GEAR TESTS: KELDAN LUNA 4 & LUNA 8 Underwater Video Light

Chris Parsons Nauticam Team Member

I shot mostly video during the Shootout, using the new Panasonic GH4. For lighting, I chose the Keldan LUNA 4 when shooting macro, and the Keldan LUNA 8 when shooting wide angle. 

The LUNA 4 offers 5000 lumens in a small form factor. The battery is small, but if I use some care, I can easily make it last two dives. The small size allows me to easily get the light in tight spots. The 5000 lumens is excellent and allows me to use aperture in the f/18 range, which is where I want to be for super tight macro video. 

The LUNA 8 is larger, and has a bigger battery. Depending on the head used (the light heads are interchangeable), you can get up to 6500 lumen of actual, measured output. For this trip, I brought two heads, the CRI (high color rendition) and the Cyan (high color temperature). I really like using the cyan head; when used in conjunction with a complimentary filter on the lens, the color is really natural looking. It is hard to tell you are using lights at all, but you get details in the shadow areas where you wouldn't without the lights.  The LUNA 8 is also the widest and most even beam I've used.

The clip here demonstrates what the lighting looks like for the 3 setups I mentioned above. Check out the complete video here, all shot with the Panasonic GH4 plus LUNA 4 and LUNA 8. 

ED MEYERS

Since I am always learning how to shoot better underwater, and have not used much additional light, I tried out some Keldan Luna 8 video lights. One of the toughest things I'm working with is balancing lights and ambient color. Creating a good White Balance is one of the keys to getting good video underwater. I was pretty happy with the lighting on this lobster. White Balance was based primarily on the lights and the background just fell into a nice cyan color. The light from the Luna 8s was amazing. It was quite soft without the sensation of hotspots. Since they work on low power on land, I am considering them to use for small projects out of the water too. Keldan has a high CRI (Color Rendering Index) option that is worth considering, although the light output is slightly lower.