GENERAL PHOTOGRAPHY: LIGHTING

You make me wish I had bought more than just one Ulanzi.

I have finally bought some of those Ulanzi lights myself and looking forward to trying them out. I just hope I can actually acheive the effects I want to acheive with them....we'll see.

The thing I'm still missing though is a ring light. I'm unsure which to buy because there are so many sizes and variations. What I would like is a ring light that has a tripod or stand with it but which can also be used as a 'handle' (I may want to use it for video purposes). All the ones I look at online seem to end up having negative reviews saying 'poor quality'. Anyone have some insight on what size or type to get for action figure photography and/or videos?

Very cool setup, Dave. I wish Amazon would carry these little caged lights here in Germany. They are really perfect for a bunker/basement diorama like yours...

Randam Hajile wrote:Very cool setup, Dave. I wish Amazon would carry these little caged lights here in Germany. They are really perfect for a bunker/basement diorama like yours...

You can still find them here
https://www.amazon.de/Lampenschirm-Lichterketten-KINGCOO-Batteriebetriebene-Hochzeit/dp/B079J9BZWV?th=1



@Sky: I can't help you here since I don't own a ring light. I only use a big LED panel as a main light from the top sometimes.

Valiarde -- No worries, I was just curious if anyone had any experience with them. I have an LED desk lamp that I can potentially use as an overhead light, but I was thinking to pick up a ring light as well because it seems like it would give an option of more diffused lighting.

@Valiarde
Thanks for the link. I actually did not notice that Dave's photos were from May. Obviously, I'm not  checking this section of the board regularly enough.

@Mark
These Ulanzi LED arrays look nice. I have something very similar. Of course, if you need something really bright, I would go for bigger arrays with a normal power plug.

@Sky
I remember that Diana used a nice ring-light when taking headsclupt pictures. Maybe it's worth to drop her a PM.

Randam Hajile wrote:I wish Amazon would carry these little caged lights here in Germany.

I found those lights three or four years ago, and I have not been able to find them since. Every source I have found online indicates they are out of stock or no longer available.

I would definitely like some brighter lights, Ralf. Something that doesn’t have to be so close but still lights up stuff, would be ideal.

Stryker2011 wrote:I would definitely like some brighter lights, Ralf. Something that doesn’t have to be so close but still lights up stuff, would be ideal.

I know what you mean. I am hoping the small Ulanzi-style ones will work for close ups, but we'll see. The effects I am trying to acheive are mostly for lightsaber duels -- I am hoping to mimic the effect of the lightsaber glow. I can't really do the more 'exciting' Star Wars photoshoots I'm hoping to do without that element. But those lights don't need to be extremely strong as they won't be the main source of light for the photo, so hopefully it will be enough.

That said, if the mini Ulanzi ones don't end up being strong enough, I might have to splurge on something like these:

https://amzn.eu/d/befSgK4



They are at least twice the price though, which is why I haven't bought any yet.