The Luxli Timpani light is an extremely useful light fixture. Not only does it provide a strong and beautiful output, it is flexible enough to match with almost any other available fixture. This makes it a no-brainer to add to your existing light kit. Just add another light stand and a case—the Luxli Timpani is slightly smaller than other popular 1x1 panels, so it should fit nicely in whatever cases you already have for your kit. If you are starting from scratch, however, or rebuilding your light kit, you could start with the Timpani as your base light, and add from there. The only caveat is that the Timpani is a diffused light source, and the quality of light is not the same as a lensed hard light, so if you want a kit comprising hard lights, then the Timpani isn’t for you.
Bare Minimum Indie Kit
One Timpani, Two V-mount batteries, a charger, light stand, C-stand head and arm, and a case is the kind of set up that’s great for night shoots. The Timpani can illuminate your subject, looking like ambient light, and with the fixture being battery powered, you can move it along with your talent for long tracking sequences with a minimum number of lights.
Small Location Interview Kit
Three lights—key, fill, and backlight, keep it light and portable. Location power can be dodgy, so lights that operate on a low power draw or battery are valued. I have two thoughts on this.
- Two Timpani fixtures and a Cello would seem to be a natural. First, both the Timpani and Cello fixtures are RGBAW and the available effects in the app are similar for each light, so they will match easily. Second, they are all very slim fixtures, which makes them far easier to pack into a case and, let’s face it, for quick interviews on location, portability is crucial.
I tend to like hard lights for backlight. You can get the light farther away, and it is easier to control the spill with a hard light as opposed to a soft light.
- Two Timpani fixtures and a small Fresnel for backlight would make a good fit for an ikan Helia 40W. It is bi-color and dimmable, although it doesn’t have the same capabilities of the Timpani. However, if you are staying in the daylight/tungsten range, then you could get by with a Helia 40W to go with your two Timpani fixtures.
To either of these kits, you are going to need to add three stands and a case or two. Depending on your configuration, check out compatible bags and cases here. While I’m a fan of heavy-duty stingers (electric cords), the lights draw very little power, so you could easily run this kit on a single 15A circuit (110 volt) with power to spare. A cord like this one should do fine, don’t forget Tri-Taps. Or you could just run on V-mount battery power. Please note that even though I don’t list them here, it is a good idea to use sandbags on your light stands.
Sit-Down Interview Kit
What’s the difference? Think of the Small Location Interview Kit as more like a run-and-gun kit, while a sit-down kit will be fleshed out with a softbox, flag kit, and a set light. The Helia 40W could work as a set light, so you could go with two Timpani lights and two Helias, but here is where I would go for maximum flexibility and pack a kit with two Timpani lights, two Cello Lights, and just the one Helia—until Luxli delivers a Fresnel version of its lights. Then I’d swap out the Helia so all my lights could provide the same level of performance and similar characteristics, as well as being controllable from the same app. Please note that once you start using flags, you are going to want to start carrying around C-stands and sand bags, which means you are going to need more crew to get the most out of your production day.
Field Production Kit
Here, I would look to expand on the sit-down interview kit. I’m thinking of five Timpani lights, three Cellos, and a Helia 40W or other Fresnel so I could throw a light pattern where I want it. At this point, with your flags and stands, it would be smart to bring along a DMX board and DMX cables, although you can control a combination of Timpani and Cello light fixtures with the same app. You can easily control three fixtures, and depending on the conditions and whether you are using Android or iOS, you may be able to control more. With this kit, you are also going to want to include a fair bit of grip gear, so you can start hanging the lights out of frame. The field production kit is still going to be portable, and with five Timpani fixtures, you can create lighting in depth for realism.
That’s a Wrap
No matter how you build your lighting kit, the Luxli Timpani is an extremely versatile light fixture. With its RGB range of control, saturation adjustment, built-in effects, and low power draw, the Timpani can find a home on virtually any shoot.
Considering adding a Luxi Timpani RGBAW LED panel light to your lighting kit? Take a look at this quick overview of the Timpani, delve a little deeper into the Timpani’s LED specs and features, or check out 10 creative ways to use this panel light. Read on to learn more about using the Timpani’s RGB mode to match your existing light sources, or to select your choice of 150 Lee gels in filter mode.
Need the flashing lights of a patrol car for your episodic police procedural, a flickering firelight for a camping-alone-in the-woods horrorfest, or the strobing of a ravenous paparazzi mob? The Timpani does all this and more in its integrated Special Effects mode. Learn about its four operating modes, DMX features, and physical built in this broader Timpani overview.
Check back on the B&H Photo website or stop in to the B&H SuperStore, in New York, for the latest on the Luxli Timpani, Cello, and Viola Lighting instruments.
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