I'm sure we've all looked at those cheap, no brand LED ring lights in MBK and Fortune Town and wondered if they are any good?

 

Well I bought 2, one ring, one rectangular, both with adjustable color temperature and complete with light stands.  I added a white umbrella to one, and convinced the Missus to pose for a few test shots.

 

I used a Fuji 23mm f1.4 lens, bit short for portraits I guess, but space was limited so I needed a short focal length (35mm equivalent on full frame) and the output from the LED"s is not as strong as flash - so needed a wide aperture.

 

Being able to see the effect of the lights 'real time' in the EVF was a joy compared to faffing with off camera flashes, so think I'll use them more in future.

 

What do you think?  

 

 

 

Did you also try to picture her without these lights and if so, what were the differences....

2 hours ago, Halfaboy said:

Did you also try to picture her without these lights and if so, what were the differences....

It was night time and the room lights were off - as fluorescent lighting tubes would not look good.

 

I've used natural light in the same room (see examples below), but that's not always practical or reliable. 

 

When I've used off-camera flash, the results can be better, but only after a lot of trial and error to get the lighting right.

 

Constant LED is much easier to balance and position - as I can immediately see the impacts.

 

 

 

Thank you for the detailed explanation. Making pictures using external sources as i.e. LEd lights is new to me. 

 

Have fun....