First Portable Lighting Kit

PR

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1 Dec 2008 - 5:33 PM

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Hi,
Can anybody recommend a decent and reasonably priced Portable Lighting kit.
I have been looking at the starter kits from Bowens, Elinchrom, Interfit etc. as I would rather stick with a well known brand.
It will be primrarily used in a home environment, but I dont want to buy something that is not powerful enough if I want to use it elsewhere, so with that in mind, what wattage should I be looking at as a starter (200/250/400/500) ?
I know that softboxes and umbrellas are sometimes a personal choice, but should I look for a kit that provides one of each or stick with umbrellas to start me off.
Any advice would be appreciated.
Thanks
Phil

Mike Otley (e2 Member)

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1 Dec 2008 - 6:15 PM

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These have caught my eye (yet to decide...)

One

Two

Three

Watching this thread with interest - thanks for posting!

Mike Otley (e2 Member)

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1 Dec 2008 - 6:40 PM

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Recycle time can be a bit OTT Steve. >3secs? Isn't that a bit too long?

Bucephalas69

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1 Dec 2008 - 7:21 PM

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I would recommend the D-Lite system myself.

I bought a 200 twin pack to start which did most of what I wanted but decided I needed an extra light or two for hi-key so bought the 400 Twin pack too.
They now come with fan cooling, have a recycle time of just over 1 second and are a good build quality. They weigh a fraction of my previous El-300 lights and are easy to transport and set up.
They come with two softboxes which I leave assembled. Just remove the cover and stack inside each other. Makes setup time a lot quicker.

Snapper_T

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1 Dec 2008 - 11:01 PM

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I have both the Bowens Gemini 250W kit and Interfit Stellar 300w kit. Bowens are obviously the better build, but the Interfits are still more than good enough for home and studio use.

Trev

Garry_Edwards

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2 Dec 2008 - 11:52 AM

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Quote:

I know this sounds like a daft question, but do you think there is a lot of practical useable difference between small increments like 250 to 300 or 300 to 400, obviously I realise the higher powers are going to throw more light out, but I'm talking real life practical situations as opposed to manufacturers spec. What are your thoughts on that.
Thanks very much.

Thanks to everybody else also.
Cheers
Phil

These small differences wouldn't make much real world difference even if they actually meant something. But they don't, or at least they mean very little.

These figures relate only to the amount of energy stored in the capacitors, they aren't a real indication of the amount of power actually supplied, for that you need to know the guide number - but even this is less than absolute because not all suppliers test their guide numbers under the same conditions.

Please see this guide on how to choose studio lights and this one on how much lighting power you need.

Skodster

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3 Dec 2008 - 7:21 AM

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Quote: Another vote for the Interfit Stellars they do the job and not had any problems.

I have the new X series and I am mightily impressed but given a fatter budget, I would deffo go for the Bowens for the slightly better, and more robust build quality. Interfit is fine though...excellent value/price ratio.

janeez (e2 Member)

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13 Dec 2008 - 12:39 AM

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I have just got the Elemental 3 light, B series, kit. Really nice kit. Will be trying out properly this weekend. Just used one light and softbox to test out so far, with a pretty good result. I will post some pics after the weekend if I get some reasonable images.

Jane