nofilmschool » lights

Shane Hurlbut's Kino Flo Interviews: 'In Order to Be a Great Shooter, You Have to Understand Light'

Dave Kendricken — Wed, 15 May 2013 23:42:44 +0000

There are several exciting new lighting revolutions in development these days, namely LED and plasma fixtures. The first such high-output/low-footprint alternative lighting technology — all but perfected for the performance needed in high-end film production — came about twenty-five years ago, with the advent of Kino Flo Lighting Systems. Kino Flo isn’t the only manufacturer pushing alternative lighting solutions with filmmaking in mind, but its name is still nearly synonymous with the technology it helped revolutionize. Check out an excellent interview below from Shane Hurlbut, ASC, with Kino Flo founder and president Frieder Hochheim to hear about how it all began and about how the company plans on lending its namesake to some of those new revolutions in lighting, too. (more…)

How to Make Cheap DIY Dimmer Switches for Your Film Lights

Joe Marine — Wed, 03 Apr 2013 02:18:45 +0000

It’s certainly not the sexiest piece of gear you’re going to deal with, but dimmer switches can be unbelievably handy, especially if you have limited time and a limited budget, and you’re already working with DIY lights. A dimmer switch, if you’re not sure, is exactly what it sounds like: it’s a way to selectively dim or brighten the quantity of a light source using electricity, rather than manual means like placing a net over the light. This is an important distinction as you’re not trying to change the shape or quality of the light — just simply lower the output. Most of these can be built for very little cost, so click through to check out some tutorials on building your very own dimmer switches. (more…)

Ultra-Bright and Programmable Lumapad May Change the Way You Think About LED Lighting

Robert Hardy — Wed, 27 Mar 2013 20:58:14 +0000

LED lighting has come a long way in the past 10 years. While many professionals stayed away from LEDs when they were an emergent technology (despite the fact that LEDs offered some very distinct advantages over traditional lighting technologies), you would be hard-pressed to find a current set without at least a few battery-powered units being used as accent lights. However, LEDs still aren’t ubiquitous, and in most cases they haven’t supplanted more traditional sources such as tungsten fresnels and PARs due to the fact that they have relatively low output and are comparatively harsh in the quality of their light. The Lumapad, an open source LED Kickstarter project from inventor Richard Haberkern, looks to change all of that. Check out his Kickstarter video for the Lumapad below: (more…)

Hive Lighting Brightens Up All-Plasma Chevy Volt Ad (With Only Batteries and 60A Generator)

Dave Kendricken — Tue, 05 Mar 2013 17:37:48 +0000

Modern lighting technology continues to become more energy-efficient, while at the same time increasing light output. This applies to LEDs, but it also applies to plasma lighting systems, which are growing rapidly in popularity. Plasma is capable of a very naturalistic light spectrum (much closer to traditional Tungsten lights depending on the design), which is usually more difficult with LEDs. A company really pushing the boundaries of plasma technology is Hive Lighting, who recently lamped-up a 30-second Chevy ad using only batteries and a 60 amp generator — to rather impressive effect. Check out a line-item lighting breakdown of the Volt Plasma Challenge video from Hive Lighting below. (more…)

Fiilex Lights: Sub-$1000 LED Studio Lights With a Twist

Justin Minich — Sun, 27 Jan 2013 09:39:52 +0000

LED studio lights keep making leaps and bounds in technological advancement, but the price of such lights has tended to remain relatively high. However the Fiilex P360 and the P200 FlexJet are two LED studio lights touting a high CRI at all color temperatures (and the ability to smoothly tune between them), an option to run on broadcast batteries, and a light/compact form factor, each costing less than $1000. The P200 also features a lighting tool you’re not likely to find in other studio lights: fiber optics. (more…)

What You Need to Build a Versatile, Compact, and Ultra Cheap DIY Light Kit

Dave Kendricken — Thu, 22 Nov 2012 22:00:30 +0000

Even on projects that can afford to rent a lighting and grip package, it can be useful for you to have your own lighting kit stashed away. Whether this kit is something you keep in the trunk of your car, good in a pinch — or what you use to make your living — the boy scout motto applies. Who knows, maybe you’re up the creek, just that one cube tap or ground lift short, but because you brought your kit, your gaffer owes you a brewski when the day is done. Thanks to a few open filmmakers with some ingenuity up their sleeves, we have some details on what extremely affordable and useful gear can comprise your own DIY lighting kit. (more…)

Shane Hurlbut Shows You How to Mimic Fire Light With His DIY Creation

Justin Minich — Sun, 15 Jul 2012 12:15:17 +0000

Shane Hurlbut –that never-ending font of cinematography knowledge– has another great DIY solution on offer. This time he tackles the simulation of fire light. In the past, Hurlbut had used various approaches to creating fire-like lighting, but none gave him the realism that he wanted to achieve. So for The Greatest Game Ever Played he dreamt up a better way: The Medusa. (more…)

NAB Video: ikan's DSLR Rigs, LED Lights, LCD Monitors, and Much More

Ryan Koo — Thu, 21 Apr 2011 18:40:40 +0000

ikan had one of the more visible booths at NAB thanks to the extremely bright yellow shirts worn by all of their reps, in conjunction with the plethora of LED lights lining the booth. I knew about their DSLR support systems, but I didn’t know that they’ve been expanding into all areas of production equipment, as they were showing off on-camera lights, table-top dollies, bags, and monitors — both of the on-camera variety (their $1k 1024×600 VX7e monitor won a Videomaker best in show award) and the studio kind, with their acquisition of the ultra high-end Cinemáge monitor line. (more…)