, and they are cheaper, Brian, I believe that for this doco shoot, the heat a T unit will put out is why they're erring towards Floros/LEDS. It must be closer quarters than I've dealt with, because I've not yet had a problem with heat or discomfort, when I used them for interviews. Still, I get the concern, though I think my original question still applies: why buy when you could rent? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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