Inexpensive Practical Lights / DIY Lights That Don't Suck?

[Mark Romero 2]

Well... my search for a good, cheap, and quiet bowens-mount LED here in the states has turned out to be kind of a bust. hard to find PixaPros here, and the Godox appear to be too loud (and have too inconsistent color).

So I am looking for ideas for practical lights to join my two yongnuo led panels (YN600L)

Anyone have some suggestions for any DIY or inexpensive lights with LED bulbs and good CRI?

Mostly would be doing waist-up interviews with people in their homes.

Thanks in advance.

[Matthew Hartman]

Whatever light you end up getting just make sure it has a CRI of 92 or above. Go lower and you risk bad color rendition and flickering. 

Also, don't be afraid to mix and match color temps. In color theory, the play on cool and warm contrast is highly desirable. We see this in Hollywood films all the time. 

Other features to look out for is sturdiness, which is the main factor that seperates pro from DIY. Trust me, cheap shit breaks in no time. Some grips are really hard on the gear and you can't always monitor what they're doing.  

If you find you're not getting the skin tones you want use a good old halogen for your key light. Yeah, it gets hot and sucks up power, but the color rendition is spot on.  

Also, pick up some white and black foam core for bouncing and flagging. Most of the magic in good lighting is controlling the spread. 

[Jonesy Jones]

Home Depot and Lowes sell a TON of led lights that are affordable and many or most claim CRI's of 90+. I just bought a flat panel from Lowes that outputs a pretty decent amount of really nice soft light and could easily be fitted with a pin to mount on a c-stand or whatever. The biggest issue is finding true daylight temp, which there is nearly none of.

I also just found a fixture at Costco that can adjust from 2700 to 5000 with a remote. 

Just keep your eyes open at Walmart, Costco, Lowes and Home Depot.

[Matthew Hartman]

2 minutes ago, Jonesy Jones said:

Home Depot and Lowes sell a TON of led lights that are affordable and many or most claim CRI's of 90+. I just bought a flat panel from Lowes that outputs a pretty decent amount of really nice soft light and could easily be fitted with a pin to mount on a c-stand or whatever. The biggest issue is finding true daylight temp, which there is nearly none of.

I also just found a fixture at Costco that can adjust from 2700 to 5000 with a remote. 

Just keep your eyes open at Walmart, Costco, Lowes and Home Depot.

Yes, actually Costco has some really good options. My Home Depot seems limited. 

As far as outside the U.S., I'm not sure what the local hardware chains are in those regions.

These are also great affordable investments:

https://www.ebay.com/i/371998620442?chn=ps&ul_ref=http%3A%2F%2Frover.ebay.com%2Frover%2F1%2F711-117182-37290-0%2F2%3Fmpre%3Dhttps%253A%252F%252Fwww.ebay.com%252Fi%252F371998620442%253Fchn%253Dps%26itemid%3D371998620442%26targetid%3D398894577762%26device%3Dm%26adtype%3Dpla%26googleloc%3D9033288%26poi%3D%26campaignid%3D1028602987%26adgroupid%3D49433955006%26rlsatarget%3Dpla-398894577762%26abcId%3D1130046%26merchantid%3D8536474%26gclid%3DCjwKCAiArOnUBRBJEiwAX0rG_VX9Tt2kgoGZi59bcm9jqGeKR08f9CzkOPQ1DUBjsRXGbA2xePbSnxoCMN0QAvD_BwE%26srcrot%3D711-117182-37290-0%26rvr_id%3D1456406841462

[Emberlain]

I sent you a pm about some great lights that Ive purchased. Took a chance on one and liked it so much I went back for a second.

[Mark Romero 2]

13 minutes ago, Emberlain said:

I sent you a pm about some great lights that Ive purchased. Took a chance on one and liked it so much I went back for a second.

Yes, thank you. They aren't exactly what I had in mind, but they might work if I have to scratch the first choices off of my list and got to a plan B.

Thanks again.