Great Video Production Companies use Great Production Tools: the Dedolight

Vancouver has no shortage of video production equipment suppliers; when it comes to lighting, capturing sound, filming, and editing, we've got a wide range of tools at our disposal. One of our favorites is a light we recently used filming EPK material for AMC's second season of "The Killing" and for locally shot MOW "Taken Back."  In addition to our regular stand-by's (Kink Flo's, Arris, Litepanels, and HMI's), we brought along an exceptional light kit that we just love using: the Dedolight.

Designed and Made in Germany by Dedo Weigert (who won an Academy Award for his lights), the Dedolight is a small 100-150 watt tungsten light that is supplied with either a ballast that acts as a dimmer for up to 4 Dedolights, or with single-light dimmable power supplies. The power supply is conveniently universal voltage (which, a Russian broadcaster mentioned to us during the Olympics here, made it their lighting instrument of choice for their studio).

But the biggest feature of the Dedolight are its optics. Optics? Yes, the light head has a lens that "pre-collects" the light, and a separate lens that focuses it. The result is the cleanest, most even light you'll find in the video production world. This dual lens system produces no hotspots, and can produce sharp edges with very minimal-to-no stray light. That makes them great not only for key lighting, but for rim and hair lights, and unrivaled for "painting" backgrounds with shadow and light.

Better yet, the Dedolight's optics make it incredibly efficient. In a flood position, its 100 watts put out more light than a 300 watt fresnel; in spot position, its output is the equivalent of a 1 kilowatt (1000 watt) light! Four 100 watt Dedolights consume between 400-600 watts (depending on which lamp heads you opt for), but put out the equivalent of 1200 to 4000 watts of conventional lighting. Shooting a corporate video in a downtown Vancouver office can sometimes mean that generators are impractical -- or there are a imited number of available outlets. Using the multi-light ballast requires only one electrical output for the 4 lights. And less wattage means less heat: Dedos are easier to handle for gaffers who don't want to worry about being scorched by uber-hot lights, and they also cool down quicker for lighting moves that require the light to be re-packed.

Accessories like an iris and projection lens attachment let you create sharply defined pinspot lights (useful, for example, if you wanted to light a diamond in a TV commercial for a jewelry store), or project gobo patterns on a backdrop. Gobo projections are used frequently when lighting interviews for television shows like 60 Minutes, where a bland background might benefit from a window blind shadow, or a more generic light breakup pattern. Maybe best of all, the light heads are small, lightweight, and durable. An entire 4 light kit with stands and accessories fits in one travel case and can be checked in as carry on baggage.

The lights themselves are not inexpensive: a 3 or 4 light kit with accessories will usually run $3,500 to $5,000. However, lamps (bulbs) are inexpensive to replace (about $12 per lamp, as opposed to HMI lamps or even fresnel light lamps that cost 3 to 15 times as much), they conserve 90% of the electricity of conventional lights, and Dedos have great reliability and great customer service by Dedotec.

Recently, we consulted on the production of a travel biography TV series pilot. The series, still in development, would require interviews, quick setups, and an efficient travel set for lights.

Our production company's first light of choice? The Dedolight.

Check out footage that featured Dedolight lighting from our first round round of EPK footage for "The Killing."