When I made my video on Aputure’s flagship LED panel,
the Tri-8, many of you wondered if,
at that price point,
you wouldn't be better off upgrading to a COB
single source light, like the Aputure 120d.
Well, today we're gonna talk about
the pros and cons of that upgrade.
Let's get Undone.
[offbeat music]
♪ Gerald Undone ♪
♪ He's crazy ♪
What's happening, everybody?
I'm Gerald Undone, and my blood type is 4:2:2 10-bit.
So, I shoot these videos in a pretty small space,
and to make it trickier, I try and maintain
the functionality of this space whether I'm shooting or not.
By that, I mean all of my lights have a fixed position
and are permanently out of the way
so that I don't have to do lengthy setups
and teardowns just to shoot a video.
And I also have to fit everything around
my editing desk, my workbench, and my set,
and so there's lots of obstacles to light around,
and limited floor space.
So, in order to make all that work and still achieve
a reasonably soft key light, I've been using
an LED light panel behind an umbrella.
Originally I was using Aputure’s 672w,
but when I made that video on the Tri-8c,
I switched over to it, and so far
it's been working well and I've been quite happy.
But it is true that when you factor everything in
with the Tri-8c, you do start to get closer and closer
in price to a bigger light, like the Aputure 120d.
So, first off, let's see if we can actually fit the 120d
into the space where my current panel and umbrella combo is.
And this will hopefully also tell us if there's a big enough
difference in light quality to warrant the upgrade,
because I think this shot here is probably
the most apt comparison, because we're gonna be using it
as a soft key light in a talking head shot.
But in order to achieve a similar or better softness
to what we have going on with the umbrella here,
we're gonna have to put the Light Dome on the 120d,
and that's where the size concerns come in.
This is the 120d II with the Light Dome II.
And the 120d II by itself
isn't really much of an issue when it comes to size.
It's only about this big and you can fit it
pretty much anywhere, but then it's gonna be
way too harsh for this application,
so we have to put the Light Dome on it,
and that's when it takes up space.
And putting that Light Dome on it also introduces another
size issue as well, because now we need a stronger stand.
Now, the LED panels are quite light.
So, light, in fact, that I don't even use a regular light stand.
I'm actually using a microphone stand,
even with the umbrella attached,
and this allows me to save some space around the floor
because microphone stands are a lot less bulky at the bottom.
And I have no issues with it.
Now, you can hold up to 120d II on its own
with just a regular light stand,
but as soon as you add that Light Dome it
and get it to the height that I need in order to match
my current angle, the light stand actually starts to bend.
So, the only way to make this work was with the C-stand,
which, of course, is a lot bigger, and heavier,
and also a lot more expensive than a regular stand.
Alright, enough talk.
Let’s jam this monster in the corner and see if it fits.
[powerful, driving instrumental]
♪
Alright, well, it kind of worked!
It was maybe a little bit too big for this space,
but I was surprised at how well
I was actually able to get it to fit.
I had to raise it a little bit more than my previous light
and tilt it down just a little bit more in order
to get it up and away and not interfere with my
audio equipment, and to not make me feel claustrophobic
when I edit, you know, have it bearing down over top of me.
Because like I said, I don't take these lights down,
I leave them up all the time.
So, the shadow angles might be a little bit different,
because like I said, it's a little bit higher,
but let's do a side-by-side comparison
for the light quality compared to a panel behind an umbrella.
So, what do you think? Which look do you prefer?
Can you notice the significant improvement
upgrading to the 120d II with the Light Dome II?
Let me know in the comments below.
I also took some measurements so that I can let you know
basically how much space both of these setups take up.
So, with the panel behind an umbrella,
about a decent distance to fill the umbrella,
and I had it tucked away in a corner--
when I say "corner," I mean between a curtain and wall--
it was about 26 inches in both directions,
so pretty much a square, and that's 66 cm by 66 cm, then.
And it was 74 inches high for the top clearance,
where the top spoke of the umbrella was,
and that's about 188 cm.
Now, when I switched it to the Light Dome II
on the 120d II and using a C-stand,
which obviously has a bigger base, I had to come away
from the wall 38 inches and away from the curtain
38 inches-- so again, still a square shape--
and a little bit higher at 78 inches,
so that's about 97 cm by 97 cm, and 198 cm tall.
So, if you want to put the 120d II, think of it
like a meter by meter by two meters.
If you have enough space, you can fit it in there,
and that includes the C-stand.
Now, another concern with using this combo
in a small space would be the proximity to my microphone
and having the fan noise pollute the audio.
So, let's give a quick listen to this system versus the panel--
and the panel should obviously be silent
since it has no fan-- and see if it poses a problem.
[faint, nearly inaudible whirring]
Now, for me, even if the fan noise was detectable,
it wouldn't be that much of a problem
because I do a noise reduction process
on all of my audio anyway.
But as I'm sitting here...
...I can barely hear the fan, and so I don't really think
it's gonna pose that much of a problem,
and that's with the light at 55% power
and running for just over an hour,
and with the microphone just over a meter away.
Now, I definitely lost some floor space going from
a tiny microphone stand to a giant C-stand,
but because I have it tucked off in the corner,
I think I can work around it.
And there's actually enough space that maybe
I could slide some things underneath the C-stand,
which is not something you can typically do
with a light stand or a microphone stand.
But you do have to factor the C-stand into the price,
because they're much more expensive
than microphone stands,
so in that previous video when we were talking about,
"Oh, why don't you just get a 120d at that price,"
there's other factors that contribute to it.
So, when you factor in the diffusion
with the Light Dome II,
obviously the 120d II, and the C-stand,
this whole combination will cost you about $1,065 US,
where you can get the Tri-8c and a cheap umbrella
and cheap light stand for under $600,
and you'll have a bicolour light.
Now, there is a cheaper and smaller option for the 120d
in the Light Dome Mini,
which will save you a little bit of money.
You'll be down to about $950 instead for this whole combo,
and it will save you a ton of space
because it's significantly smaller.
But I actually think at that point that you're sacrificing
too much softness and making your light source
too small that you might be better off going
with that umbrella combo, because the umbrella
is actually bigger and a little bit softer
than the Light Dome Mini.
Basically, what I'm saying is, I wouldn't recommend upgrading
from a panel and umbrella combo that's working for you
to a 120d if you were just going
to exclusively use the Light Dome Mini.
I do think the Light Dome Mini can be a great little add-on
to add versatility to your 120d combo when you just
can't meet the space requirements,
but I wouldn't get the 120d just to use
with the Light Dome Mini.
Now, I'm worried that it kind of sounds like
I'm saying that upgrading to the 120d II isn't worth it,
and that's not my point at all.
I just wanted to address the comments on the previous video
that suggested that it was a no-brainer upgrade.
It's not as simple as that.
As you can see now, it actually ends up costing you
50-60% more and takes up significantly more space
once you factor in a C-stand and appropriate diffusion.
And that remains true even if you find a good sale
on a 120d I.
It’s still gonna cost you an extra $200-$300
to get the light up and softened.
But you do get a hell of a lot more light
for that premium, though.
The 120d II behind the Light Dome II,
in my opinion, is a much softer, much nicer,
and much more versatile light configuration.
And you'll get so much more output
that if you plan to shoot in other environments other than
just your small studio, the 120d II will have your back,
where a panel behind an umbrella probably won't.
And it also features a Bowens mount, which will give you
access to a ton of accessories to be able to control
the light, including some discounted third-party ones,
because that's one area where LED panels are
significantly limited-- in their ability to shape the light.
For example, I can add a grid, which comes included
with the Light Dome II, to control the spill on this 120d
way better than anything that I could do on an LED panel.
So, here's a side by side of the 120d
with the grid versus without.
And then with the grid versus the Tri-8c behind an umbrella.
On the 120d, I'm using the thickest diffusion material
and have the power set to 55%,
where the power is set to 80% on the Tri-8c.
But to give you an idea of the output,
let's run through all of the power settings here
from 0 to 100%, again, with the strongest diffusion
on and with the grid on, so this is about
as dark as it's gonna get while at 100%.
I also find the 120d II has more potential
in the photography world as well.
So, if you're both a video and photo shooter,
I think you'll find this unit more useful.
Now, I didn't make this video a review of the 120d II,
because there's already several great reviews out there,
but I can say that the build quality and design
is excellent, and it performs extremely well
to the extent that I have no complaints about this light.
So, while it may not be a simple upgrade decision
for small studio creators, I do think it's a fantastic light
and worthy of the price premium if you're able to take
advantage of its added versatility, or if you just
want the softest light you can get in your small space.
But that's gonna be it for me.
I hope you found this video helpful,
or at least entertaining.
And if you did, make sure you leave it the old thumbs-up
and consider subscribing if you haven't already.
But if you did not find this video helpful or entertaining,
feel free to hit the dislike button twice.
Alright... I'm done.
♪