If you're not up to speed, there's a set of 96 LED lights on the market that didn't please many users. The seller Tony seemed to be a straight up guy and worked with all the buyers to accommodate any unsatisfied sales, while he worked to address some features. Serge received an early version from one of the LED lights in progress, but it doesn't seem to be picture perfect just yet. Although Tony seems like a very responsible seller who takes care of his customers, if this light can't totally outperform and outprice what's already on the market, I don't see a big shift. There's also a long written blog article over at Serge's blog found here. [Thanks Serge].
Tag Archives: LED Video light
900 LED Light Panel Sample
Here's a simple frame grab using only 900 LED Video Light panels. 1/50th, F/4, ISO 100 on Canon 7D.
900 LED Dimmable Photography Video Light Panel
No worries about heat or power draw that will blow out house breakers. The 600 and 900 LED versions come with Sony V Mounts, so you can also invest in batteries to take them off the grid and portable. You can see placement of lights in the first frame grab. Not the best test here, but hopefully you get an idea about power output, throw, and diffusion. [Thanks Olivia for sitting in.]
You can find more LED Video Light Panels in different Sizes below
500, 520, 600, 900, 1000, 1200 LED Lights and More
LED-5001 DSLR Video Light Kit w/ Lithium Battery + Charger
These 'other style' LED lights are popping up everywhere you look, especially on eBay were most of the LED Video lights start out. At first glance the style is similar to the Comer light, but it's not the same, and it's not even half the price of even the 'generic Comer'. The above video review from Vimeo member Olivia shows some sample use with the LED-5001 (or sometimes called VL5001)
The LED-5001 video light kit has (3) LED's, comes with a folding Diffuser, Tungsten Filter, and two barn doors. Nice to have all those filters and gels in one place rather than thrown in your bag. The LED kit also comes with a battery charger and Sony compatible 7.2V rechargeable Lithium Battery - and yes it's also Dimmable. Run time? Not sure, but looks like you can still mount Sony's double sized 7.2V battery as opposed to the smaller one provided with the kit. [Thanks Olivia]
Dimmable Video LED Light Lithium battery with Charger 4 Leaf Barndoor For on Camera DSLR Video
Z96 LED Flicker Test with Sony Battery
Some people have commented about flickering from a Z96 LED video light. This has to do with battery voltage, especially when the batteries run low. I've had plenty of success with my Eneloops and haven't noticed any flickering until they drain out. This time YouTube member Luca throws together a battery and flicker test with the Z96 using a Sony battery. Results look pretty good, and the price for batteries + charger is not too shabby. [Thanks Luca].
DIY start for a 5600K LED Light Panel?
Matt writes in to share an LED light panel find via eBay. Normally you'd filter down to Video or Camera lighting, so you might have missed this one (I know I did). These are LED panels used as grow lights for indoor plants or aquarium accent lighting. This particular panel holds 225 LED's spaced out to cover a decent area. With 4 of these, you'd be working your way up to a 900 LED light source that is said to be rated at 5600K. Not too bad.
There's two versions that they sell, one being an 'upgraded' Ultrathin version. No specs on actual color temperature from that listing, but the ultrathin looks pretty nice. Since these aren't stamped under video or photo, they run extremely cheap. I just ordered one to test to see if it's a DIY start, but at worst case it'll be great for my Photo Cocoon lightbox or place it over my aquarium. Nice that they already come in a housing (looks like aluminum but most likely plastic). They are offered in a variety of mixed color LED's or just plain white. Make sure you check on the ones that specify 'white only' and you can find them below. [Thanks Matt]
BTS Sample with Cheap 500 LED Video Light Panels
I talked about these lights a long time ago found in the article: http://cheesycam.com/latest-led-video-lights-for-dslr-video/
Since that first article, these lights have made their way around the world and in different projects. Yet to this day I get asked several questions about posting up a sample of power output and sample videos of them in use. I had a bit of free time, and a walk-in volunteer today so I thought I'd put this together real quick for you guys. (Thanks sister-in-law). There's no style in the lighting setup, I just threw them up very quickly. This video is mainly just to show you how much power these things are capable of along with the quality of light. The main camera was set to the Daylight White Balance setting with no color correction in post. Hopefully that should give you an idea about how close they are to daylight temperature. The camera was set to ISO 250 with the lights at 1/4 power. DSLR's can provide clean images even up to ISO 1600 and with 3/4 of power to spare they should be able to cover most of your small projects. You can also tell how whisper quiet these units are. Don't be fooled by other versions that include some type of internal fan, that will ruin your audio (if you ever decide to use the audio).
Relative size next to Canon 5D Mark II
In the rear I have a 500 LED light camera left on Full Power. In the front, I would normally have a main and fill light setup, but they are both on only 1/4 power. You could probably just setup one light to the side, and use a simple bounce as a fill on the other. I'm also including a few images that were shot by just lighting the product with the 500 LED panel. I have it next to a Canon 5D Mark II to compare the relative size. It's very small, built with a solid housing, and makes it perfect for travel. These lights also stay super cool with ZERO heat so your subject doesn't start to sweat. If you have any other questions about these super cheap LED light panels, just drop a comment.
There's many versions of these types of lights online which look similar. Some come with a fan which you don't want when doing Video shoots. Those fan units are very loud and I don't think are needed in LED lighting. Others units being sold may also be a slightly different build quality. I have not had the chance to use some of the other units out there, but I can tell you that I'm happy with the ones that i'm using here. There's 500 LEDs, 1000 LEDs, 500 Dimmable, 1000 Dimmable, 1000 Color Temp Changing Dimmable, sold in kits with several lights, and a few more options. These particular light panels come from the ePhoto seller found here: Portable Cool LED video Light Panel Solutions
Studio Continuous LED Video Light Panels on eBay
They are also available via Amazon
500 and 1000 Continuous LED Video Lighting Panels on Amazon
Related Articles:
http://cheesycam.com/color-changing-variable-color-led-video-lights/
http://cheesycam.com/portable-battery-powers-the-cheap-500-led-light-panel/
http://cheesycam.com/latest-led-video-lights-for-dslr-video/
Spontaneous Night Blogging
You can find more about these lights i've been blogging about in this article http://cheesycam.com/?p=561
I was playing backup camera guy for a friends recent shoot. Packed up the rest of the gear and with 550D / T2i in hand + cheap eBay 126 LED light on HotShoe, I just thought i'd grab a clip of how powerful these video lights are. This is a super raw unedited clip that I didn't even take time to focus properly, but hopefully it provides a helpful insight on this item. You can find more about these lights i've been blogging about in this article http://cheesycam.com/?p=561