The 4 Best Studio Lighting Kits for 2022
These days, studio lighting kits are used by more than professional photographers—individuals who want to get the perfect ‘gram, shoot YouTube videos, or take the perfect dog portrait. The right lighting can take your photographs and videos up by several notches but creating your very own lighting setup can be an expensive and time-consuming process, especially for beginners. That’s where EssentialPhoto’s kits can help you out!
Studio lighting kits are available in a wide variety of configurations, so consider your requirements carefully before selecting one. Perhaps you’d benefit from continuous lighting which remains on throughout the duration of a shoot or a strobe light that only flashes when a photo is taken.
Think about light reflectors and backdrops, how diffused do you want your light to be, and what textures and colours do you want popping up in the picture? You must also decide whether you want the picture to be warm or cool since different temperatures give different vibes to the end result.
Most starter kits come with two to three continuous lights with a softbox or umbrella for diffusion and a handful of different bulbs. There are also more complete kits that include other gears and accessories, but unless you have your own dedicated space for a studio, it’s best to get something that simple to set up and put away.
Here are some of the best studio lighting kits that you can get in 2022:
Best Lighting Kit for E-Commerce Shoots
PiXAPRO’s Complete 360° Product Photography LUMI400II Flash Lighting Three Head Kit is on the pricier side of things but includes an entire comprehensive set of studio strobes, softboxes, boom stands, motorised turntable, and many other items required for a professional photo shoot. The turntable is perfect for shooting from multiple angles without having to switch up the setup and can handle up to 150kg. The 3 strobe lights are made out of durable metal, with a well-made clamp that can help users adjust the angle of the light without slipping with the addition of a softbox.
It features an internal cooling fan along with an independently controllable strobe light and beep function. You can adjust your light brightness settings from a radio transmitter if you have one fitted into your camera’s hot shoe. The kit comes with a wireless receiver that provides full remote control over the product, along with the usual sync socket for sync cables. The reflector has a hole that allows an umbrella to fit in while its attached, which is an excellent addition.
PiXAPRO’s Complete 360° Product Photography LUMI400II Flash Lighting Three Head Kit
Best Lighting Kit for Headshots
The Commercial Headshot Interview Documentary Complete Lighting Kit (LED100B MKIII) consists of an LED100B MKIII Pro Head, a standard reflector, an XLR-4 Power Adapter, 3 light stands, a curved reflector, a collapsible background, and other items needed to run the kit. The design is rather compact and easy to set up, with a life expectancy of around 50,000 hours, so you know that this kit is going to last you a long time. The lights are energy efficient with rather low heat emissions and feature a built-in cooling fan that keeps them from overheating. They run at less than 18dB, so you can be confident that the sound won’t interfere with your audio.
The clever COB chip allows users to achieve a wide range of colours and temperatures—from 3200K tungsten to 5600K daylight with barely any loss of power. The additional curved reflector provides the perfect soft lighting by filling in shadows under the face, while the clean collapsible background provides a professional feel to any photographs or videos taken in front of it.
It’s a wonderful solution for photographers and videographers who are doing their shoots on location or in the studio.
Commercial Headshot Interview Documentary Complete Lighting Kit (LED100B MKIII)
Best Affordable Continuous Lighting Setup
The 1050W EzyLite Softbox Twin-Head Continuous Lighting Kit is a portable and lightweight light kit for continuous lighting, comprising of two lamp heads featuring a 50cmx70cm easy-open softbox along with stands and two CFL bulbs of 105W. The lights work beautifully with both still photography and videos and are daylight balanced, making them amazing for replicating natural light or using them outdoors.
The units are rather energy efficient—producing less heat than the usual tungsten lights—and work perfectly with a compact camera or a video camera with automatic exposure. This super budget-friendly kit is perfect for portraits, commercials, vlogs, and shooting medium-sized products.
You can combine multiple kits to cover wider areas, but this head is the best solution for photographers looking for an affordable and reliable lighting kit. It’s super easy to set up and is easy to use for amateurs.
Best Food Photography Kit
The DAYLiTE60D MKII LED Food Photography Lighting Kit is ideal for individuals who want to start doing professional food photography and videography. It features two light stands, an umbrella to diffuse the light, a 5in1 reflector, along an easily adjustable reflector arm that can be extended up to 122cm. The lights include a built-in heat sink and cooling fan to aid with heat dispersion.
The 5in1 reflector allows users to bounce off light and eliminate unwanted shadows and comes with interchangeable surfaces which can produce different effects according to your requirement for your final product. This super affordable food photography solution can help you replicate natural light at any time of the day with its 130cm” parabolic umbrella that features a durable frame made out of fibreglass, making it less susceptible to breakage.
DAYLiTE60D MKII LED Food Photography Lighting Kit
