On Camera light for XL2
 

Hey guys,

I've been searching for a good on camera light for my XL2. I'm going to start shooting weddings and other live events where lighting may be limited so I was wondering what is a good on camcorder light for my XL2.

I've looked at B&H and I've noticed that most lights have an SDX power or an XLR connection. Would connecting the XLR connection to my audio inputs, would it power it just the same? I've never tried it before so I'm not sure if it will work just fine.

That's basicly my biggest concern. I've already seen a few that I'm eyeballing, but again, I'm not sure if the XLR connections will work with my XL2.

Any input or light suggestions would be greatly appreciated!

I'm going to answer based on what I read in your question. If I misunderstood, please correct me.

The XLR connections for your camera's mic inputs are 3-pin XLR, and will not power a light.

The XLR connectors that you likely saw listed in B&H are 4 pin XLR. Look for a battery pack/belt that has XLR connectors to power your light.

Mark

Mark,

That answers most of my questions, thanks.

Do you, or does anyone else know a direct light for the XL2 that doesn't need a pin XLR adapter from a battery kit?

Are you asking about Canon's on camera light? I forget the model number, but it runs on Canon Batteries. Only about twenty watts, I've got one. Not real effective, but handy sometimes. No barndoors, no 'shade'... very basic. Loook in the XL camera accessories.

Aside from that, there are 'on camera' lights that are powered by AC power, which ties you to an ac outlet, not a battery pack.

Richard,

The one you're talking about I believe is the VL3, which isn't the light I'm asking about. It's a 3 Watt light if I can remember correctly.

I've seen the AC powered lights and those are definately useless in my case as I need the light for live event purposes. It seems like I have no choice but to bite the bullet and buy a battery pack.

Thanks for the info guys!

No, I think Richard is referring to the VL10 which is much larger and brighter than the VL3. You can attach it to the shoe, but you actually attach one of the camera batteries directly to the light itself.

I have one also, but don't use it for events or anything in which people will have to look directly into the camera's direction because the light is BLINDING!

I call it my 'COPS' light because everyone in front of it looks guilty.

Works really well for bright light on a near field subject, but pretty harsh and not a great throw for a lot of cases. As Richard noted, its pretty basic.

There are several different options to look at for much better on-cam light kits including options like barn doors, diffusers, dimmers, LEDs and battery types, but your specific needs and budget will steer much of your direction.

-Jon

This light from Sony is nice. It uses standard Sony batteries right on the light so a battery pack and cable are not necessary:
http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/produc...ht_System.html

Interesting. I checked out the link and hadn't seen this light before. Something I might check out when I have upgrades in my budget. I currently use a Bescor kit with a nice little hinged filter, barn doors, on-board dimmer and a velcro-mounted diffuser. Really good kit for a modest budget. For what I need it to do, it works really well, but it is also one of the type that uses the 4 pin connector to a lead-acid battery...which gets really really heavy after a while.

-Jon

Jonathan is correct, I was referring to the VL10. Definately a 'cops' light. You get a real deer-in-the-headlights effect. Nothing soft about it, I just keep it in my kit as an emergency lite source.

The sony light looks interesting, but the reviews are not encouraging. Basically, if you want a quality dimmable light with filter/doors features - you're looking at some sort of ENG product that is going to need a battery pack.

I use the VL10. Yes it is blinding, but good to have in your kit. All you have to do is tape a small piece of scrim in front of the light and it wont blind everyone. It takes xl-2 batteries and it uses the shoe on top of the camera.

I actually have a piece of frost gel I cut and formed into a 'box' like lens that I tape over it. Crude, but usefull.

If you are using Anton Bauer's batteries, the best light I have is UL2 (Ultralight 2). With a diffuser and daylight filter, it gives the best frontal lighting for XL2. However, as with any front mounted lights, there is hardly any modelling - shadows are harsh.

Hhhmmm, seems like my best option at this point is to just buy a battery pack and get myself a good, dimmable light. Barn doors are a bit of a hassle. I've used a on cam light before on a cheapo camcorder, and the barndoors on that thing got HOOOT.

Anyway, I'm thinking about the Sony light, however, the size does concern me. LED is good in the sense that it wont burn my hands with the barn doors, but at that price, it looks like it would be wiser to buy the dvcreators LED lightpanel kit.

Thanks for the info guys, I appreciate it!

lightpanel micro
 

Check this one out:

http://www.s131567196.onlinehome.us/products/micro.asp

The Litepanels LP Micro is going to surprise a lot of people. Here's a little video showing it in action. http://vimeo.com/463187
We should have them by the end of January.