Fancierstudio Lighting kit Professional Digital Video Lighting Continuous Softbox Lighting Kit with Lighting Stand, 3000 Watt - (9026S3)

For $150, this is a great light kit. But you have to be realistic about what you can get for $150.Some of the critical reviews have complained that this kit won't stand up to heavy-duty use. That's probably true. But if you expect to subject a light kit to heavy use, you probably need a more expensive kit. Others have complained about the setup time involved. Also probably true. And again, if you want a light kit that sets up in 15 minutes, you should expect to spend more money. If you understand those limitations, then this kit is a great value. It will take about 45 minutes to set up these lights, and about 30 minutes to tear down and pack them. The stands are pretty light-weight, so plan on using a sand bag on each one. They are not difficult to assemble, contrary to what some reviewers have said. If you have worked with soft-boxes before, you should have no problem after your first run-through.The light heads are plastic, which is no surprise at this price point. But since the light is fluorescent, that's not really an issue. Each head takes 5 bulbs, and there is a separate switch for each bulb on the back of the light head. I didn't expect that, and it comes in very handy when shooting in tight spaces, where you need fine-grained control over the amount of light on the set.The kit comes with 15 45W 5500K CFL bulbs. They are well-packed, and every one worked right out of the box. The heads, soft-boxes, stands, and bulbs are packed in fairly sturdy boxes in a canvas carrying bag. I recommend repacking the components in their boxes, which go into the canvas bag, for transport. The bag itself isn't sturdy enough to protect the parts in transit, but they will be fine if they are boxed before going into the bag. The upside is that the carrying case is about the size of a case for a backdrop stand, which makes for easier hauling in and out of job sites.Another nice touch--each soft box comes with two diffusers. I hadn't expected that. Using both the inner and outer diffuser gives the softest, most even light. Using the outer diffuser only provides diffuse light, but leaves a slight hot spot in the center. Using only the inner diffuser provides an equally soft light, but with specular hightlights. That's nice in a kit at this price point.I'd recommend running through the setup and teardown before taking these lights out on a shoot. My first setup took over an hour, and my first teardown took over a half-hour. Don't get caught on a shoot figuring out how to assemble the soft-boxes.I'd recommend this kit for occasional videographers, or as a starter kit for new videographers. Don't use it to cut corners--if you need a heavy-duty or quick-setup kit, spend the money for a higher-grade kit. But if you are like me and use lights occasionally, you'll be happy with this kit.

Being so cheap, I was a bit skeptical when I ordered this lighting kit, but it was easily within my budget and I need these for a video shoot next week (I will update this review at that time).The kit was fairly easy to put together, there are no instructions, but I didn't have to watch the videos to figure out how to put the soft boxes together, so that was a plus. Getting everything out and putting it all together took only about 30 minutes.When I first turned one of the fixtures on, I couldn't believe how bright these actually were. The entire kit as a whole puts off a great amount of light, and is definitely sufficient for a VAST majority of video/photography shoots. I would also recommend purchasing a halogen light, such as this: Fancierstudio 800 Watt Halogen Video Photo Lighting With Barndoor Focusable By Fancierstudio FR800 , which will give you a harder and stronger key light if you are using a traditional 3 light setup.One downside to this kit, and it becomes quite apparent through the price, is its durability. The stands and ends that connect to the fixtures are not that great. With the stands fully extended, they are fairly easy to tip over, but only if you bump into them, so just be careful and you shouldn't have any issues. I see this kit lasting a good year or two, which is fine for what I paid for it.Basically, this is how the kit breaks down:PROS- Cheap- Bright- Everything you need for a traditional lighting setupCONS- Cheap- Won't last incredibly long, but good enough in my opinion- Plastic connectors- Small, thin aluminum standsWith everything said, if this is your first lighting kit, as it was mine, I would highly recommend it to a friend. If you are careful and take care of your equipment, you will get a great amount of use out of this kit, but if you are careless and clumsy, you may want to spend a lot more money on a kit.

I purchased these lights to use as a primary lighting system for a feature film I'm preparing to shoot. Everything fits neatly in the package, and by the second time I set these up, I had it down to 5 minutes per light for setup. I'm very satisfied with my purchase, and may grab another set soon. I showed the kit to a professional videographer friend and he's about to purchase a set for himself to use as studio/interview lights.Pros:-Controllable light level through the individuals switches.-Almost no heat generated means that you don't have to spend time waiting for the lights to cool down before disassembly-Light looks GREAT on camera, white balances nicely with no weird green spikes. Higher shutter speeds did not show banding or flickering (in camera, haven't pulled the files and looked at them on the computer)-Great control over quality and cast of light by using no diffuser/inner only/inner and outer.-Setup is NOT arduous as some other reviewers claim. Develop a system for laying out the parts and it will just take a few minutes.Cons:-While the blubs will last long, a full set of replacement bulbs will cost as much as the whole kit.-The stands build quality isn't as high as I'd like, but they'll be perfect for repurposing to LED light stands.-These bulbs do not give off 3000w of light. They just don't. Higher quality bulbs in these fixtures will make these lights a lot brighter, but right now it's probably throwing about 1500w equivalent total.All in all, if you need affordable and versatile lighting I would strongly recommend this set. Between the independent switches, the lack of heat and the adjustable quality of the light through use of diffusers, you will not find a better starter light package.Just buy it already.

Very Good Quality

Based in US , so add another 60 bucks Candain for tariffs and taxes.