Redhead lighting may be overkill!
Lighting is the single highest expense you will spend when making a video. It therefore pays to consider carefully what you will buy and then make the choice that is most relevant to you. Once you have a satisfactory video lighting equipment set up for your videos, you will increase the quality and professionalism of the videos you are able to make. Lighting can make all the difference.
You need to increase the light available to the camera, because this is what the camera needs. It captures the light and turns it into data that becomes an image. The image quality will improve with more light.
The Classic Set Up
The classic set up for lighting is the three point system. If it is just a single presenter in front of a backdrop, two lights may be all you will need.
Fluorescent Light
Fluorescent lighting is a cool light which uses very little power. If you use this type of lighting, the lights should be covered with a diffuser which is a piece of fire retardant fabric over the lights, often called a soft box. This helps to diffuse the light and make it more even. You can buy a kit containing the lights which you make up yourself and costs around $500. Once you have it in place, it’s a good idea to leave it set up, as it takes some time and effort to assemble.
If you use down lights, they can cast shadows on the presenter’s face and will make him look tired, even unwell. By contrast, proper lighting will make the most of your subject.
Redheads
The second type of video lighting equipment is called redheads, which are a high-end solution that professional video production companies use. The wattage is high, about 800 watt lights and they are very bright and very hot. Redheads are often used as video lighting kits on film sets and can create the special effects needed for particular scenes. For the average video maker they are probably not needed, and the simpler solution of fluorescent lamps is equally as effective. In a small room redheads would not be appropriate at all, as the light would be too intense and they run with too much heat.
LED lighting
The third type of lighting is LED lights. These are very small cool and versatile. They have very low power consumption and are ideal for interviews, one-on-ones with the camera of larger gatherings like weddings where you just need a bit of light directly on someone. Now they usually come with dimmers so you can vary the amount of light you are using. They can be mounted on top of cameras on the hot shoe. You can buy them singly and then stack them together to make a big light. They start off at the reasonable price of $80 up and go up to $400 for the big ones.
Get your lighting right, spend a little bit of money in getting a good set up and you will be paid dividends by the increased professionalism and quality of your videos using video lighting equipment.
Hopefully this has helped you choose the right video lighting equipment to use to create quality videos for your business. Do you want more tips on how to come up with professional looking videos? Check out Youtube.com/theseomethod for more information.
