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Introduction |
***PLEASE READ: this guide is not meant to cover all possibilities for photo lighting, or even about setting up quality panel lights made by companies like Meiki, SmallRig or Genaray. UNLESS you get a good deal on surplus lights, odds are you will pay ~$50-60 for these lights; (sometimes less if the power adapter is not included, but if you do not have a compatible adapter the price adds back up). TheseAt low voltages like 5V these panel lights do not work well being ~700-1000 lumens. In addition economics are poor as you need 4 or more for effective light spread. The purpose of these lights are not economical for small 5V ~700-1,000-1,500 lumendefeated by this as the cost of 2 super bright panels as they are too dim and ineffectively spread their light output. This canwill be kind of resolved with 4 but it defeatsabout the purpose of cheap lights as 4 will often cost as much as 2 premium panels from a trusted namesame price.*** | | ***In short: unless you get a very, very good deal on surplus lights used from a clearing house or a photo/video studio, you will need to spend at least $120 to get a pair of good LED panels plus the cost of stands (~$39). Unless you can justify this, the cost can be high for occasional use. As a result of the cost issue being a deal breaker (in addition to cheap Amazon/eBay LED panels being too dim to be effective), this guide uses a different tradeoff: Instead of dim and ineffective LED panels, a pair of high-quality (preferably >90+ CRI) LED bulbs can also be used. While still far from perfect, the end result is significantly better.*** | | | ***Remember: THESE BULBS WILL NOT OUTPERFORM PROPER STUDIO LIGHTS AS THE CRI WILL BE LOWER. A PROPER STUDIO LIGHT WILL BE 95+ CRI. This cannot be done cheaply at the amateur level, and tradeoffs like visible signs of subpar light quality may be present. However, this guide does not target this audience (who also often run professional cameras and high-end lenses). Even with the CRI tradeoff, this method still results in far better overall light output compared to other low-cost lighting options. While good surplus lighting can be purchased used all day long for very little if you look this is not always the case.*** |
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