[Peter Rummel]

Putting together a lighting package to give you all the optimum tools for any situation would be hugely expensive. The best you can hope for are versatile tools that can adapt to any situation. Grip gear (c-stands, clamps, reflectors, flags, etc.) is used on any project. An Arri kit also covers a lot of bases. Some things like china balls are so cheap and so useful that there’s no reason not to have a couple. Flourescents are less versatile, but they do some things very well (see below).

It’s hard to give specific recommendations for lighting a scene. Each space is different. Each situation is different. What you like may not be what I like – it is supposed to be an art, after all. So, given that I have no idea what the locations look like, or the look you’re going for, here are some random thoughts:

Interior, day – Flourescents with daylight lamps would work well here. I’ve also had good luck using a large (6 x 6) metallic reflector and bouncing sunlight in through a window for a key.

Interior, night – Low key. China balls and fresnels, maybe.

Exterior, day – Reflectors and overheads.

Exterior, night – Large fresnel with a blue gel (or an HMI) for the “moonlight” gag, your favorite source (fresnel, china ball, flourescent, soft box) for a key.

Night club – What you have to do for lighting here totally depends on the ambient lighting. Let’s assume that it already looks pretty cool, because you really aren’t going to have enough resources to light an entire club. I’m thinking fresnels and china balls would work well here.

Hotel – Lobby or room? Lots of movement and action, or static? For general lighting in a lobby, flourescents would work well.

Store – I’m guessing that the store is lit by flourescents? One thing cinema flourescents do really well is match up with flourescent lighting.

So we have a large number of lights here. Probably outside of your budget, so some cuts will have to be made. Go for the most versatile lights. Be sure to have c-stands and flags. You say you have someone to do the lighting – ask him or her what kind of tools are needed. Do some tests. Don’t be afraid to rent – you can get professional lights and gear that way.

[Peter Rummel]

I’m not sure how useful that light would be. You say your project would be mostly night interiors. That thing would pump a LOT of light into a room, and it would look totally unnatural. Outdoors, it would provide some light, but , during the day, reflectors are cheaper, probably easier to rig, provide fill that’s the same color as the daylight, and are greener (in terms of energy usage, not color…). You might find a use for it in a night exterior.

Before you sink serious $$ into a pre-fab lighting kit, let’s think about some less expensive and DIY solutions.

Night interiors are supposed to have a little dark in them. If the room is flooded with light it looks unnatural. Table, floor, and wall lamps that you see in the shot (“practicals”) would be turned on (and maybe dimmed), highlighting the area around them with a warm, pleasing light. Small flourescents could work here, but I’d recommend lighting with china balls (check out filmtools.com). They’re cheap, soft, warm, and give out a beautiful light. Get a roll of black wrap to flag the lights – again, we’re not trying to flood the room. And get some good light stands – c-stands would be perfect, but there are cheaper alternatives. A fresnel or two could provide back lights and background lights, if you wish. And if you really want to go to town, you could place a larger fresnel (say 1000w) with a bluish gel on it outside the window to give an artificial “moonlight”.

I should say a word here about safety. You’re dealing here with electricity, hot lights, top heavy stands, cables all over the place… it’s dangerous. China balls are cheap and effective, but they’re highly flammable. It’s your responsibility to take your time and do things right. Make sure your lights are rigged so they won’t set anything on fire. Don’t overload circuits. Have a fire extinguisher handy. Use power cables that are rated for their load. Use sandbags on any stand that would even think about tipping over. Route your cables so that no one will trip. You’re NEVER too busy to do things safely.

With daylight exteriors I’d recommend using reflectors and overheads. An overhead is a frame with a fabric that would create a diffuse shade for your actors. Obviously an overhead wouldn’t work if the action is moving around, but for a stationary scene it can give a great look. Store-bought frames are metal, but wood can work fine. Check out a fabric store for fabrics – I got a veil material for an 8 x 8 frame for about $12 – it knocks the light down about 1/4 stop and is perfect for taking a bit of the nastiness off of direct sun.

Reflectors are generally white or metallic. White foam core works well. For metallic you could use aluminum foil, crumpled then uncrumpled and taped to cardboard or foam core or what have you. You could even use a sheet of foam insulation from the Depot – some of them have a dull metallic finish.

Really good stands and sandbags are necessary for reflectors and overheads. Be careful of the wind.

Night exteriors are a problem. After all, what’s the defining quality of night? … it’s dark! The traditional method is to use a blue back light to suggest moon light, and a warmish key. If you’re careful picking your setting, it could have lights in the background (buildings, streetlights, cars) that could give it some depth. (If your scene is set in the woods, you’re on your own!) If you’re going to rent an HMI, this would probably be the time (for the “moonlight”).

Gels, c-stands, sandbags, cables, diffusion, black wrap, reflectors – these are the types of items any project would use. If I were you these are what I’d invest in before I bought any “kit”. Then add professional lights carefully, as needed.

[Peter Rummel]

There are many different tools (lights) for lighting a video. Flourescents are just one tool. You could also have fresnels, open face halogen, HMI, elipsoidals, LED, PAR, photofloods, and others I can’t come up with off the top of my head. Each light has advantages and disadvantages. Each light would be the perfect tool in one usage, but struggle in others. As I see it, the problem with the kit you have picked out is that it only has one tool – flourescents. It’s kind of like a carpenter with nothing but hammers.

You say you’re working on an “indie film” this summer. That could mean, well, anything. Interiors, exteriors, high key, low key, natural, stylized… A box full of flourescents might work well on a soft interior love story, but it wouldn’t do a noir thriller.

I think the most flexible light available is the fresnel. It can be hard or soft, as needed. If you are limited to one type of light, this is the light I’d pick. For about the price of your kit, you could get an ARRI kit (https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/72161-REG/Arri_571984_Softbank_I_Tungsten_4.html). Yes, it’s only 4 lights, it won’t put out as much light as your kit, it’s really interior only, and they can be hot and inefficient. But they’re professional lights with professional controls and are an excellent start to a lighting package. I bought mine 12 years ago, and I use them almost daily.

A Joker is a brand of HMI lights. HMIs put out a lot of light per watt and are daylight balanced. But they’re also really, really expensive, and I honestly think you don’t need to think about buying one. If you have need of an HMI, they’re available for rent.

Lighting isn’t all about the lights. Far from it. Grip equipment would be rigging, or tools that modify the light. Flags, nets, reflectors, overheads; that sort of thing. Really, a must for any project.

Dennis is absolutely right when he recommends a little practical experience.

[Peter Rummel]

The Source Four is a type of light called an ellipsoidal. While the Source Fours are reknowned for their design and efficiency, they are not the only ellipsoidal out there. Altman and others also make ellipsoidals (sometimes called Lekos). Any of these would deliver the effect you want. These other-brand Lekos often show up on ebay for pretty good prices.

If being small and lightweight is the most important factor, then you could take a look at an Altman micro-ellipse

https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/195917-REG/Altman_ME_120_Micro_Ellipse_Ellipsoidal_Spotlight_.html#features

It’s only 75 watts, but if you’re doing tabletop or a subtle effect then it could be the ticket.

[Peter Rummel]

Avenger light stands are great. I’m not familiar with the 615 model, but I suspect it might be a little small for your purposes. I travel with the 625 model, and I commonly put a 24×32 chimera on it.

For a source for the chimera I would recommend a Lowel tota light. They’re cheap, small, lightweight, and they work fine in a chimera. And if you travel to a 220v country (Japan is, oddly, 100v) then a 220v lamp is readily available.

When I travel I often have to pack VERY light. My kit includes

2 Avenger 625 stands
1 Lowel tota light
1 Lowel omni light (very light, and accepts 220v lamps)
1 Lowel vip light (battery powered)
Speed ring and chimera for the tota
White umbrella
Photoflex bounce
1 Lowel clamp (very light)
Gels, grip clips, C-47’s
220v dimmer
spare lamps
25′ and 50′ stingers

You’ll notice a lot of Lowel equipment. At home I use Arri and Kino-flo, but the Lowel stuff is light weight, inexpensive, and takes 220v lamps. Just the thing for travel.

I ship my tripod and the light stands in a Kata tripod case. When I arrive the tripod comes out and the lighting stuff goes in. The Kata case has shoulder straps so it can be worn like a backpack. I often have to shoot in museums, and this is an absolutely bare minimum kit for getting some light in these dark situations. It would be fine for an interview.

[Peter Rummel]

The general travel document for transporting professional camera gear across borders is the carnet. A carnet is like an insurance policy that gaurantees what you bring into a country you bring back out again. And, on the US side, the equipment you have with you on your return is not stuff you bought overseas. So no buying or selling gear abroad.

But carnets are really expensive. There’s a steep fee plus a percentage of the value of the gear. When I travel with the big camera we always get one because it’s SO obvious we’re a professional crew. It cuts down on suspicious questions because we’re upfront who we are and what we’re doing. We’re not backdoor import/exporters, we’re a professional video crew. When I travel with a smaller camera I usually don’t bother. It’s taking a risk, but a small one. The EU is pretty friendly. Bring a letter from the hospital you’re shooting at, and if there are any hassles at the border you could show them that.

Note that not all countries accept the carnet. The EU does, but, say, Mexico doesn’t. Do your homework.

The US customs does have a form you can use to register your equipment. It’s free! You list your equipment (with serial #’s and $$ value), get it stamped on your way out, and if you’re hassled on your return you have proof that you left the country with the gear and therefore don’t owe any duty.

As far as power goes, usually battery chargers are dual voltage. Check your gear. All you should need is a plug adapter from the twin blade US plug to the two round prong German plug. Travel stores or Radio Shack will have those. If you’re using lights I wouldn’t fool around with transformers – I’d get 220v lamps for my fixtures and plug adapters for my cords.

[Peter Rummel]

Hoo boy. This topic brings back memories….

For this project, the producer wanted the same look for all interviews – a medium grey background, draped artfully, with a primary color party gel raked across the fold. Heavy backlight on the subject. The background was some synthetic that didn’t wrinkle much.

We did a trip to Las Vegas. From the time our plane touched down we were late. It was rush, rush. I didn’t see my hotel room until midnight the first night. The second night was later. The third night later still. At each location we had little time to set up and light. Little time to safety the cables, block out ambiant light, and shut down noise making machinery. No time to sit the interview down and tweak the lights so it looked as good as could be. But in a former life the director had been…. a draper! So there was ENDLESS time to get the folds in the background “just right”. Sheesh.

My advice – experiment with a background to see what you like. But don’t obsess over it.

[Peter Rummel]

I would avoid using grad filters if the camera is to be constantly handheld. The effect would be pretty noticeable in a randomly moving shot. A polarizing filter would be good choice for a desert shoot, but again you have to deal with the camera movement. The strength of the polarizing effect depends on the angle to the sun. So if, say, you’re doing dutch moves with the polarized camera the sky will go dramatically lighter/darker. Not good. Even panning the camera would change the brightness of the sky.

[Peter Rummel]

I don’t use the trolley, but I would guess that the case would fit into the overhead with it attached. The case is just a tad smaller than your generic wheelie suitcase, so there should be room for the trolley.

[Peter Rummel]

I use the Kata version of the smuggler, and I like it a lot. I take off the lens and the viewfinder, put them in pouches, pack it all up with a battery and I’m ready to travel. It fits the airlines’ carry on rules and is much easier to carry through airports. I still (usually) have to take the camera body out of the case for security, but so far no one has asked me to turn it on.

The Kata is also terrible to work out of. But when I’m on location I usually have the matte box attached, so a regular camera case wouldn’t work anyway. I make a nest for the camera in the back of the car or I carry it on my lap.