GEAR
LED LIGHTS
PANEL SHOW LED panels put out soft, flattering washes of light when used up close. And there’s a surprising amount of choice available. One of the LEDs that has helped establish Rotolight as a powerhouse player in filmmaking, the Anova Pro, has recently had a full refresh. The Anova Pro 3 is an all-weather 1x1 LED light boasting a custom- designed LED optic system. It is claimed to have a best-in- class output of more than 22,000 lux, which equates to more than twice the output of both previous generations of Anova. The latest model has IP65 weather resistance, native full- power V-Lock battery operation, a touchscreen display, a ‘Magic Eye’ optical light sensor, app control and built-in LumenRadio CRMX. The unit is highly versatile either at home, on location or in the studio. A totally different idea is the Godox FL60, which is a flexible piece of 30x45cm stiffened cloth that houses the LED bulbs, so can be rolled up for transport inside the included carry bag. Godox also offers more powerful versions in 100 and 150W ratings, either square or rectangular in shape. This £260/$279 bendy LED mat can be folded into lots of different shapes, but most filmmakers open it up to full size for softness. To hold the mat in position, four flexible
LITEPANELS GEMINI
metal rods are fitted in an X shape to a central hub which has a light stand attachment. The mat is clipped to the rods, then an included tilt-head adapter fastens the kit to a stand. The LED mat plugs into a separate control box, which has a screen and two dials to adjust brightness and colour temperature. There is also an on/off button and another to change up to six channels and 16 groups for remote control. Colour temperature is adjustable from 3300 to 5600K, and intensity can be changed steplessly from 10 to 100%, while the CRI is >95. The light can also be controlled via Bluetooth on a smartphone using the free GodoxPhoto app. A more conventional panel is the Godox LED1000Bi II, which doesn’t break the bank at just £345/$299, is slimline at just 10cm thick and weighs 2.51kg. This simply plugs into the mains or uses batteries. It comes with a set of barn doors to stop the light spreading, and a drop-in diffuser is included to make the output a tad softer. Most filmmakers would call this a 1x1 panel, but it’s bigger at 46x43cm/18.1x16.9in. The Godox LED1000Bi II lets you select colour temperatures of 3300 to 5600K with a ±300K variance. As the light is made up of some white LED bulbs and some warm or cool white, changing the colour temperature affects the maximum output of the fixture. At the higher end, Litepanels has its Gemini series. These are 2x1ft,
SET AND MATCH The Litepanels Gemini LEDs are found on high-end productions worldwide
TAKE YOUR PICK Godox offers LED panels in standard 1x1 units as well as larger, flexible mat-style lights
ROTOLIGHT ANOVA PRO 3
incredibly bright, jam-packed full of features and available in softer or harder versions. Costing from £3600/$3325, the colour temperatures are accurate and skin tones look natural. Its fan – which comes on at high settings, although it can be manually turned off – is very quiet. The Gemini combines daylight, tungsten and RGB LEDs so you can adjust the output to any colour – and you can also set it to replicate precise gel colours. Store settings within the light’s memory, or write it to external memory to load into other lights. Panels can be daisy- chained together so everything is controlled from one unit. There’s remote control through DMX formats, either wired or wireless through Bluetooth, which requires a plug-in dongle. Then all Litepanels LEDs can be controlled through a free app on Apple devices. At 10.1kg, it’s not the most portable light, but you get a pro-quality unit that will last for years.
GODOX LED1000BI II
GODOX FL60
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PRO MOVIEMAKER
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