First lights

Blanc/Noir

Blanc/Noir

So I'm investing in my first set of lights. They have to be as cheap as they get. Now I have questions on what type of bulb to purchase whether it be Halogen, Incandescent, or Fluorescent. Also when I was looking online there was work lights but they had grills on them. I assume this would interfer with the actual light coming out. Can these grills be taken off or no?
 
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Blanc/Noir said:
Wil the grills leave lines in my light?
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Maybe if you have your lights directly on your talent with no covering, but I can't imagine you ever doing that, so practically speaking, no.

wheatgrinder said:
china balls are more a specialty item. You'll want one, but I think you need work-lights more at this point. $50 is your STARTING budget, but if you can squeeze $15, $20 a month, you'll have a great kit in no time. Keep you eye on garage sells and CL like I said. I picked up some pro-ish smith victor kit for $50. I pride my self on finding deals, where in America are you located?
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I'd agree. It would be more work, but one of the clamp lights could serve as a decent backlight with enough work.

While you won't be able to get them just yet, you'll want to get some diffusion gels later on. For right now you can just put a thin white sheet you probably have lying around over your lights to soften them.

EDIT: sup second page, didn't see you there

Yeah definitely get some of the professional stuff if you can find it. My local CL is garbage. Stupid South...
 
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For $20, the bottom thing looks like it could be fun. Putting a sheet over it and placing it under your actors could produce some interesting lighting...

Can't tell you about the stage lights, though.
 
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OK I was going to buy the Smith victor from CL. But it seemed to fishy, they knocked it down half price and said they would deliver it to my home. I wanted to do it but then I asked my parents who flipped out for some reason. They still don't trust me so...

I'm going with the Workforce Telescoping Halogen Light. It looks awesome. The only question is: What can I use to soften the light?

Also with the China Ball, I went to the IKEA online store and they only sell the shade. Would I just put the shade on a lamp or is there a less cumbersome option.
 
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Blanc/Noir said:
OK I was going to buy the Smith victor from CL. But it seemed to fishy, they knocked it down half price and said they would deliver it to my home. I wanted to do it but then I asked my parents who flipped out for some reason. They still don't trust me so...
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Yeah, parents suck sometimes. I'm sure it's fine (I've never been stabbed or raped because of CL), but I'm sure you understand how parents just don't understand.

I'm going with the Workforce Telescoping Halogen Light. It looks awesome. The only question is: What can I use to soften the light?
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Wombat said:
While you won't be able to get them just yet, you'll want to get some diffusion gels later on. For right now you can just put a thin white sheet you probably have lying around over your lights to soften them.
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:cool:
 
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Blanc/Noir said:
China Ball, I went to the IKEA online store and they only sell the shade. Would I just put the shade on a lamp
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The package will come with two parts:

1) The actual paper shade
2) The wire "spreader" (which helps the ball keep its shape)

There's no socket, cable, plug or anything else in the package. You need to get that separately at a hardware store, or similar. The combined total (for ball & accessories) should be less than $20.


As far as mounting it, I use a metal clamp attached to a C-stand. You'll be able to find something simple to hang it from, no problem, though. It's very light.

Make sure you get a large ball, btw. The 24" & 30" diameters are what I typically use.

http://www.filmtools.com/24whitchinla.html
http://www.filmtools.com/30whitpapchi.html

...and while it can be handy to dash into your local Ikea, if you're shopping online you may as well go here.

Lighting is a lot of fun. :cool:
 
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So I bought the Workforce Telescoping Halogen Work Light.

I tried to put a piece of Printer paper over it and it didn't seem to soften the light. Is printer paper too dyed or thick?
 
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Dreadylocks said:
Not to hijack the thread, but, is this a good deal? Or would they only be useful for theatre?

http://chicago.craigslist.org/chc/pho/1809940403.html

And could this be put to use? It's super cheap, after all....

http://chicago.craigslist.org/chc/pho/1815273388.html
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The fresnels looks to be a good deal and you get some extra globes with them which is sweet. You can do what 2001P said or you might be able to get away with a background support with some sand bags too. But I'm sure you will need some clamps to make sure the are held down well if they are hanging on a support and use a safety cable.

http://www.skaeser.com/servlet/Categories?category=BACKGROUND+SUPPORT+SYSTEMS:SUPPORT+SYSTEM

As for the thing which looks like some sort of Kino Flo, I'm not too sure about that at $20 because can you still get globes for it? How much are they? Also, where can you find a stand for it? Sure it's only $20 bucks but it might become more of a head ache/and cash out of your pocket then it's worth.

But I would grab those first lights if you have a little money to throw around.
 
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