Quality video production requires so much more than simply having a good camera. Technique comes into play. Capturing great audio is absolutely essential. And lighting; proper lighting can make or break your production. Additionally, depending on the conditions, may be as simple as shooting outside on a nice overcast day or as challenging as shooting under mixed light sources surrounded by a myriad of reflective surfaces.

Whatever the circumstance, quality equipment can help save the day. When you need durability, portability and adaptability all wrapped into one, the Celeb 200 DMX LED from Kino Flo has much to offer – provided you have the deepness of pockets necessary to weather the price tag. Even so, a quick trip to the nearest rental house is all you need to add a little Celeb 200 to your next production.

Traveling Light

The Celeb 200 DMX LED kit comes packed in a yellow, compartmentalized hard travel case for easy storage, transport and protection. Accompanied by an AC power cord and DMX cable, the Celeb 200 is ready for action right out of its case. Included is a ball and socket center mount with locking handle for a full 360 degrees of orientation. A baby receiver at the other end allows for light stand mounting or hanging from a grid.

Openings in the accessory holder corner brackets allow rope attachments to facilitate special mounting configurations. Other mounting accessories are available such as a Yoke assembly and Pole-Operating assembly with pan and tilt controls for maximum mounting versatility.

While the Celeb 200 has a built-in power supply for use with 100-240VAC it is also 24VDC capable, using a 3-Pin XLR, and will run approximately two hours under battery power. At the front of the light panel, the accessory holder features two spring-loaded channels for holding the included Celeb 200 Gel Frame (with clips) and honeycombed focusing louver. The kit comes with the 90-degree louver, while the optional 60-degree louver was included with ours for comparison. While very effective, the honeycombs are plastic and should be treated with care when installing and removing. Optional barn doors are available as well.

Color Me Impressed

The color-coded control panel on the back of the unit is fairly intuitive and easy to master. The power button, five color temperature preset buttons, three additional buttons, an adjustment dial and LED readout panel control everything.

The presets have factory default settings, from left to right, of 2700K, 3200K, 4000K, 5000K and 5500K. The 3200K button is also labeled Tungsten with an orangey color code while the 5500K button is labeled Daylight and has a blue color code. In addition to the presets, turning the adjustment dial increases or decreases the setting as desired. Pushing the dial toggles it between coarse and fine adjustments to allow color temperature fine-tuning. When the desired setting is achieved, pressing the LOCK/RESET button prevents unwanted changes from occurring. Once locked, pressing the presets or turning the adjustment dial results in LOCK appearing on the display. While in LOCK mode, pressing KELVIN/DIM displays the current settings. When it’s time to make changes, press LOCK/RESET again and change away.

Additionally, custom settings can be applied to any one of the preset buttons by dialing in the desired color temperature and holding the preset button for five seconds until the display flashes. Holding the LOCK/RESET button for five seconds returns everything to factory defaults. Pressing the button labeled KELVIN/DIM switches it from color temperature to light intensity settings and back again. As with the color temperature, pushing and turning the adjustment dial allowed us to make both coarse and fine adjustments as we fine-tuned the light’s intensity from less than 1 percent up to 100 percent – without flickering or shifts in the color temperature.

It’s All Under Control

The Celeb 200’s DMX is remote control capable using DMX512, giving you the option to daisy-chain as many as 100 units together as long as the cable run limit of 1000 feet is not exceeded. Each fixture features both in and out ports and is auto terminating. In other words, the last unit in a chain that does not have a cable attached to the out port terminates automatically.
       
Pressing and holding the DMX Address button allows an address to be selected by turning the adjustment dial. Pressing the dial makes adjustments of one or 10 unit increments. Press the DMX Address button again to save the address. The unit assigns two channels automatically, the first to control light intensity and the second to control color temperature. Adjusting the sliders for these channels on the lighting board will adjust color temperature and intensity accordingly.

While consuming a mere 100 watts, the Celeb 200 outputs more light than a 750w tungsten soft light. It sports a solid build, variable color temperature and dimming without flickers or changes in color temperature. The quality of light is soft, beautiful and abundant with a high color rendering index (CRI 95). Whether for purchase or rental, serious filmmakers will want to give the Kino Flo Celeb 200 DMX LED a try.
       
Contributing Editor Mark Holder is a video producer and trainer.

Tech Specs

Color Temperature Range: 2700K to 5500K
AC Input Voltage: 100 – 240VAC 50/60Hz, 100W
DC Input Voltage: 18 – 28VDC, 100W
Amperage: 0.96A at 120VAC; 4.0A at 24VDC
Dimming Range: 1% – 100%
Weight: 15lb.
Dimensions: 24” x 14” x 5”

Strengths

  • Abundant soft light
  • Energy efficient
  • Variable color temperature
  • Full range dimming with no flicker or color temperature shifts
  • DMX control

 

Weaknesses

  • High cost
  • Would like to see barn doors included at this price