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Lume Cube just launched a $150 LED panel that looks suspiciously like these $70 LED panels

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I’ve become a big fan of small LEDs over the last few years. I was originally quite skeptical of them and their power output, but after picking up a few from different brands like Litra, Moin and digitalfoto, they’ve really started to grow on me and turned out to be far more useful than I expected.

One of the big names in small lights is Lume Cube, and they’ve just released a new Lume Cube Panel LED for $149.95 but it looks an awful lot like a bunch of other similar LED Panels found on eBay and Amazon for only around $70.

How to turn a broken LCD TV into a DIY LED light panel

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One of the things I love the most about DIY projects is that they can give a new life to the items that are destroyed beyond salvation. In this video, Matthew Perks of DIY Perks will show you how to repurpose a broken LCD TV or monitor and turn it into an amazing LED light panel. It almost perfectly simulates daylight, and it’s useful for photographers as well as filmmakers.

Soonwell FB-21 – An affordable option for a flex-type led light

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The LED panel and LED Bowens mount are both familiar form factors of LED lights. In the last two years, we are seeing a third type of LEDs enter the market – the Mat LED, A.K.A Flex-LED. Essentially it is very similar to an LED panel, only instead of the LEDs being mounted to a rigid surface, they are placed on a flexible mat, hence the name – Flex light.

The Soonwell FB21 is the last member to enter this family. It is conveniently priced at $428.00, which is by far on the low end of flex LEDs. Well, at least compared to the similarly sized $1,199.90 Westcott Flex. Here are our thoughts:

How to to make your own DIY LED panel for only $13

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You know what it’s like, you’re walking through the local dollar store (or pound shop, for those in the UK) and you see some interesting looking cheap LED lights. So, you buy a bunch of them and turn them into a DIY LED panel. At least, what’s what Dave Knop (AKA, Knoptop) did, and it only cost him $13.

This is how some of the brightest LED lights from $500 to over $5000 compare in power

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One of the biggest issues when it comes to continuous LED lights is power. For photographers, they’re just nowhere near as bright as strobes, and for filmmakers, they want to know that they can replace their high power hot lights that they’ve been using for years. But LED manufacturers are often quite vague or confusing with their light output.

It’s not intentional, there’s just not really an easy universal standard when it comes to comparing constantly evolving LED technology with tried and tested hot lights. So, in this video, Jay P Morgan looks at some of the more powerful LED lights on the market to see how they really stand up to traditional hot lights.

Westcott’s new Flex Cine lights add full RGB colour to their flexible LED lighting range

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Westcott has today announced a new Flex Cine lighting system. Carrying on from the popular Flex system launched in 2014, the new Flex Cine line gets full RGBW capability. Westcott says they haven’t just added RGB LEDs to their old lights, though. They’ve redesigned them from the ground up. There’s also a wireless DMX Dimmer.

How I use my drone Lipo batteries to power cameras, lights and other things

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If you’re like me, and you shoot mostly on location, power is an issue. For photography I solved those issues by switching to Godox strobes with light battery packs or integrated batteries. For video, though, power for continuous lights can be troublesome. Or at the very least, expensive. Some lights will allow you to use relatively inexpensive Sony NPF batteries, while others require expensive V-Mount batteries.

I’ve found another solution to my continuous power problem, though. RC lipo batteries. I had a few left over from my DJI Flamewheel F550 drone after the controller was stolen. So, I figured why not put them to good use elsewhere? They’re also great for powering cameras for battery-draining long exposure timelapse sequences, too.

Hardware Store LED Strip Lights for Photography and Video

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I have been using hardware store LED bulbs for both photography and video in the studio for a while (click here for a DIY three light studio setup) – but every time I pass the lighting aisle in my local big box hardware store I always take a look to see what’s new and improved.

Well on a recent trip to Lowes I found some really cool LED strip lights that work quite well for both photography and video – continue reading for details…

Spekular is the light that does it all for photographers

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Spekular is spectacular! Hmmm – a little over the top? Not really. I recently had the opportunity to put this new LED lighting system from Spiffy Gear to the test. Spiffy Gear are the folks that brought us the Light Blaster (buy link).

Spekular is a modular lighting system that can take on all kinds of shapes depending on your needs and this can save you money and the time needed to pack and set-up light modifiers especially when you are working on location. Spekular comes as a kit of 4 LED sections. Each section is built with aluminum and ABS plastic. The sections can be configured using the included hinged connectors or with the accessory extension kit.

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