Some say we’re living in the golden age of television. It may also be true we’re living in the golden age of LED hard light fixtures. Several manufacturers continue to push the affordable LED technology output envelope with the Forza 500 from NANLITE promising to be a low-power draw key light with an excellent dollar-to-lumen output ratio. I spent several weeks shooting a network television pilot using the Forza 500 and these are my takeaways. The Forza 500 is an $1,849 Bowens S-Type mounted daylight-balanced LED fixture that ships with a 55-degree reflector attachment and as of this writing, can be powered only by V-mount batteries or through an included AC adapter. Despite the higher list price, I’ve seen the fixture on sale multiple times at various retailers for around $1,479. The Forza 500 weighs a little over 20 lbs. (Ballast + Lamp Head) and can be DMX-controlled with a wired connection. The real banner headline here is the output. There just aren’t a ton of fixtures with this price point that offer the same cost-to-lumen ratio. It’s worth noting that NANLITE, NANLUX, and LEDGo are all different branches of the same company, so if you’ve used any lights from those entities, you might have some familiarity with the brand as a whole. Closeup on the Forza 500 COB LED module and bowens mount grooves. Image Credit: CineD Who is the NANLITE Forza 500 for? Anyone looking for a high-output LED daylight source that isn’t dependent on a generator may...
Published By: CineD - Monday, 25 January, 2021