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LIGHT & MOTION #2259
October 31, 2007 - 11:19AM

LED Video Lights

Light & Motion had an exciting new line of LED video lights on display. The Sunray 1000 and 2000 video lights both use bright LEDs, which offer instant on/off and solid-state design. Because the LEDs have a 50,000 hour bulb light when not overdriven (these are not overdriven), users should never have to replace a bulb again!

The Sunray 1000 uses 9 LEDs, and is compatible with older battery packs, which means that you can upgrade your system by just buying new heads (although older battery packs do not support multiple brightness levels). The 1000 should last 65 minutes at full power. The new battery is a 6-cell lithium-ion pack, which support 3 different light levels.

The Sunray 2000 uses 18 LEDs, and will burn for 75 minutes on full power with its new, 9-cell lithium-ion battery pack. The 2000 has 2 light levels, and should last for around 140 minutes on 1/2 power.

I tested out these lights, and after using HIDs on my own rig, instant on and off was awesome. The new 2000 also seemed to be around twice as bright as the old HIDs were, confirmed by preliminary light-meter measurements taken by Dan Baldocchi and Berkley White. To my eyes, the light given off by the new LED lights looked wide and even.

Both the Sunray 1000 and 2000 feature 52mm inner threads, so round filters or a Cokin filter system can be attached to change the color of light produced.

New Stingray HD housings

Light & Motion has redesigned the Stingray housing line from the ground up. The Stingray HD is based on a flexible design which support 10 different digital camcorders (at the moment). The "multi-camera adapter tray" is a 2-part deal; one part slides into the housing, and the other mates with your particular camera model. This means that Light & Motion can upgrade your housing to work with a new camera by switching out part of the adapter tray and modifying the electronics (if necessary).

The Stingray HD now comes standard with a monitor back and features rotary locking latches (like the Bluefin has). It uses the same optical system and ports as the old Stingrays used, and should ship sometime in December. Check Light & Motion's website for a list of supported cameras.

External monitors discontinued

Note that Light & Motion has discontinued external video monitors in favor of back monitors. The Bluefin HC series have compatible monitor backs, but Bluefin FX1 users who want a video monitor other than the one located at the top of the housing are out of luck.