LIGHTING EQUIPMENT NEWS

Lighting it up

Thu, 27 Oct 2011 14:23

Lighting used as a tool with which to tell a story, create a mood and establish atmosphere is one of the most important aspects of production be it for film, television, events or documentaries. Screen Africa spoke to various lighting equipment suppliers, rental and events companies about trends, different lighting techniques and whether South Africa is on a par with its global counterparts.

Like all facets of the lighting industry, technology dictates the majority of the trends. The biggest trend currently is LED lights. According to Kevin Singer, managing director Singer, the popularity of these lights is attributable to their ultra-efficiency, luminocity and soft directional output. “The huge advantages are that these lights are cool, silent, dimmable and ballast-free.”

Peter Currier, Gearhouse lighting operations manager maintains that within three to five years almost every lighting fixture will be LED. “Phillips is leading the way at the moment. Their new LED profiles are especially exciting.”

To meet the huge demand for LED, Arne Sack, Pro-Sales CEO, says they are now stocking a whole range for the local market.

Jannie van Wyk, Media Film Service managing director, explains: “As far as trends go, high speed digital photography is becoming more popular and as a result of a range of 300Hz and 1 000Hz ballasts are now available. The 1 000Hz ballasts are good up to 1 000fps with any shutter angle, with speeds up to 5 000fps at specific increments. There is a large growth in LED too as they have an extremely long life span of up to 50 000 hours. The LEDs have a CRI rating of 95 or higher – they are energy saving and have no flicker. They offer excellent performance with very little heat as a by-product.”

Kagiso Moima, managing director Black Motion Production, elaborates on a creative trend: “Up lighting a Prolyte Truss with LED Par64 or Pixel Products is a new trend, however this is not limited to television lighting. These lighting products have introduced a stunning appeal to lighting design and lighting operators.”

Sean Ryan, managing director Panalux maintains that there is no real trend when it comes to lighting. “Each situation is unique as no single DOP, location, script or story board will ever be the same as the next. Each and every shot requires its own lighting feel and this can be dependent on a number of contributing factors. Therefore the challenge is to remain creative regardless of developments in the industry. However a number of low energy LED products have been introduced recently and these are increasingly popular in the market place.”

John Harrison, managing director Southern Lighting, comments: “There are in fact three different lighting styles. One for film with very little change except that lights are getting smaller and brighter. The second is for TV with cooler lights such as fluorescent and LED. The third is in entertainment, where LEDs are really coming into their own with brighter, more versatile fixtures introduced into the market.”

DOP IN THE PICTURE

Many DOPs are very specific about their lighting requirements and according to Currier this includes colour temperatures. “Choice also depends on LUX (measure of luminous intensity) and price – in that order. It is difficult to say which is our most popular light as every event has different needs, but the LED range we carry is almost never in the warehouse.

“We do our best to offer a wide range of lights with Vari*Lite, Martin, Robe and High End Barco moving lights and scanners. We also stock a range of conventional lighting fixtures such as Par, Fresnel, Flood and Profiles. We have a range of LED lights including Robe, I-Pix and Chauvet along with Robe and GLP LED moving lights.”

The most important aspect for a DOP is to have complete control over lighting, says Singer. “LED lighting is ideal in this regard as it is flattering, comfortable and manoeuvrable and is ideal for high definition (HD). We mainly sell micro LED lights for use on ENG, DV and DSLR cameras.”

Sack comments that top of the list for DOPs is cost. “The capital outlay always seems to be the most important thing. They look at things like electricity usage and the need for air conditioning. We are the suppliers of the Cosmo Light range from Italy and also supply LED lighting from LS Lighting.”

Van Wyk agrees that budget influences the choice of lights. “As a rental facility we offer a full range of discharge (daylight) heads, tungsten Fresnel, open-face, soft lights and generators. We have equipment for interior, exterior, night and day scenes as well as specialised units for pack shots and high speed photography.” Moima explains that Black Motion offers a range of Robe moving lights. “We have different products including Colorspot 250 AT, Robin 600 Spot and Robin 600 Beam.”

Access to a range of equipment is very important to DOPs, says Ryan. “However reliability, support and quality of service can make a difference. DOPs need to be confident that all their equipment is in good working order and operates safely with solid back-up from their suppliers regardless of how or where they shoot. “Panalux offers a huge range of lighting and associated equipment that covers a full spectrum of film and television production.”

SA AND THE GLOBAL INDUSTRY

It is important for the South African industry to keep abreast of global trends and developments especially in a world that is increasingly competitive. Currier maintains that South Africa definitely has the skills and equipment to rival any international competitor. “However we have found that the biggest challenge is time frames. In Europe and the US they work on much longer hire periods than here. For example in South Africa a rock tour is usually two to four shows but in Europe and the US it can be 30 to 50 shows. They can therefore afford to be more competitive with their prices than we can.

“This is one of the reasons that this year we have introduced a new hire company called Splitbeam that specialises in professional and affordable lighting.”

From a lighting supplier point of view, Singer adds: “We are a little behind in adopting new technology. Our prices are on a par with European prices but the products are less readily available.” Van Wyk says that the rental market in Cape Town is very competitive between the three main stream lighting rental suppliers.

“The challenge is to keep a range of the latest professional lighting equipment from all around the world that is requested by DOPs,” he says. Moima comments: “This is a R17bn industry and competition is huge and every year there are new players in the market offering the same service or a new way of offering the same service. One of the biggest challenges is retaining clients and being paid on agreed terms.”

South Africa has a proven track record that stands the country in good stead, says Ryan. “We have talented production teams, professional crew plus a wealth of equipment and facilities that have placed us firmly on the map as a key player within the global industry.”

SCREENAFRICA Print Magazine – January 2011 (view here)
By Karen van Schalkwyk

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