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Most useful light control equipment?
I’ve seen a number of posts concerning light kits and individual lights, but not as much about particular scrims, reflectors, butterflies etc.
So I’d like to ask for people to submit their most useful light control tools including brands and sizes if possible.
I’m putting together a custom lighting kit, but at the same time need to get accessories for bounce and diffusion.
This is for outdoor cinematic television shoots.
Thanks!
Larry
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19 Replies
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We have a decent lighting and grip arsenal… but my most useful lighting control tool?….
My top two things on the truck are super cheap and super easy…
4×4 white foamcore bounce card. Easy, cheap, versatile, and in my opinion much prettier bounced lighting than any commercial or “pop up” reflectors. We have bunches of pop-ups, but never even unpack them if we have 4x4s around. Use ’em until they get ratty, then throw ’em away.
Easy to prop up, tape up, or mount almost anywhere in any position quickly with just a C-stand, grip head, and quacker clamp. We usually order 4’x8′ sheets from a local art supply store and cut them in half to make 4x4s. You can also score a 4×4 and fold it in half for easier travel/packing (put gaffer tape on the “hinge” for longer life). If you can get it, get white on one side and black on the other for a negative fill when you need it.
My second most useful?… homemade 4×4 diffusers. We make them out of vinyl shower curtain material from the fabric store. Actually this is the stuff…
Use it as diffusion and it gives a nice look about like Lee 250, or maybe slightly more diffuse. Dirt cheap at three bucks a yard. Put it in a 4×4 Hollywood frame for beautiful diffusion for sunlight with really nice soft shadows but almost no loss of punch. Or hit exterior talent with a 1200w HMI through it for a very nice but soft kick (and yes, even though it is vinyl we put it in front of HMIs all the time and never had it even begin to melt). We cut it into 4×4 squares, hem it with gaffer tape all around, and put elastic loops on the corners. Fold or wad it up and stick it in your rags bag and it bounces right back. When I first started using these my intention was to get a couple of shoots out of them and then throw them away since they are so cheap… but we have some that have been in play for years now.
My two (cheap) cents…
T2
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Todd Terry
Creative Director
Fantastic Plastic Entertainment, Inc.
fantasticplastic.com
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Todd, the diffusion looks terrific. I’ve been sending my students to Home Depot for shower curtain liners, but this looks to be even better. Thanks!
Rick Wise
Cinematographer
San Francisco Bay Area
https://www.RickWiseDP.com -
Two words:
Black Wrap.
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Thanks Rick… yeah this fabric-store stuff is great. I found it and just bought it on a lark several years ago, and keep going back for it. Give it a try.
I do wish it was a bit wider so you could make a 6×6… but you can get it in any length so you could make one bigger with a seam if you wanted.
As I said I usually use it in 4x frames, but I did drill holes in the barn-doors ring of one of my HMIs to make sort of a half-assed speed ring… so I can put some salvaged softbox rods in it to hold the silk (can you call it silk if it is vinyl?).
You can see that in the top pic in the trio of pictures on this page…
https://fantasticplastic.com/portfolio/news081.html
…and unbelievably, no it doesn’t melt or even get warm (not that I would leave it unattended).
By the way the same store, in the same department sells this window-tint film, also dirt cheap…
…that is perfect ND for big windows (self-cling, too). I’d estimate it to be about a .9 ND. I’ve never put a meter on it, but looks about 3 stops to my eyeballs.
Would love to hear others’ favorite light-mod tools as well…
T2
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Todd Terry
Creative Director
Fantastic Plastic Entertainment, Inc.
fantasticplastic.com
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[Todd Terry] “put elastic loops on the corners”
what do you use for these and how to attach? Got a picture? I have some frames around that I could use and this is way cheaper than the commercial versions and bounces right back sounds great.
I agree on the foamcore for bounce. Got this large sheet of it and cut it to size as needed.
Mac Pro, macbook pro, Imacs (i7); Camcorders: Panasonic AG-HPX170/AG-HPX250P, Canon HV30/40, Sony Z7U, VX2000, PD170; FCP 6 certified; write professionally for a variety of media; teach video production in L.A.
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On location and don’t have that gear with me… but easy to describe. Just four short pieces of 1″ black elastic, one attached at each corner. Each piece crosses each corner about 4″ from the “point” so you just slip it over the corner of a frame. Exactly like the elastic corners on a pro rag from Matthews, etc.
T2
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Todd Terry
Creative Director
Fantastic Plastic Entertainment, Inc.
fantasticplastic.com
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how do you attach elastic to vinyl? Gaffer tape? Will this hold when stretched tight over the frame? I used to have a grommet kit – wonder if that would work?
Mac Pro, macbook pro, Imacs (i7); Camcorders: Panasonic AG-HPX170/AG-HPX250P, Canon HV30/40, Sony Z7U, VX2000, PD170; FCP 6 certified; write professionally for a variety of media; teach video production in L.A.
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I sort of “hem” the edge of the vinyl all around with gaffer tape (one strip, folded over). Then the elastic was taped on. If I recall (it’s been years) I think I put a dab of hot glue in there to give it some extra hold. They’ve never come off.
As I said I don’t have the DIY versions with me, but do have some larger “real” Matthews silks with me and my DIY corners are arranged basically just like theirs, took a quick cell phone shot…
And I do have one or two that I put grommets on (with ties) like you suggested. But I quickly found that was overkill on a 4×4 and that the corners were enough, so I didn’t put grommets in the subsequent ones.
T2
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Todd Terry
Creative Director
Fantastic Plastic Entertainment, Inc.
fantasticplastic.com
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Here’s another DIY thing with the vinyl that I should have mentioned but forgot about til I just ran across it in the truck.
We have several pop-up silks as well as reflectors, but never found a pop-up silk that had a nice translucent quality that I liked.
So I took an old 52″ pop-up Photoflex reflector that we had retired (it had lost most of its silver). I cut a big circle out of the center of it, leaving about a 2″ hem all the way around. Then I glued a big circle of the vinyl in with hot glue. I now have a pop-up version of the rag that I was talking about with the 4×4.
I don’t use it much but if you are traveling light or in run-n-gun mode without all your normal gak like Hollywood frames etc then it is a good quick-n-easy substitute.
It wads and folds right up like normal, then pops right back. I know the idea seems kinda fragile, but we’ve had this for years and looks and works the same as the day I made it.
T2
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Todd Terry
Creative Director
Fantastic Plastic Entertainment, Inc.
fantasticplastic.com
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More vinyl…
Forgot I had uploaded this pic to the COW long time ago.
Here’s one of the 4×4’s that I made gaffer tape “pockets” on the corners so I could use softbox rods to attach it to a 1200w HMI fresnel… so I can diffuse without setting up a separate stand and frame. I drilled holes in the perimeter of the barndoor’s ring to make a sort of halfassed speedring. I use this setup for exteriors a lot to give talent some punch.
There’s no elastic loops on this one but I think it’s self explanatory…
And no, as I said before it doesn’t melt, or even really get warm. It might with a big tungsten instrument, but not with HMI.
T2
__________________________________
Todd Terry
Creative Director
Fantastic Plastic Entertainment, Inc.
fantasticplastic.com
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