Lighting equipment selection for high-speed video recording at frame rates from 500 to 10000 fps

Gear

ZephyrCan I fly my Alexa or RED on a Zephyr?389

Master SeriesIs a used Master Series rig worth buying as a first big rig?191

BFDHow do I power my BFD receiver from my camera or sled?186

VoltCan I retrofit a Volt onto my existing sled or gimbal?168

ArtemisHow do I power my camera and accessories from an Artemis sled?166

MDRWhere can I mount my Preston MDR on my rig?143

ModulusIs there a Modulus option for HD wireless video?141

G-70Will my G-70 fit my vest, gimbal or sled?126

FI+ZCan I control iris and zoom wirelessly, not just focus?60

HU3Where can I get my HU3 repaired, refurbished or repainted?60

CineLiveHow do I pack and case my CineLive rig for transport?54

G-70XHow does the G-70X compare to Pro Titan, Xarm and other arms?46

Trinity 2Is Trinity 2 SUP 3.0 firmware safe to install or buggy?46

Ultra VestWhich vest should I choose for my body size, comfort and operator type?39

2009Cameras (Film/Video/HD) forum

17 years old. Gear and prices may have changed since.

HMI lamps marketed as flicker-free can still exhibit intensity and color variations caused by plasma arc rotation or wobbling inside the bulb, independent of electronic ballast stability.
A K5600 Joker 800 watt HMI demonstrated no noticeable flicker when tested at 6200 fps.
Bulb age and condition significantly affect flicker performance, and replacing a faulty bulb can eliminate flicker issues that persist across multiple shoots.
HMI lamps smaller than 4 kilowatts tend to introduce flicker more readily than larger lamps, though very small lamps with concentrated plasma arcs like the Joker 800 may perform well.
Larger HMI bulbs carry a paradoxical drawback: increased gas volume raises the likelihood of plasma disturbances that cause visible flicker.
Tungsten lighting can serve as a reliable alternative when authentic flicker-free HMI equipment is unavailable, though it requires wider aperture settings due to lower light output.
Dedicated high-speed cinematography lighting heads like those from Dedolight provide concentrated illumination with minimal heat generation.
Individual fixture performance varies significantly even among identical models, making testing with the actual equipment planned for production essential.

Testing of the K5600 Joker 800 was limited to a single frame rate and did not include comparative tests across multiple frame rates.
Experience with tungsten alternatives was documented only in a specific geographic region and may reflect local equipment availability rather than universal performance characteristics.
The claim about plasma wobbling in HMI bulbs was not experimentally verified in the thread.
One participant's reference to an undisclosed high-speed camera model limits the applicability of that experience to unknown equipment specifications.
No detailed technical specifications were provided regarding ballast frequencies or their relationship to flicker-free performance.