Litepanels Croma

You might not have heard of Litepanels, unless you happen to be a professional videographer or photographer. The firm specialises in all manner of lighting systems, but for most people these solutions are far too expensive. But now, the firm is launching some entry level devices that should appeal to a broader audience.

For a bit less than 400 you get an LED light, with some handy accessories. Of course, 400 is quite a lot of money, and this does sit quite firmly in the entry-level and prosumer categories of LED lighting. The question is, does it do enough, well enough, to warrant this price tag?

In the old days, simple lighting for video cameras was done with a halogen light, and a massive battery. These arrangements were heavy, drank power and didn't produce evenly lit results. Happily, technology has moved on, and LEDs allow a lot more flexibility.

Crucially though, this is about more than power consumption. LEDs are a lot more flexible, especially when it comes to colour. LEDs allow you to mimic either sunlight, with its more blue tint, or indoor, artificial lighting with its orange hue.

In the case of the Croma, it's even better, because on the side is a dial that allows you to select the colour light you want, and even mix the two different tones. This means, with a sharp eye, you can match the light in your shooting environment very precisely. So outdoor shoots look natural, but so too do those indoors.

In the box in which the Croma comes, you'll find a soft bag, in which you can carry the light without having to worry about it getting broken. There are also two mounts, one which allows you to attach the light to the camera, and another which allows connection to a light stand or other pole.

Happily, on the hot shoe mount there's also the option to screw the light on to a standard tripod mount. This is incredibly handy, as it allows you to set the light up just about anywhere.

There's also a power adaptor, which is a very welcome addition when you get sick of putting six AA batteries into the light. They don't last an especially long time, and if you're using non-rechargeable cells, you'll spend a lot of cash keeping it juiced-up.

Also provided is a diffusing filter. This is critical, because LED lights are, somewhat obviously, made up of a lot of LEDs. This can mean that you get bright spots on close-up shots. The diffuser should help with that, at least a little bit, while meaning you don't have to go further away from your subject.

Litepanels says the power output of this light is equivalent to 50 watts. It's not super-bright, but for close up work it will make a real difference. For photos, this can make a handy fill light in normal light, or a full-on source of illumination in darker conditions.

The single best accessory you can buy for a camera is a decent flash. Everything you know about the flashes, based on those dreadful built-in things, is wrong and you soon see that when you use a proper speedlight or similar. The Croma can't replace a flash, and isn't really designed to, but what it does do is give you some options.

For example, if you're shooting in very dark conditions, but close up, a flash can be a little overwhelming - most are adjustable, but even so it is a very harsh light that comes from a flash gun. So the Croma allows you to easily, and quickly adjust the amount of light to suit your environment.

But more useful, when photographing or videoing people, is that the light from the Croma is constant. That should mean no red-eye effect, as the subject's pupils will be more dilated, which prevents the effect from being as much of a problem.