I'm new to draining and need help figuring out what kind of lights should I have for draining and photography.

Currently I have four Costco-bought 3 watt/75 lumen LEDs (review here: http://www.candlep...read.php?p=2774547) that are cheap and have fairly decent throw. But they're like bloody lasers, the light circle is so small so they're shit for photography. I also have 3 Maglites (2 and 3 Ds) but I rarely use them because they're heavy. I have 2 of those 1 million candlepower spotlights in my car trunks but I think they're good for like 5 minutes and they weigh a ton.

I don't have a headlamp yet and I have nothing with a decent flood.

What recommendations do you have, specifically for draining?

Well, the largest drain I've spend much time in is a local one with decent grates, a 9' brick arch. I get by with a Petzl headlamp I got for cheapish, and I used to have a sick-awesome Cree pocket torch with intense throw.

Damn, this reminds me how much I've spent on lights Main factors are reliability, water resistance, and then light I guess. For low drains, headlamps are a must, even a crummy one works - small area to light, and it's easier to walk with free hands.

Big draaaaynes, I have no idea how to light them. I like non-day-bright light for exploring, so I would probably just use my headlamp and be fine. For pictures, I'm looking at getting a portafluoro.

Thanks - that's good info. It confirms that I should get a headlamp which I kinda assumed but I was thinking maybe I could do without one. It sounds like a good investment though.

The open question I have is about the portafluoro. I don't think I've never seen these before. Any brands you'd recommend? Is there a specific lumen or lumen-type rating I should look for?

And at the risk of dredging up bad memories for you: "I used to have a sick-awesome Cree pocket torch"? What happened to it?

Posted by rob666 The open question I have is about the portafluoro. I don't think I've never seen these before. Any brands you'd recommend? Is there a specific lumen or lumen-type rating I should look for? And at the risk of dredging up bad memories for you: "I used to have a sick-awesome Cree pocket torch"? What happened to it?

I dunno about portafluoros...gonna pick one up this weekend and check it out. I think I'll lean towards something from Sears they'll replace if it breaks...unless one of you British lighting experts know better than I. My Cree jumped out of a pocket on Bloomington Indiana University campus, and hid from me . It will be missed.



EDIT:
I always drain armed with my PETZL Tikka XP headlamp, usually on 'diffuse' setting. They built it as a spotlight with a slideable diffuser that works fairly well. My dad got me that light, and it's survived some submersion and a lot of headbutts.

To replace my Cree, today I picked up an 'LED Lenser' brand that looks good, and also replaced my periscope. 10-year warranty, intense brightness, and... I don't know much else about it. I'm going to experiment with it as a 'splorin' light, and with my camera and some improvised diffusers. Pointing it at an old TV screen from 10' away creates a large blinding-bright spot, and it lights a column of branches in the tree outside. Wish me luck; and I'll have to be sure and use the wrist lanyard. Warranties only work if you can send in the corpse!

I like to carry my drain periscope, a mirror on an extendable handle ('pickup mirror' for getting stuff behind furniture). I can usually see out gutterboxes, grates, and sometimes get a better angle to see out a closed manhole. All I need now is my laser pointer again...

Well, here's a brain dump of my current situation, for what it's worth. The thing with lights is that I find myself using something completely different every couple of months


Getting Around

For getting around in drains, I use a regular high-power LED flashlight with a bit of throw, for seeing what's up ahead, and a head lamp for actually watching what I'm doing.

The throwy light I currently use is a JetBeam Jet III Pro, but there are a million similar lights that do the same job. I just like the way the modes work in those JetBeams.

In terms of headlamps, I used to use one with a reasonable throw on it, but have now completely changed my tune. Instead of a headlamp that essentially replaces a handheld light, I now use the super-diffuse ZebraLight H50.



It's a small light, barely larger than the AA battery it uses, and comes with a headband, lanyard, and pocket clip. The thing is, though, that the light it puts out is purely diffuse - there is no spot at all. It also doesn't project very far.

A headlamp that doesn't shine very far doesn't sound very useful, I know. It isn't a replacement for a thrower. What it's uniquely suited to is doing stuff up close. Fiddling with the gear in your bag is suddenly not a problem - no harsh shadows, and a field of light that's supremely wide. It has three power levels, the lowest of which will keep the light going for some silly length of time.

ZebraLight now make a newer, larger model that runs on an 18650 battery, which is much more powerful, but you then need to have those sorts of batteries in your life. It's also horribly expensive. It probably also pumps out a bit of heat.




Another option for headlamps, other than the regular throwy type ones, would be a headband like the one that Fenix make:



With lights on either side, you'd look like a fool, but you'd have no shortage of brightness


Damn, hit post instead of preview - I'll continue in another reply

Drain Photography Lighting

I've tried to give some idea about what I use myself at the moment - I'm sure other people use entirely different approaches, as well may I in a few months time


Current Trends That I Happen To Have Noticed

Obviously, there are innumerable variations on how people light drains for photography, but there have been a couple of particularly popular approaches.

First, the mini-fluoros. For a while there, everyone had a set of mini-fluoros. They're very diffuse, and providing you shield the camera from the bare tubes, you can wander through a scene and paint it evenly. I have a small rechargeable one, but I gather some people have sourced AA-powered ones, which could be a bit more flexible.

Lately, bare LED lights have been the thing. Some models of LED lights will let you remove the reflector assembly, and just bare the emitter, which gives a nice smooth circle of light with which to paint. I have a focusing LED light which gives a similar output when 'zoomed out.'


Stuff I use

I do like my diffused lighting, and my preferred approach to getting it is to use a plastic diffuser like the one below from Fenix. Carrying small lights and diffusers is much more convenient than the small fluorescent lights.



That diffuser does of course cut the throw of the light way back, but it spreads very evenly.

My other favourite trick is to cut an X into a table tennis ball, and jam it over the end of the light, providing a nice diffused result. The first shot below is lit this way, with a few pops of bare camera flash from one side. The second is lit inside the same way, with moonlight or fluorescent streetlight on the foreground.



The different colours are the result of white balance differences, and possibly different table tennis balls (they don't really last forever once you start cutting holes in them.)

It's easy enough to put some coloured plastic over the end of the light, but I have a couple of lights that accept custom coloured lenses, which makes things a bit easier. This shot (not a drain, I know) was just painted with bare LED with an orange filter (undiffused).



I used to use a camera flash, generally with a diffuser, to paint scenes, but I really don't anymore, in favour of using diffused flashlights instead. The shot below was painted with a whole heap of flash pops, with a tungsten-balanced diffuser mounted. I suspect that diffused flashlight would be more even than I achieved there.




Early on, I did try painting with one of those good ol' five-million candlepower spotlight things, and while the beam reached for miles, it was a bit of a lost cause in terms of the quality of the results.




I guess, with the photography side of things, you need to work out what effect you're trying to achieve, and then what lights and such you'll need for it. Of course, you do that, start getting ideas, and then you need more/different lights. That's just reminded me of some horribly ghetto stuff I tried early on, that might be worth a thread in itself...

Sorry if that reply is a bit vague and unfocused - prod me if you want me to ramble in another direction, or for my biased suggestions as to specific flashlights to buy.

Posted by AnAppleSnail Damn, this reminds me how much I've spent on lights

I hear you, brother!

Posted by AnAppleSnail I always drain armed with my PETZL Tikka XP headlamp, usually on 'diffuse' setting. They built it as a spotlight with a slideable diffuser that works fairly well.

That sounds quite cool - how diffuse does it get?

The table tennis ball trick is great!

I'm off to look at fluoro tubes today...

Ping-pong-tastic! Ignore the fact that I've 'shopped 'Smartarse' on it - I don't even remember what that joke was about now. Sadly, the light in the picture did the pocket-escaping trick on me, too...

Posted by metawaffle I hear you, brother! That sounds quite cool - how diffuse does it get?

I just picked up another expensive light - trying out a new brand, details added to my post above. The Petzl on diffuse mode does about a 90 degree cone of bright diffuse light, with a wider region of dimmer light around it.

Yellow = bike headlight.
Small white pool in top left = cheapo headlamp set on the ground
Back = new LED Lenser minisun, with a little bit of help from the Petzl.

Samples of my lights:

http://www.flickr....45@N04/3264052458/

Posted by rob666 I'm new to draining and need help figuring out what kind of lights should I have for draining and photography. Currently I have four Costco-bought 3 watt/75 lumen LEDs (review here: http://www.candlep...read.php?p=2774547) that are cheap and have fairly decent throw. But they're like bloody lasers, the light circle is so small so they're shit for photography. I also have 3 Maglites (2 and 3 Ds) but I rarely use them because they're heavy. I have 2 of those 1 million candlepower spotlights in my car trunks but I think they're good for like 5 minutes and they weigh a ton. I don't have a headlamp yet and I have nothing with a decent flood. What recommendations do you have, specifically for draining?

Maglites are good, the non LED ones anyways. And best of all they are good for small tunnels and can survive being dropped. You do need a giant torch for places like Gargantua, park drive...

Super torch







Flash



I also use a tiny petzl e+lite as a headlamp because its so small, nice and diffused perfect for seeing people right in front of you without blinding them, and setting up a camera, etc $25. When I first bought it, I got it on the recommendation of Ds who had one when we met up and he stressed the importance of having a back up light. I've been using it now, and as far as headlamps go -- its perfect. I might get a petzl halogen/led combo later on for caving, but I'm very satisfied with it. It takes cheapo Li button cells.

Posted by Air 33 Maglites are good, the non LED ones anyways. And best of all they are good for small tunnels and can survive being dropped. You do need a giant torch for places like Gargantua, park drive... Super torch http://www.ntropy....111312_golden1.jpg http://www.ntropy....213144633_gar7.jpg http://www.ntropy....209215001_gar3.jpg Flash http://www.ntropy....211211534_gar6.jpg

I have 1 LED mag and 2 non-LEDs. Funny that I'd tend to pick up the LED if I were to choose one. And I tend to look for throw in lights instead of flood.

The really warm lighting in #1 is what I've struggled to replicate (in buildings, not drains yet).

Posted by rob666 I have 1 LED mag and 2 non-LEDs. Funny that I'd tend to pick up the LED if I were to choose one. And I tend to look for throw in lights instead of flood. The really warm lighting in #1 is what I've struggled to replicate (in buildings, not drains yet).

yeah that is the garrity. I did shoot that on film tho, which I have found handles the stark difference between light and dark very well, compared to my digital.

My 3 d maglite has wonderful throw. I have an led nite eyes one in my 2 c and it basically has a tiny point of light that reaches far with no fill. Its in the emergency box since I can't see myself using it for much else.

Posted by Air 33

I've always liked that shot - great colour.

Posted by rob666 blah blah blah me me me

Posted by argonian

Lol. Touche.

I've done video shoots with a Thor torch using multiple compositing modes and multiple exposures and camera movements for some pretty neat imagery. I don't do a lot of still photography, but you can make interesting things happen with the right lights in video.