China Balls: Faux Silk (nylon) vs. Paper // Preferred skirting material ???

Johanan Pandone · December 15, 2022

Hey guys,

I used to have some paper lanterns I bought from IKEA that I liked to tape to the ceiling over tables. I think they were paper and they didn't hold up well. I've been looking at some faux silk/nylon lanterns from film tools, that are supposed to be "re-usable" do you guys have some opinions to share as to as to the quality of diffusion and light transmission comparing paper vs. nylon?

Also, what is your favorite way to skirt the tops and sides of these? I was thinking I could use the shell from some 24" square softboxes, they are fairly light, totally opaque and already have a hole on top, and could fold up nice to make a little kit for china balls.

lastly, has anyone played with the LED bulbs at home depot that have a four way switch allowing you to select 2700k, 3000k, 3500k, and 5000k with the flip of a switch built into the bulb base? These look pretty neat, and they are available in up to a 300w equivalent.

Dan Quigley · December 29, 2022

With all the time it would take to rig this, along with how flimsy it would be, I would be more inclined to buy an Amaran 300x and Aputure's China Ball.

Having now looked at the Filmtools China Ball, I would guess that the paper has better diffusion but the nylon would be more durable. You could get some duvetyne and use that to skirt/flag it.

Johanan Pandone · December 29, 2022

1 hour ago, Dan Quigley said:

With all the time it would take to rig this, along with how flimsy it would be, I would be more inclined to buy an Amaran 300x and Aputure's China Ball.

Having now looked at the Filmtools China Ball, I would guess that the paper has better diffusion but the nylon would be more durable. You could get some duvetyne and use that to skirt/flag it.

Hey dan, thanks for turning me on to the aputure china ball, i didn't know these existed and that thing looks pretty slick. As far as rigging, the traditional socket on a cord with a photoflood bulb inside of a paper lantern is so light weight that you can literally just tape the cord to the ceiling and that is all the rigging required, I think that's it's greatest strength!

When you say paper has "better" diffusion, that's kind of a subjective term, by better do you mean more or less diffused? More directional? more transmissive?

Burschi Wojnar · January 4, 2023

I tend to have paper lanterns on all my light kits with photofloods. I find that the paper, over the faux silk tends to create a softer light and also creates a warmer colour, due to the pigmentation in the paper. I find them very useful for eye lights, and tight spaces where you need to create a 360 degree throw of light.

Yes the paper lanterns tend to get bashed up easier but they are cheap to replace, so it's easy to have a couple of spares on the truck, that then can then be returned if not opened.

I use black duvetyn with a croc clip to skirt and mould the light and a dimer to control intensity. We have also rigged multiple aperture MC's inside the paper lanterns to create a fire or candle flicker which is also a nice use of china balls.

Lastly due to their weight I have also popped them onto a boom pole and used them as a moving fill light through scenes where there is a lot of movement and you want to keep an even exposure on a person as they move through the space. A very versatile and cost effect light IMO

Edited January 4, 2023 by Burschi Wojnar

David Mullen ASC · January 5, 2023

There is a lightweight black plastic tablecloth material that is useful for skirts because it is so much lighter than duvetyn, though not as perfectly opaque.

Johanan Pandone · January 8, 2023

On 1/4/2023 at 6:38 PM, Burschi Wojnar said:

I tend to have paper lanterns on all my light kits with photofloods.

When you say photoflood are you talking about the traditional incandescent bulbs? I abandoned them in favor of LED's because they were so damn hot I was worried about starting a fire. Is there a specific wattage or brand you would reccomend?

Adrian Sierkowski · January 9, 2023

On 1/7/2023 at 7:23 PM, Johanan Pandone said:

When you say photoflood are you talking about the traditional incandescent bulbs? I abandoned them in favor of LED's because they were so damn hot I was worried about starting a fire. Is there a specific wattage or brand you would reccomend?

Photofloods are incandescent, but they aren't your typical bulbs as they burn at 3200K. Specifically the 211/212/213 bulbs (75/150/350w respectively) . There is also the 150W BCA Photoflood which is 4800K as well as the ECW which is 500W 4800K.

On the 200 series, yes they get hot and can cause a fire if mishandled - such as coming into contact with a paper or even fabric lantern, or left on in a practical for too long a period (depends on the practical) but to be honest, LED, especially as 3200 really is no good replacement for them in terms of quality. They are, sadly, becoming harder and harder to find, and yes, LED is a lot easier, but when it comes to quality, they are often worth it. (I'll be using both 200x and LED bulbs this week on an alcohol spot-- the LEDs for times where we don't have the product in it, but with product, we really want the quality of tungsten light)

Johanan Pandone · January 9, 2023

4 hours ago, Adrian Sierkowski said:

Photofloods are incandescent, but they aren't your typical bulbs as they burn at 3200K. Specifically the 211/212/213 bulbs (75/150/350w respectively) . There is also the 150W BCA Photoflood which is 4800K as well as the ECW which is 500W 4800K.

On the 200 series, yes they get hot and can cause a fire if mishandled - such as coming into contact with a paper or even fabric lantern, or left on in a practical for too long a period (depends on the practical) but to be honest, LED, especially as 3200 really is no good replacement for them in terms of quality. They are, sadly, becoming harder and harder to find, and yes, LED is a lot easier, but when it comes to quality, they are often worth it. (I'll be using both 200x and LED bulbs this week on an alcohol spot-- the LEDs for times where we don't have the product in it, but with product, we really want the quality of tungsten light)

I've tried the ones that are painted blue, they suck. There was a series of RGB LED bulbs made by phillips called "WIZ" they are a budget alternative to their higher end "HUE" series of bulbs. normally 13$ for a 60w equivalent, my local home depot put them on clearance, $10 for a two pack. I think they're taking them off the market because they required a 2.4GHZ Wi-fi network and most networks are broadcasting in the 5.8GHZ channel nowadays. I have had great success dialing these in at various color temperatures and adding +2 or +3 shift toward magenta in camera to get a very pleasing neutral white balance. The really cool thing about these is there are some settings in the app that are dynamic so they do firelight/candlelight gags and underwater gags. They are all individually addressable, or can work together to spread the gag out across multiple bulbs. I grabbed a bunch of these and threw them in my box of practicals. The biggest one I could find is a 150w equivalent, but it puts out quite a bit more footcandles at daylight setting vs. the 500w blue photofloods. I agree, nothing beats tungsten in terms of reproduction, but these are pretty damn cool for effects