FEATURE | NEW L IGHT I NG
Comparing LED efficiency to technologies such as HMI and fluorescent is difficult, because the effectiveness with which the emitter converts electrons to photons is only part of the equation. LED, fluorescent and HMI all need power conditioned in various ways, and the power conditioner is not a loss-free device. Then there’s the lamp house: the traditional Fresnel, for instance, offers a lot of flexibility, but it’s obvious to anyone who’s ever looked inside that lots of the bulb’s energy simply collides with the case. LEDs don’t emit light in the same way bulbs do, which is why a lot of LED lights are open- faced at least by default – and it’s no secret that more photons come out of a PAR than a Fresnel of the same power. WAYS OF EFFICIENCY
IMAGES The Arri Orbiter is an LED that offers the option to select CIE by xy coordinate
LED, fluorescent and HMI all need power conditioned in various ways, and the power conditioner is not a loss-free device
controller wants a pair of (rather expensive) 26V V-Mount batteries as opposed to the four 14.4V camera batteries preferred by Aputure. What’s most interesting about this, though, is that the existence of two such similar products highlights how big a market everyone seems to be expecting. HIVE SUPER HORNET 575-C To find something that’ll compete directly with Arri, we have to look at Hive. The company showed a very early prototype of its 500W full colour mixing LED at NAB, though we had to wait until September to see a more final version. Hive began making lights using microwave plasma technology, but has since specialised in colour mixing LED hard light, a niche that’s tricky to carve out, because all of the heat is generated in one small spot. The Super Hornet 575 is apparently as powerful as a 575W HMI, despite consuming less power – something that’s sometimes justified by the idea that losses from the electronics of an LED driver are often less than in an HMI ballast. Either way, the Super Hornet retains Hive’s long-established four-inch diameter body and is about a foot long to make room for the necessary heat sinks. It’s therefore significantly smaller and lighter than an
The power controller shown at IBC is temporary and should, the company thinks, get smaller. Four 14.4V V-Mount batteries are required to power the 600D at full blast, and even then, they’ll naturally be asked to sustain a 150W load – more, actually, since the company accepts the power controller is not 100% efficient. That’s a stern test for many camera batteries. In the end, though, this light is a clear and direct response to the need for a cheaper 575W HMI, and that’s a good thing. NANLITE FORZA 500 Perhaps not coincidentally, the Nanlite Forza 500 is also a clear response to the need for a cheaper 575. Parent company Nanguang has been manufacturing lighting for some time, and while much of it has been aimed at the most price-conscious part of the market, the Nanlite brand is clearly more ambitious. The Forza 500 monolight is available right now for a shade less than $2000. It’s 17% less powerful than the Aputure, but otherwise pretty comparable: both are reasonably small-source LED lamp heads, taking Bowens S-type accessories with separate power controllers. The Forza 500 is perhaps a little shorter, the lamp head itself is a featherweight at 2.5kg, and the power
44 DEF I N I T ION | NOVEMBER 20 1 9
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