video lights

[mbsdiver]

well i have a nite rider digital dual 35w light set.(they have adj power output) i dont like the color i get from my video when i play it back. i have tired a friends hid dive light. (10w) i did not much like it eather. has any one tried LED. and have tried some basic filters. when i call places that sell filters and lights their answer is to buy this or that can any one help?

 

[drbill]

You might want to give more detail as to why you don't like the color when you view footage from the lights. Is it too red? Too blue? Colors not true to what you remember? It would make it easier to jelp you.

 

[mbsdiver]

the main problem is that all outher colors i see in other videos are are bright and defined. mine are drab not bright and not full of color.

 

[drbill]

Is it the lights or is it the sensor in your camcorder? What camera are you using? Is it single or three chip?

 

[crpntr133]

I don't see LED as ending your problem.
When you say "in other videos" do you mean ones that are shot professionally or by other friends? I would hate to think of the hours that go into a pro video.

Good call Bill, chips might be the problem.

 

[ronrosa]

Lights during the day are usually only good for macro and closeup shots. I'm talking the subject is 2 ft. away or closer.

For every other shot forget the lights. You should be using your housing red filter.

 

[mbsdiver]

well the camera is a sony trv70 single chip i think. most of the video i shoot is 5 + feet. as for the videos are friends. the camera works great out of the water.

 

[drbill]

Single chip cameras do not generate the nice saturated colors that are more readily obtained by three chip cameras. I film with a single chip TRV17 and it produces results that are good, but nowhere near as good as three chip cameras like the TRV950 or the PD-150 which I've compared under the identical conditions.

If you're shooting at 5+ feet (as Ron said) your lights are probably of little use. I shoot primarily close-ups so the colors come out fairly well given the color temperature of my lights and my single chip design.

 

[MarkH]

If those are halogen, 35w isn't very bright. I use 50w and it's still only good up to about 4 feet. If there's not enough light, your video can look grainy and not as colourful. If you are in the tropics or somewhere else with lots of natural light, you need really bright lights for them to be even noticeable. I'd try to get closer to whatever you're filming and see if the colors improve.

 

[KiiY]

Just to give more info on how much light is needed to get bright colors using lights on a daytime dive...

I have dual 250w halogen lamps. When these lights are the main light source (like when peering into wrecks or looking under rock formations, they'll give me decent lighting out to about 10, maybe 12 feet in clear water.

Out in the open with a bright sun overhead and about 90 feet down, they're only useful out to about 5 to 6 feet. Beyond that, you'll see a hint of their effect, but their reach falls off real quick.