Low cost softboxes ?

[John Conway]

Well, I did it. I probably should have researched the lighting kits I was looking at, but they looked pretty good, so I bought them. I have a beautiful Mole Richardson 1000 watt cool redhead 6" solarspot which is a fine light although not cheap. But I wanted some softboxes and did not want to spend a lot. So, I come across this kit, Two 33" boxes with stands, one 24" octagon box with boom, all with cases for 200.00. Now, the thing I liked about this set is, each light has five individual switches for each florescent bulb, giving me the option of total power control. Now, I know it is not a high quality item, but I figured they must pass codes and be safe, and since I am very easy and gentle on my equipment, they should be just fine.

[Bill Kumpf]

And what are they?

I am looking at lighting kits also. It is difficult to judge quality from the web sites...............

[John Conway]

Hey Bill, the set I settled on is called (JS) Julius Studio. There are so many kits out there it is a bit confusing. Basically, I narrowed it down to Julius and Redhead. There is a lot of info out there on the Redhead set, and it is positive. That set comes with two soft boxes and a barndoor on three 800 watt lamps (with dimmers) at around 250.00. The set I bought has two boxes and a smaller octagon box on a boom. The other thing I liked about the Julius is the five separate switches for each bulb. I could not find any reviews on the Julius stuff, so I will find out for myself. For me, the insane prices for the quality name brands was out of the question. I did find some comparison tests on high end and low end boxes. Of course the build quality was better on the high grade boxes (a little better) but quality of light was very close. When it comes to price, the difference is crazy. I'm not a pro, but I feel the high end stuff is way over priced.I'm sure pros on the move need the heavy duty build quality, but I certainly don't. And I would rather put my money into my lenses and film.

[atlcruiser]

John, what exactly did you get? How much light do you get out of it? I need a better light kit for the 810...and i am cheap/broke :)

[John Conway]

The total wattage is 2300. It was 225.00 with free shipping.

[Jim Michael]

I hate having to buy something twice. Were you planning to put your MR in your new softbox? The higher end Chimeras are expensive because they can take the heat from a high wattage tungsten source. Chimera makes some lower end boxes that don't have to support the heat load. Those are for flash or flos. Do you really need multiple softboxes? Why not one good sized rectangular box and a reflector? Put a grid on the box and you have very controllable light. Another approach is to shoot through a diffuser and use flags to control spill. I have a Chimera 4x4' frame and shoot through a quarter stop silk with a 650w Arri fresnel and the quality of the light is very nice. They also make some smaller silks you can shoot through for nice soft light and they aren't expensive at all and require one less c-stand.

[John Conway]

Hi Jim, I wanted a multi box set for several reasons. The main reason is they are light and easy to transport. I plan on doing a lot of portraiture on location. Also, many of the books I have read on photographic lighting show set ups that use two or three boxes.I want to duplicate those shots. As far as the Mole Richarson, I do use it with a diffuser, but I want to keep that light at home.

[Bill Kumpf]

Thanks, John

A couple of different sites to look at. I am like you, I shoot my grand kids resulting in light use, I like continuous lighting because I can see the results of setup changes. And I perfer to buy film than hardware.

[John Conway]

Thanks, John

A couple of different sites to look at. I am like you, I shoot my grand kids resulting in light use, I like continuous lighting because I can see the results of setup changes. And I perfer to buy film than hardware.

They already shipped the kit out today. I will give a nice little test report here after I set it up and try it. You know, I bought a low priced reflector and stand from Adorama about five years ago. I have set and taken down that reflector many , many times. It has never failed me. Again, the key with this stuff is gentleness. The main thing I will be looking at is the framing and rods on the boxes. The rest of it is pretty basic. My wife and kid are already in a state of panic. They already know that they will be primary targets for relentless experimentation with my new toys. Oh, as far as flash goes for me, forget it. I love continuous hot lights or natural light with reflectors.

[John Conway]

Well, my cheap softbox kit arrived today. I just finished putting everything together. As far as quality, not bad at all. The octagon box on the boom is really nice. The boom, as well as the other two stands, are quite sturdy. There is a lot of plastic,so care must be taken when adjusting. Overall, it's a nice set and worth the money.

[JamesHendrix]

John,
Now that you've had this kit for over two years, how has to held up?
I'm looking at one of their kits and am seeking reviews.
Thanks
James