Falcon Eyes RX-718 RGB Light Review
RGB LED lights for video and film were one of the big themes at the National Association of Broadcasters show in 2018. Here’s my first experience with an RGB mat light from Falcon Eyes, the RX-718. The mat measures approximately 24 by 18 inches and is only a few millimeters thick. But this light can do more than just put out crazy saturated colors across the spectrum, it is also produces color quality good enough to use as a key light where rendering skin tones faithfully is the goal.
Links to gear discussed and used to shoot this episode:
Falcon Eyes RX-718 RGB Mat Light
Falcon Eyes RX-718TD LED Mat Light (Bi Color)
Panasonic GH5s Camera - my favorite small camera for video
Panasonic 12-35mm f/2.8 OIS Lens - this is the the lens I use more than any other on the GH5s
Sennheiser MKH 8050 Boom Microphone
Sound Devices 633 Audio Field Mixer/Recorder
Copyright 2018 by Curtis Judd
Music - MzA - Copyright 2017 by Cary Judd, used with permission
IKEA LED Bulbs: Good Enough for Video Lighting?
If you’re shooting video on a really tight budget and you cannot afford an expensive, pro-grade lighting instrument, can you get away with using consumer grade LED bulbs from IKEA? Let’s take a look and see whether these bulbs can produce decent quality light for your video projects and consider the “down-sides.”
Links to gear discussed and used to record this session:
IKEA RYET LED Bulbs (not recommended for video use)
IKEA LEDARE LED Bulbs (usable for tiny budget, non-color critical video lighting)
Shop/Clamp Lamp - the aluminum lamp you’ll want to concentrate the light and mount it on a light stand
Westcott 5 in 1 Reflector (I use the middle section to soften the light - it is a scrim/silk)
Sekonic C-700-U Spectrometer (for measuring CRI, color casts, spectral light output, etc.)
Sennheiser MKH 8050 Super-cardioid Boom Microphone
Panasonic GH5S Camera (My current favorite small camera)
Panasonic 12-35mm f/2.8 OIS Lens - incredibly versatile lens that is on the GH5S most of the time
Copyright 2018 by Curtis Judd
Aputure COB300d - Updated Color Filter Review
If you already own the COB300d and have not yet received the replacement color filter, fill out this form.
We reviewed the Aputure COB300d LED light for video and photography a few months ago and found it to be a very good, big light with lots of light output and *good* but not stellar color quality. Aputure received feedback on the green color fringe and color quality issues and have come up with a nice solution. For those who have purchased a COB300d, they are offering a free replacement color filter that addresses both of those problems.
My original COB 300d review:
Links to gear discussed and used to record this session:
Aputure COB 300d LED Light
Aputure COB120d Light
Aputure Light Dome Soft Box - I use this for almost every interview/talking head shot
Aputure Fresnel Lens - when you need to focus the light beam and throw the light farther
Photo Basics Barn Doors - nice way to cut the light for dramatic light and shadow
Sennheiser MKH 8050 Super-cardioid Condenser Microphone
Sound Devices 633 Audio Recorder/Mixer
Ursa Mini Pro Cinema Camera
Sigma 24-70mm f/2.8 OS ART Lens
Music licensed from Artlist: Call on Me by Kick Lee. Artlist provides high quality music tracks for your film and video projects. You can receive two months off an Artlist account by using our link.
Copyright 2018 by Curtis Judd
Lupo Dayled and Superpanel Lights for Video: Overview
What is unique about professional level LED lights for video? In this episode we take a look at the professional grade Lupo Dayled fresnel and Superpanel LED lights.
Links to gear discussed and used to record this session:
Lupo Lights now available in the USA from B&H:
Dayled 650 5600K
Dayled 650 Dual Color
Dayled 1000 5600K
Dayled 1000 Dual Color
Dayled 2000 5600K
Superpanel 5600K, No DMX
Superpanel Dual Color, No DMX
Ursa Mini Pro Cinema Camera - my main camera
Sigma 24-70mm f/2.8 OS ART Lens - my main all-around lens
Sennheiser MKH 8050 Supercardioid Boom Microphone
Sound Devices 633 Audio Recorder/Mixer
Rosco 1/2 Soft Frost Diffusion
5 in 1 Reflector (with scrim) - this is the very first piece of gear that any photographer or filmmaker should buy. Well, maybe right after a basic camera and good microphone.
Copyright 2017 by Curtis Judd
Affordable Soft LED Light for Video: Linkstar RL-24VC
Producing soft light for interview and talking head style video traditionally requires you to use a big softbox or umbrella to diffuse the light. But edge-lit LED lights, like the Linkstar RL-24VC produce soft light while taking up a LOT less space. Let’s have a closer look at the Linkstar to see how well it does in terms of color quality, build, and most importantly, overall light quality.
Links to gear discussed and used to record this session:
Linkstar RL-24VC Bi-Color Edge-lit LED Light (temporarily out of stock, standby for updates)
Linkstar RL-18V Daylight Color Edge-lit LED Light (Smaller, 18 watt version - temporarily out of stock, standby for updates)
NP-F970 Type Batteries
This episode shot with the following:
Sound Devices MixPre-10T Audio Recorder - been working with this for about a month now, review coming soon. Here are my first impressions:
Sigma ART 24-70 f/2.8 Lens for Canon EF Mount - My new "all-purpose" lens for the Ursa Mini Pro
Sennheiser MKH 8050 Supercardioid Boom Microphone - featured in this comparison of indoor super and hyper-cardioid boom microphones (it's the little one and I love it):
Blackmagic Design Ursa Mini Pro Cinema Camera (This is my main camera for corporate video work)
Copyright 2017 by Curtis Judd
LED Light Color Quality: Aputure, Falcon Eyes, Kamerar BrightCast, Linkstar
LED lights have several obvious advantages when it comes to video lighting: They don’t use nearly as much power so they can often be battery powered and they run cooler. But are LEDs as good as the sun or tungsten lights in terms of color quality? In this episode we answer each of these questions and measure the CRI (Color Rendering Index) for each of the LED lights I have reviewed over the last three years.
Links to gear discussed and used to record this session:
Review of the Kamerar BrightCast Flexible LED Light:
Review of Falcon Eyes RX-18 Flexible LED Panel Light:
Linkstar RL-24VC LED Edge-Lit Soft LED Light (Review Coming Soon)
Falcon Eyes FELUX 160 LED Fresnel Light (Review coming soon: Big, Powerful, wide color temp range)
Aputure LS1s Daylight LED Panel Light Review:
Aputure COB120d Review:
Aputure COB120t Review:
Aputure COB300d Review:
Aputure Light Dome Soft Box Review:
Sekonic C-700U Color Meter/Spectrometer - used to make the CRI measurements
Copyright 2017 by Curtis Judd
Aputure COB300d BIG LED Light for Film & Video
Since Aputure announced the new Light Storm COB 300d at NAB earlier this year, I’ve been looking forward to getting my hands on it! The 300d is a daylight balance single point LED light which draws about 320 watts which is a ton for an LED. They say this is a 2K tungsten equivalent - if that really means anything, but it is a much more powerful LED light than I’ve ever worked with before. In this episode we run it through its paces and look at its build quality, included accessories, features, color quality and light output. I hope you find this helpful!
Thanks to Aputure for providing the COB300d for this review. They have not paid me beyond providing the light and previously provided accessories. All of the opinions shared here are my own.
Links to Gear Discussed and used to shoot this review:
Aputure COB 300d LED Light
Aputure COB120d LED Light - The little brother
Aputure COB120t LED Light - The other little brother with tungsten color balance. I use this one as a key light in studio in most cases.
Aputure Light Dome Soft Box - I use this for almost every interview/talking head shot
Aputure Fresnel Lens - great when you need to focus the light beam and throw the light farther
Photo Basics Barn Doors - nice way to cut the light for dramatic light and shadow
Sennheiser MKH 8050 Super-cardioid Condenser Microphone - Review/comparison coming.
Sound Devices 633 Audio Recorder
Blackmagic Ursa Mini Pro Cinema Camera
Copyright 2017 by Curtis Judd
Flexible LED Light: FalconEyes RX 18TD Overview
LED panel lights have evolved! A few years ago we began seeing flexible LED lights which are nice for when you’re shooting on location, and especially when traveling. And we’ve seen some very nice improvements in the color quality produced by LEDs which make them much better than they used to be for video and film production. The trick has been that the flexible LEDs were rather expensive. The RX-18TD comes in at around $300 USD. Let’s see how it does…
Links to Gear Discussed and used to shoot this review:
FalconEyes RX-18TD - used as a rim light bounced off of foam core in the talking head portions of this video
FalconEyes CLL-1600TDX - used as the key light shot through a scrim in the talking head portions of this video
Aputure COB120d LED Light - used to light the white paper backdrop
V-mount Battery (IDX 95Wh)
XRite Color Checker Video Color Chart - used for color quality tests
Schoeps CMC641 Super-cardioid Microphone - One of the most commonly used microphones for indoor dialogue by profession sound mixers
Sound Devices 633 Audio Recorder
Blackmagic Ursa Mini Pro - My primary camera
Nikon 50mm f/1.8 AF-D Lens
Copyright 2017 by Curtis Judd
Affordable LED Light Panels: CELADON 2XL and 2XL Pro
Need some portable LED lights for your video or photo shoots? CELADON offers the 2XL and 2XL Pro which are small sized LED panels which you can mount on top of your camera, on a stand, or anywhere else you might imagine.
In this review we take a closer look at the color quality, build quality, battery life, beam angle, and light output. Overall, these LED lights are a great portable lighting option for a very good price.
Gear used to record this episode:
CELADON 2XL PRO (160 SMD LED Light Panel - this is what I used as the key light in this episode)
CELADON 2XL (280 LED Light Panel - this was the rim light in this episode)
Panasonic GH5 Camera - My new favorite little camera
Panasonic Lumix 12-35mm f/2.8 Lens (1st Generation)
Olympus 45mm f/1.8 Lens (talking head shots)
Audio Technica AT4053b Microphone - My go-to microphone for recording dialogue indoors
Sound Devices 633 Audio Mixer/Recorder - My "Pro Level" audio recorder
Copyright 2017 by Curtis Judd
Aputure Amaran Tri-8C LED Panel Light - NAB 2017
Aputure keeps cranking out high quality, reasonably priced lighting gear. In this announcement, Ted from Aputure runs us through the features on their new Amaran Tri-8C LED light panel. The light features the ability to power with AC, Sony NP-F style batteries or even Sony V-lock or Anton Bauer Gold Mount batteries. This model is color tunable from 2300 Kelvin to 6800 Kelvin. Light output is roughly equivalent to a 650W tungsten light (though speaking in equivalents is fraught with issues).
I've been working with this light for a few days now and it works great as an accent light and I was very happy with the results when I used it as a fill light for an outdoor talking head piece.
Apologies for the wild camera work. I had the clever idea to go super light without a tripod at NAB this year. Lesson learned. My brother Cary Judd was kind enough to suffer through shooting. Thanks bro!
Our Vlogging setup:
Panasonic Lumix GH5 Camera - the in-body stabilization saved us because I had the "clever" idea to travel light and not bring a tripod this year. That was a mistake but the IBIS in the GH5 did a pretty nice job!
Panasonic Lumix 12-35mm f/2.8 Lens - This is the original version of this lens. The new version is a bit pricier but evidently works even better with the GH5 to smooth out camera motion.
RODE Reporter Microphone - great at managing handling noise. I didn't hear any in this recording.
RODE iXLR Audio Adapter for iPhone - Yes, recorded this audio to my iPhone. Pretty good for a phone recording on a noisy show floor.
Copyright 2017 by Curtis Judd
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