Taky - Thanks for the great feedback! I would love to see some footage from your weddings with the light in some of the scenarios that you talked about - especially the first dance under low light conditions where you have to stand at the edge of the dance floor.

Other questions - How wide is the spread of the beam of light? Do you shoot wide screen/HD? How long did your battery last and at what power? Did you need to switch batteries during the event? I have few long life Panasonic batteries for my DVX100 that I'd like to use since the new Panny HMC150 won't use the old batteries.(I'll be upgrading the cam before the next wedding season!)

And if you have time can you post a photo of your cam with the light on the extended hot shoe bar. I'm have a mental block as far as visualizing the light and battery on the bar.

Thanks,
Mike

I just tried the new Switronix Torch LED. It is self-contained 30 watts with a filter kit.... so I don't have to attach an external battery to my Frezzi anymore. It's suppose to last over two hours. I placed my order last week.

Switronix - Products

Where did you buy from? I am VERY interested as I'm in the market for an on-camera light that isn't so heavy and harsh. A built in battery sounds good too :). Please post some clips with it when you can!

Have any of you heard of this led ligth 35w made by Bescor? :
Bescor | LED-35 On Camera Light | LED35 | B&H Photo Video

It's only 189.00

It would be nice if they stated it has a dimmer or not.

Resembles a re-badged LitePanel micro

Edit: Actually it does not resemble rebadged LitePanel Micro

LP Micro vs. NRG Light
 

Hey all...

I searched the forums for info on this and found a thread from only about a month ago that dealt with lights, but it didn't really help give me an answer one way or the other, so I'm sorry if this may seem redundant.

I am finally getting my XH A1. B&H is now listing the A1s, so the price has been reduced. I need a light was well (obviously) and want to make sure I get a good one (obviously again). B&H lists the LP Micro on their A1 page and the reviews I read say they are pretty good. But then I came across the previously mentioned thread which mentioned the NRG light and wondering which one would be best for what I am going to be using the camera for, which is weddings. I am kind of leaning towards the LP Micro, but any help that can be offered would be much appreciated.

Thanks!

I purchased the LP Micro light and decided to send it back. It is good for a close-up interview light but does not have enough throw or wide enough spread to be good for more than 4 feet away. I have been using several lights and each has it problems. I use an Lowel ID-Light for grand entrance, first dance and speeches. I am usually on tripod so an external battery is no big deal. For the other shots I use a custom built light with 150 LEDs or my Sony HVL-20DW2 with a Stofen diffuser. I had some luck with a Swit S-2010 but the external battery/clamp is a pain. I have worked with some other shooters that use the Sony HVL-LBP which works very well but with the battery it makes the camera very top heavy.

I tried a LPmicro and returned it after the first day due to very low light output. Many people have written they are happy with them for close up work but even then I couldn't see how, it's just not much light. I also thought it was cheaply built and extremely overpriced. If I was going LitePanel I would pick a higher up in their product line to likely solve all these issues.

After returning the LPmicro I purchased a Zylight Z90 and power it with a Tekkeon battery and love it for many uses. I don't have any experience with the NRG light so I cannot comment there, sorry.

All the best,
James Hooey

10 Watt Light Uses?
 

Hello all. I am finally going to use my new XH A1 for the first time this weekend at a wedding and now full of questions until then...

I have a 10 watt light sitting around from my GL2 sitting around that I never really used. It's only 10 watts, so very low light. Can anyone think of any practical use for it at a wedding?

If it's camera mounted, it may help getting interviews during the reception which is typically a low light situation. Other than that, I can't see it being of much use.

That's what I thought. What about just using it in a situation where you are in a small room and need a small amount of light, just as a tiny pick me up?

not sure how much 10 watts would help, but it's always worth a try if you have the light with you.

I find it is useful where there is very little lighting, like a dark pub. But even there it is limited because it can be quite glaring for the subjects when you get too close. Still, better than no light at all.

Richard

!0 watts can be worth over 12 dB of gain, or more than two stops, at 10 feet in a modest light situation.

In a quick test with my XHA1 and a Sony HVL-20DW2 video light at the 10 Watt setting:
Camcorder was set to 60i HDV mode, 1/30 shutter
The metered exposure of a general subject object 10 feet form the light was
with the 10 watt light OFF: +12 dB gain, f/1.8,
with the 10 watt light ON: 0 dB gain, f/2.2

The above was not a rigorous test, and your results will vary depending on the subject shot, distances, and the ambient light. However, it does give an idea as to how much improvement a bit of light can give at typical wedding reception shooting distances.

Run some tests yourself to get a feel for how much you might benefit from a bit of light. Just be sure to coordinate this with the client in advance as may be appropriate to your shoots.

10 Watt Canon Light?
 

I assume you are talking about the 10 watt Canon light, or are you talking about a different one?

I have the 10 watt Canon, my 2nd shooter uses it sometimes with me on weddings. Typically we use it as kind of a fill light with my higher power light on my camera. the 10 watt can be good for close up stuff or if you need to add just a little touch of light on some faces so lose some nasty facial shadows. To use it as a primary, esp for weddings probably wont work in a great deal of situations unless you want to use 12db gain which starts to suck pretty quickly.

I find occasional uses for the 10 watt, but not really any primary uses.

Not sure if that helps much, just my experience.

My test was using a Sony 10 watt light, but 10 watts of light is, well, 10 watts of light, and the variances are mainly the result of beam width and color temperature of the bulb used. For shooting guests at a table it can make the difference between using 0 dB gain and 12 dB gain.

Direct lighting much brighter than 10 to 20 watts can really irritate people, especially in otherwise subdued lighting situations.

best on camera light under $100?
 

anyone have any suggestions of an on camera light under $100,

this is the one im looking at, i have only searched bhphotovideo b/c i dont know of other sites to buy from,

Bescor | KLK-624D On Camera Light Kit | KLK624D | B&H Photo Video

what sucks about this one is the battery that comes with doesnt hold a long charge, and buying another battery is almost as buying the light.


please input your suggestions

thanks

~pieces

My psychic powers tell me Derek will recommend a Maglight,

Maglite 3W LED flashlight! $30 from Crappy tire and better than litepanels microlite. Remove focus reflector for "candle mode" and you will get the softest brightest light that you can gel with a demo pack of filters for tungsten. This piece will fit in the shotgun holder of the A1 or if that is in use you can shoe mount it with a shoe mount shock mount.
Your welcome.

Have a look at the Sima SL-20LX http://www.dvinfo.net/conf/photon-ma...deo-light.html
You can have 3 lights for 100 usd.

sigmas are decent, however no battery packs and do not last long.

derek, its dan! this flashlight sounds great, i was gonna go look for one around the house but led for sure should look good. what filters did you put in front of it.

dan

wrd.
thanks gents

Amazon.com: Canon VL-10Li II Video Light for Canon Camcorders: Electronics

works great and uses same battery as XHA1.

this was a secret find but ill share it here.

How to build a 1,024,000 mcd portable light

honestly speaking, litepanels seem to be a great piece for ones kit, but lets be real...400(cdn that is) for a panel of leds encased in a plastic square. not a chance for my budget. plus mine will have more lights. my leds should be arriving this week then ill start the build. i will post pictures once it is complete here. hope you find this handy.

dan

Best light for XHA1??
 

looking for a light for my XHA1.....I'm pretty new at this.

something less than $200.....I know that might not get me much...but thats my budget for now. something rechargeable......

Thanks

Mark

thry the sima
 

great little light

Sima | SL-20LX Universal LED On Camera Light | SL-20LX | B&H

it's come down in price I think!

I bought one of these ( $54.95 one's ), but not done any night stuff yet. great ebayer

eBay Seller: camflasher: Cameras Photo items on eBay.com

comes with some filters and 3 levels of brightness

Brian

Not been impressed by this unit. No angle adjustment on the light and a pretty unusable light source, no matter which filter is put in front of it, IMO.

ok, maybe don't buy it then.

I hardly do any night stuff, but wanted something and not too pricey.

I put together a comparison video of 6 video lights

http://www.dvinfo.net/conf/photon-ma...ml#post1153103

I would say, go with VL-10 if you are with really tight budget (as you can use the same battery).

SWIT 2010 is good too. But with that price, you can get the Comer 900 light which is in the $200 to $300 range. But you will have to get different type of batteries.

L.A. Color Shop | Comer CM-LBPS900 On-Camera LED Light

thanks for the imput......

XH-A1 On camera light! question.
 

Hey There, i'll be shooting a wedding soon and i guess i'll need a light on the top of the camera, could you recommend a decent inexpensive light about 100-200 $.

Thank you.

Arthur.

Hi Arthur, I've just now merged together some 14 or 15 discussions we already had going on this topic, so it's like you've just received 100+ replies, but they all appear *before* your question instead of after. Hope this helps,