LED studio lighting

[marmle]

I am thinking of getting some studio lighting, I am on a limited budget and I was pleasently surprised when I saw some on amazon with a CRI of 96. But after giving it some thought, I began to get a bit sceptical. £100 seemed very cheap for a pair of lights that claim to have a CRI of 96.

Your thoughts and any recommendations?

https://www.amazon.co.uk/SAMTIAN-Bi...ghting-Dimmable/dp/B07H31M2PD?ref_=ast_bbp_dp

 

[tirediron]

I wouldn't waste my money. For a start, there's a reason that the equivalent panel from a reputable manufacturer will be priced in the thousands; you get what you pay for! More importantly however, at 3900 lux, that's approximately analogous to 250 watts of incandescent light, or, in other words, the sum of the square route of four-fifths of bugger all! Take that 100 - 120 pounds and put it into a couple of these Godox TT600s or similar. Many, many times the light; enough to do real studio work with!

 

[JBPhotog]

The cheaper LED panels will fluctuate in CRI when you dim them and when you change the Kelvin, they are not 96 CRI across the spectrum. Typically LED's are weak in the Red spectrum, as in skin tone, so YMMV if you plan on shooting people.

 

[Derrel]

I would rather have flash.

 

[Designer]

Your thoughts and any recommendations?

Flash

These units are under-powered, and will not render colors as consistently as would a good flash unit. I think the CRI will change if you dial the power down.

Just get a good flash, and if you can't afford more than one just now, get one, and save up for more. Start out with a good unit, and then get the same model for your subsequent flash purchases. Go for a mid-range price point. Plan ahead and assemble a stable of like flash units.

Most modern flash units render colors accurately over their power range, but I would steer clear of the cheaper units.

Something like this will get you started with a good system:

https://www.adorama.com/fp320m.html

 

[Derrel]

Buy three identical flashes and you will be able to use the same accessories for all three. The flashpoint 320m above is quite a good basic unit, but it does not have a built-in receiver, so perhaps you would like one of the newer R2 models from the same company / vendor, Adorama. For the previous decade I had many times recommended the 320M as an incredible value, but now that it is 2020 and the R-series has proven itiself, I think it is time to change my opinion on what even a basic entry-level studio flash should have.

 

[Sharpshooterr]

I am thinking of getting some studio lighting, I am on a limited budget and I was pleasently surprised when I saw some on amazon with a CRI of 96. But after giving it some thought, I began to get a bit sceptical. £100 seemed very cheap for a pair of lights that claim to have a CRI of 96.

Your thoughts and any recommendations?

https://www.amazon.co.uk/SAMTIAN-Bi...ghting-Dimmable/dp/B07H31M2PD?ref_=ast_bbp_dp

Interesting that it never says how many bulbs it has but they look different than most bulbs. But if the lux are accurate that’s all you need. I’ll give you a good comparison.
I have a Neewer 480 and rated at about 3400 lux. I tested it with my meter, it’s a nice little light but you’d be hard pressed to do still photography with it.
On my meter at ss 125 and using f2.8 you’d be at ISO 800. That’s a high iso for studio and at 125th you’re getting to a minimum speed and not have motion blur. Now you’d have 2 light for more power and I’ll assume they’re 3900 Liz each and not combined!?
As was said, try and come up with 3 speedlights. For studio you don’t need a guide# of 58. You could do with half that for individuals. they can be full manual and infrared or light triggered. Probably can trigger them with your cameras pop-up if you have one. I’ll bet you can get some for $50 each!!! Good luck
SS

 

[Tropicalmemories]

I sometimes use a 3,800 Lux Viltrox LED panel light that has 192 LED's and variable color temp, plus a second 2,500 Lux LED ring-light with white umbrella for portraits.

At iso 400 I still need a wide aperture of f1.4 to achieve a reasonable shutter speed of 1/80.

I enjoy using LED as I can see the effect of the lights as I take the shots, but if I want to use a narrower aperture for wider dof I'll use off-camera flash, which is much more powerful even using a couple of small flashguns.

I do think LED is the future for lighting, but right now LEDs with the equivalent power of flash are very expensive.

2 LED lit f1.4 iso 400

 

[zombiesniper]

I second a Godox TT600. I have one and it works almost as well as my studio lights. On the plus side you can take it with you if you need lighting outside.
Pair it with a stand and umbrella and you're on your way.