Proper video lighting may be the key difference between a professional video and underexposed or overexposed footage. It will upgrade your videos and convey your message clearly to the audience. But what lights for video recording do you need? How to set them up to get perfect illumination? How to deal with LED flickers during filming? In this article, we will go through the aforementioned questions.
Which light is good for video recording: Top 4 picks at COLBOR
According to your video types, you can choose different video lights from COLBOR.
COLBOR CL60: Offers lighting for home video recording and supports multiple power supply
The COLBOR CL60 is the best studio light for video. It is an ideal video light for your home studio. It produces 65 watts of power. This translates to 19,665lux at 1m away when the CL60 is set at 5600K and used with a reflector. You can use it to illuminate a scene.
The CL60 receives multiple power supplies. You can connect it to the mains socket with the supplied power adapter and power cord. If you are recording videos at a place that is distant from the socket and don’t want to arrange the power cord, you can power the CL60 with a V mount battery, PD power bank, or NP-F battery.
Besides onboard controlling buttons and wheels, the CL60 can also be controlled by a smartphone app or physical controller. It also comes with 10 inbuilt lighting modes to help you achieve a particular mood conveniently in your video recording.
Features
- 65W constant output
- 2700-6500K color temperature
- 97+ CRI
- Multiply power supplies
- Supplied Bowens-mount adapter
- Combine several lights for video recording together for higher power output
- Brightness adjustable from 100% to 0%
- 10 preset lighting modes
- Can be controlled by onboard buttons, COLBOR Studio App, and physical controller
- Low cooling fan noise
COLBOR CL100X: Light for YouTube video recording with Bowens-mount adapter
The COLBOR CL100X is compact and lightweight enough to carry around but is powerful to illuminate the scene for YouTube video recording thanks to the 110W output. The 2700-6500K color temperature and 97+ CRI help build the right mood and reproduce the exact colors of makeup, food, and other types of YouTube videos.
The CL100X offers a Bowens-mount adapter in the package. This ensures it works with a wide range of light modifiers on the market. Therefore, you can shape and direct the illumination as you want. The cooling system functions to ensure optimal working temperature. The cooling noise is lower than 20dB at Quiet Mode. It won’t be captured in your YouTube videos thus simplifying the post-production.
Features
- 110W constant output
- 2700-6500K color temperature
- 97+ CRI
- Supplied Bowens-mount adapter
- Combine several fixtures together for higher power output
- Brightness adjustable from 100% to 0%
- 10 preset lighting modes
- Can be controlled by onboard buttons, COLBOR Studio App, and physical controller
- Low cooling fan noise
COLBOR CL330: Higher power ensures the best lighting for group video recording
The COLOR CL330 is an LED light for photography studio and video studio that offers 330W constant power output. It is powerful enough to work as a key light for your group video recording. The color temperature ranges from 2700K to 6500K, allowing you to create an ideal mood for videos. The brightness can be adjusted by 1% and 25% so that you can get the right brightness level exactly and simply.
You usually need more than one light fixture for group video recording and they may be different models that are slightly different in color presentation. The CL330 features a Red-Green Color Compensation function to ensure color consistency with other light sources. This avoids mixed colors and reduces the efforts of post-production.
The CL330 also allows you to combine several CL330 lights for video recording together to create higher power output for filming a really large group. This is also a common feature of CL60 and CL100X.
Features
- 330W constant output
- 2700-6500K color temperature
- 97+ CRI
- Red-Green Color Compensation for consistent color
- Combine several fixtures together for higher power output
- Brightness adjustable from 100% to 0%
- 10 preset lighting modes
- Compatible with a wide range of light modifiers and shooting accessories
- Can be controlled by onboard buttons, COLBOR Studio App, and physical controller
- Low cooling fan noise
COLBOR PL8R: Inbuilt large-capacity battery makes it one of the lights for mobile video recording
The COLBOR PL8R is a compact and versatile RGB video light that can be simply attached to a camera's cold shoe or a tripod. It comes at a size of 125x75x17mm and weighs only 187g, which allows it to work as a fill light for mobile video recording.
In addition to ensuring two-hour working at 100% brightness, its large-capacity 5000mAh battery also serves as a power bank for recharging mobile devices. To enable continuous recording, the Type-A DC Output connector is intended for charging the recording phone.
The PL8R allows you total control over video recording with fully adjustable color hue, saturation, and brightness. With its wide range of lighting effects and CRI of 98+, you may have the best illumination for every circumstance.
Features
- 8W constant output
- 2500-9000K color temperature
- 98+ CRI
- Brightness adjustable from 100% to 0%
- 13 preset lighting modes to create more than 37 lighting effects
- Display screen for visualized adjustment
- 1/4’’ screw holes, cold shoe mount, and magnetic back offer universal compatibility
- Physical and App control
How to set up lights for video recording?
Follow the following tips to set up lights for video recording and illuminate the scene properly.
Assess the scene to decide lighting goal
Look around the area where you plan to make video recordings. There are how many windows? Are there any light-blocking panels on these windows, such as blinds or curtains? What does all of this entail for the impact natural light will have on your videos? Then, outfit your recording location with lighting setups that address any issues you discovered.
Arrange light placement for video recording properly
Many pros use a 3-point setup to arrange lighting for video recording. This gives high-quality illumination. The three points are as follows:
Key light: It is the most bright source of light. If you look at your camera from behind, the key light is placed in front of the camera and is to the right.
Fill light: It is also positioned in front of the camera but is to the left. Its intensity is half that of the key light.
Backlight: As the name suggests, it is placed behind the subject and to the right of which the camera points. It works to separate the subject from the background.
Choose right light temperature for video recording
The color temperature is measured on the Kelvin scale. Your light seems redder the lower it is on the Kelvin scale; conversely, it appears bluer the higher it is on the Kelvin scale.
The mood your videos set depends on the color temperature. For example, warm lighting, which usually has an off-yellow appearance and has a color temperature under 4000K, may create a restful vibe. Choose the best lighting Kelvin for recording to create the target mood so your viewers can feel what you want to express.
Deal with glare if subject wear glasses
Glare happens when the subject wear glass. To deal with this issue, you can move the lights for video recording farther away from the camera. It is also feasible to elevate the light stand to make the fixtures illuminate the scene from a higher point.
How to avoid flicker led lights while recording DSLR video?
When a light source flickers, it seems to glow in an unsteady way. In this scenario, the instability is only seen in the camera and not when viewed directly. Apart from appearing as an obnoxious glitch in your video, it can cause fatigue, headaches, and discomfort after prolonged exposure. So how to avoid it in video recording so as to offer a great viewing experience to your audience?
Generally speaking, you can slow down the shutter speed to avoid flicker when using LED light for video recording. For AC current of 5oHz and 60Hz, it is ideal to set the shutter speed at 1/100 to /120. And you should gradually slow down the shutter speed to see which works. For a slow-motion shot, where the flicker visibility is greatest, this is the only viable option. For still photographs with little movement, you might use a video editing plugin like Flicker Free in post-production.