Today we're doing a live. We get asked this question all the time, so we want to do a live on this. And that question is, “Where doIplace my light? What's the best place to put the light when I'm doing makeup?Ionly have one light, what ifIhave two lights?”
So, we wanted to address that today and a lot of people, they start with one light. It's a great place to start.
Starter Stand Kit, Starter Suction Mount. Any of those kits works great. So, we wanted to kind of fill you in on some tips and tricks that we have learned from others as well as kind of use ourselves. And wanted to start out. So we have a wonderful model here and he will be posing for us and we show you the different lights and lighting centers that we have.
So, we're going to be using a Starter Stand Kit today. That's a light in a Gooseneck and a Light Stand, Power Supply. That's all we have to do. This whole setup. We're going to throw in a second one later, but we want to start out with just one light.
This is a horrible way to light your subject. If I was going to do this person's makeup he only has light on one side of his face. Horrible place for it.
So what we typically recommend is fairly straight on, over your shoulder. So I'm tall, so this light needs to be tall like this over my shoulder. So what I’m going to do is I’m going to bring this out front. I just touch the on button / off button. I’m going to bring it out front so you can see, then when I'm working this light here's my shoulder.
I'm literally standing right in front of my subject. I have one light and you can see how flat that is lit. There's a little bit just because faces are three dimensional, so you are going to have a little bit of shadow, like you should. Any light source is going to give you a little bit of shadow. any slight change in facial direction changes where the shadow is.
So I'm going to relieve all the shadow there. I'm going to have no shadow there and that's really the best, what we recommend as the best way, and you're right in front where I was. You have a little bit of shadow
right along here and that's it you are going to get because your lighting is only here and we have darkened the room. A fair amount of if I lower this light. We dim this light like that's on the dimmest setting. That may come out a little bit flatter. Did the camera auto adjust?
The camera auto adjusted it, so that's why you can still see you're getting fall off. From there I'm going to take it all the way back up. But when your subject turns you can see so you're free in a dark room and you have one light. You want to balance the amount of light coming from your Key Light and the ambient light because you don't want it to fall off to deep dark shadow.
You want it to be somewhat of a balance. You still want this direction giving you enough light so you can see the work but you don't want to overpower everything. It's because you want to be able to look at it and see what's going on all around. It's the big picture that really matters.
You're going to be able to see close up for the detail work, but then get the overall big picture as well. And if you're a lefty, bring the light over to the left and then have it work over your left shoulder, and now I'm getting just a little bit of shadow on this side. And your subject can always turn a little bit as well if that helps you.
Faces are three-dimensional. Everybody asks about a ring light. Ring lights produce a flat light, but only for a photograph. Because you're looking through that light, it's a big light source. So then the photographers are like, “She looks flat. How do we fix this?” That's how contouring was born. They went to the makeup artist and said, “How do we fix this? There's no cheek structure. There's no chin structure, anything. How do we get the the nose structure back in there?” So the makeup artist went and painted all that back in. That's how they make a totally flat face have dimension.
Yes, question! How high do you recommend setting the light? That depends on the environment that you're in. If you are in a dimmer room you don't have to have it up all the way. I could dim this down a little bit and I can still have a fair amount of light right here, and I'm not blacking out. Your eye is going to kind of compensate with the bright light source and the ambience in the room
That's it I'm wondering if Bridal Makeup by Julia, if she means like the height. Now height wise I always recommend over your shoulder. So that way you're as close to being in front as possible.
So if I stand in front, of course there's a shadow but just slightly to the side as long as that's over my shoulder, then you're good. How tall should the stand be? She clarified.
Enough to make the light be over your shoulder. That's the simplified answer. So, there, so you can see this light. There's my shoulder. So it's literally just coming over my shoulder to light my subject in a straight line, just like that.
So now, “How do I use two light kits?” So we're going to put this way over to about a 45 degree angle. Then I'm going to turn this second one on and make sure they're about the right position, equal position on either side any of the subject. Now I can stand directly in front of my subject and you can see this now that we are really far apart. I mean, these are, you know, a good four feet apart here, the Key Lights.
Now, because we're able to stretch that light around and wrap that light around, I’m getting more light to the side of the face and I can work in the middle and no matter which way they turn their physical head I can still work I still have bright light all the way around. And so can I work with just one light, absolutely.
It's like somebody told me once, it's like asking a makeup artist how many makeup palettes do they need?
Can I work with just one makeup palette? Technically, yes, you could mix your own colors, you can make one palette work. But the more makeup palettes you have, the easier it's going to be. So we always recommend start with one and if you can work great with one how much easier is it going to be once you have two or more. Then you could get a third one for a hair the hairdresser to do the back of the hair that type of thing as well and and be creative with your lighting that way as well.
But this would be the setup for using two lights. We have two Key Lights set up here. Make sure they're on the same power setting. So the lighting is the same on your subject and then see your subject can turn
So if you try that same light setup and you're only going to have one light on, see how much darker this side is? That's why when you have just one light you want to bring that around front. So you want to front light
two lights you can spread them out four or five feet apart if you need to and stand in the middle and you can keep them far enough apart and back. Ours are bright enough to do that you don't have to have the lights right up in their face. You can be several several feet away and have those to work with
Another question we get a lot of is what's in between this and an Eyelight. So I believe I have an Eyelight sitting here. I'm gonna take this Key Light back bring in an Eyelight and the same thing applies to the Eyelight is that the dimmer I want it high enough. Here's my shoulder. So it is over my shoulder.
Actually, bring it up just a tad more so now I am working straight in on this guy linear. And this is 5 by 18 inches so when you're looking especially from your angle over here you're seeing you're getting more wrap around this side because the light is on this side of the face.
That's the advantage of an Eyelight is why people love to use an Eyelight for themselves is if I'm standing right here and as you can see on my face if I was just doing if I had this in my bathroom on my mirror and I'm doing my makeup how much wider that's light source is and it's going to wrap around my face a lot more.
So the same thing on your client because it's a wider light source it's going to illuminate wider across the face. It's going to spread and wrap around that face and you guess you can use two Eyelights if you really would like to. We just wanted to show you one to show you kind of what the difference is. And, yes, you can mix and match.
So here I'm gonna take this guy a little bit further away. And now you're using an Eyelight and a Key Light on the subject. When you get up close like that it's just nice beautiful full illumination and I can still work I can work in the middle here all day and I'm really not getting that much of a shadow on either side. And, again, if I believe I am I can always turn them one way or the other to work on their face.
But, again, this has been a little tutorial on, “How do I use my lighting if I have just one light” “If I just one Key Light” “If I have just one Eyelight” “What if I have two Key Lights”?
And we are just using Light Stand kits today. Of course there's always the other mounting options. We have suction mounts and clamp mounts and magic mounts. All of those other types of mounts are available they're all interchangeable and because we want you to be creative with your lighting. You’re creative people with your craft. Be creative with your lighting.
Get things up off the floor and just have fun with your lighting as well. Nobody should be restricted to, “Oh, it's a light on a stand always.” I know lots of people they don't even carry stands.
Yes, question! Which is better to travel with a Key Light or Eyelight?
Oh, that is, I would say whichever one you enjoy using more. They really are the same. They both come in felt pouches. The power are in felt pouches. Depending on what you're comfortable with. Are you traveling for yourself?
Most people just love traveling with the Eyelight for themselves when they're going to a hotel or something. And you use the magic mount on the mirror in the bathroom. And then the other part of the magic mount on the back of the light itself. Put that in the bathroom and it's easy. Put it in the felt pouch, throw it in the suitcase.
So, depending if you're using it personally / professionally, just different setups. But you know all in all, they're both easy, easy to travel with. It's just what kind of setup are you looking for. When you travel do you want all the options or you're just like, “Ah, it's me I don't just need to use a magic mount. That's it!”
Then, you know, Eyelights are great as well. Just use them, whatever suits your fancy best. Whatever you see better with. That's always our suggestion. We're always looking to hear from you, your comments, any questions you may have. We’re always reachable by instagram, facebook, call us, email us. We are here. We have we have a crew at the shop and our mission is to make your life easier as a makeup artist.
We want to give you guys confidence as a as an artist. You guys put out a lot of effort into your work and we want you to be confident in yourself, but we also want your client to have confidence in you as well. And you will do that. You'll represent yourself very well by having professional lighting on set with you, when you ,go on location when you're in your studio.
We do custom lighting, so if you walk in and they walk into your shop and you've got this amazing custom lighting from TML in your shop it's pretty amazing. And people are gonna love it and they're gonna say, “This is different. There's something different about this location”. And it's all about the lighting, how it makes your clients feel about themselves and how they feel about you as well.
That's what today's lesson has been about is lighting setups, Starter Stand Kits, Eyelight, Key Lights, single Key Lights, two Key Lights one Eyelight. So thank you for joining us this week. I hope I answered all the questions. We'll try to do more in depth later if there's a better, more interesting lighting setup you want us to look at and address how to use the other mounts with lights on them. Let us know that, as well, but we always look forward to hearing from you, talking with you, drop by the shop.
Have a great Wednesday and we will see you next week. Bye guys.
]]>Why did we create the TML Meira 12x12—our lighted mirror makeup vanity—to work in two different orientations? Michael Astalos, creator of The Makeup Light, will demonstrate how the simple rotation of the TML Meira Orientation from vertical to horizontal changes the way the light projects.
Hi Michael with the Makeup Light and on today's tips and tricks video we're going to be talking about the orientation of your Meira.
Most people will just set up their Meira in the standard vanity configuration in the vertical setting. But a lot of people don't realize you can make it horizontal, and it changes everything.
Give it a try and tell us what you think in the comments.
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Hi, Michael with The Makeup Light. And in this video, we're going to cover how to set up the stand for your new Meira.
And you will find that you get it out of the box, that it is pretty tight on the adjustments, and it needs to be that way because it's got a handle the weight of the Meira, and you don't want it falling backwards or forwards or drooping.
So it's best you can adjust it, just use two hands, once you get that open a little bit and to place it on your surface, use this hand as support, and then you can freely adjust the angles.
What you want to keep in mind is center of gravity. And that is going to be in the center of the base. So you can make this tall or short and just adjust this back plate angle to accommodate the center of gravity.
So if I want this up taller, I can bring the arms up taller, but now it's angled way too far back. So I can simply adjust that angle and make it pretty straight up about like this. And then the Meira will simply drop right on it.
]]>Michael Astalos, creator of The Makeup Light, shows one of TML's most popular accessory "hacks." Creating a "flush mount" with the Magic Mount for your LED Panel. All it takes is a Magic Mount, a Quick Release, and some Super Glue!
Hey, everybody! This is Michael with The Makeup Light, and everybody on this thread has been asking Vivian, “How do you get your Eyelight mounted so close to the mirror? You're obviously not using the ball head.”
Well, this is how she does it. She uses a magic mount and just the Quick Release. Now i'm attaching just the male part of the Quick Release to the Magic Mount, and you’ll see on here that there is a center threaded hole and that threaded hole matches up with the Magic Mount post.
So what I will do is I will actually add a little strip of gel super glue right on the post. Then I will take this and the reason I’ll do that, I’ll show you in a second, is this will mount right on there. It screws right on but if you just left it normally see it doesn't really match up straight up and down and you need this to point like an arrow. Point straight up and down like that. But since I have glue on there that will harden into place.
So once I position that into place I lay it down and then I take another little drop of glue right in the center, that little center hole right there. Put that little drop in there let that harden for a couple hours and now it's good to go. It'll last forever and it will not move. Now when you place this on the mirror it's straight up and down every time. And that's the glue that I use. Thanks for watching.
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Hi! This is Michael with The Makeup Light, and today we're going to talk about a few tips using our light stand. It's a compact light stand. It's got a good weight to it, and it's very versatile.
A lot of light stands you'll put together and then they have one way that they function. They function in that standard tripod fashion where you have a large open gapping area where somebody can stick their foot through a trip over and knock that right over.
And what we've done is we've picked a light stand that you can actually lay down flat. Tighten it up and it's nearly impossible to knock this guy over. And then you still have 4 complete sections to rise this up so you still get about 6 feet out of this thing even in its flattest position.
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Hey, everyone! Michael with The Makeup light and just wanted to pass along another tips and tricks, and this one is going to be about our power supply. And when you purchase a power supply it's going to come with a little velcro tab on it, like this one, and the reason we do that is we want you to use your hand to wrap the cord around before you put it away.
And the reason you do that is because if you just wrap it around the power supply itself you can put too much tension and pressure onto the cord at the base of the power supply and possibly cause a short.
So, this allows you to make the donut and then just bring this up and feed the velcro tab through it. It'll just stick to itself, and that way there's no pressure. You want to avoid pressure on this point, and then that allows you to then just simply tuck it in.
And you don't have to be perfect about it at first it'll just actually snug right in. Pull it closed and there you have it
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Transcript:
Hi Everyone, Michael with The Makeup Light and today we're doing a quick video on our new Suction Mount. It comes in three parts, probably assembled when you get it, but just in case, It comes with a ball head. This is the arm and this is the base.
So, take the center piece here. You're going to see a spring inside. You're going to hold this at the bottom. You don't have to tighten it, just hold it.
You're going to loosen this up, and you only need to loosen it enough to drop in the ball head. Snug it down just a little bit. Flip it over, again hold it at the base. You're going to be loosening this top area here just enough to put that ball head in. Snug it down, and there you go.
Hi! Michael here with The Makeup Light and today we're going to do a quick setup on the Key Light 2.0 Suction [mount] Starter Kit, and that kit simply consists of Key Light 2.0, a Suction Mount, Power Supply and a Quick Release.
The first thing we're going to do is, you have your Suction Mount. We're going to pre-set. You're just going to kind of roughly hold into place and figure out where you need to adjust your arm. You're pre adjusting that, you're not putting pressure on it while it's already attached.
So, I believe I'm going to be about right there. Tighten this arm back down. The ball head is actually fully adjustable as well. So, I'll go into more details on that in a separate video.
Going to snug that down. Take off the protective coating. Make sure the piston is in the up position. Press. Then you're going to see the piston move. Your Quick Release arrow needs to be in the upright position. This half of the Quick Release is in the open position on the back of the Key Light.
You're going to simply drop that on. Click. You can hear it lock into place, and then, if needed, you can make another rough adjustment. Tighten the arm back down. Now you’re in the place.
The Power Supply is a universal power supply. It works around the world. We have four regional adapters included with each kit. No other adapters or converters are necessary. I already have one plugged in for convenience. So, I'll plug this in.
The Power Supply has a thermal dimmer built into it, so I'm just going to simply touch the thermal dimmer, get it to the desired location, and then drape this around the back to keep it out of the way. And there you have it.
See you soon.
]]>Hi everyone, Michael here with The Makeup Light. Today we’re talking about the quick setup of the Key Light 2.0 EZ Clamp Starter Kit and that simply consists of Key Light 2.0 EZ Clamp, power supply, and a Quick Release and the EZ Clamp is one of the simplest ways to attach your Key Light to things. You can attach to a counter top like this if you wanted to do that. Very simple. Today we're just going to attach it to this mirror, just a simple attachment very stable, very secure.
Quick Release is already attached to this side of it and make sure the arrow is pointing up on your Quick Release back of the Key Light already has the other half of the Quick Release. Make sure it’s in the open position. Going to set that on the other half, click it, and you can hear it lock into place.
Large adjustments; always use the arm to make large adjustments. You can make small adjustments. Don't ever tighten that ball joint down all the way. You can break that. But just make slight adjustments to hold it in place.
The power supply, universal voltage works around the world. We actually include four regions in plug adapters, so it works anywhere in the world. I already have one plugged in for convenience, so I'm just going to plug this in, and on the power supply is a thermal dimmer so you can adjust the brightness. And then once you have it to your desired brightness, I usually drape the power cord over the back of the clamp, just to kind of get it out of the way.
We'll see you soon
Michael Astalos, creator of The Makeup Light, is here to make it easier for you to set up your LED lighting kit from The Makeup Light! In just a few easy steps, you'll be ready to work with professional lighting!
Transcript:
Hi, Michael here with The Makeup Light and today we're going to talk about the quick setup of a Key Light 2.0 Stand Starter Kit. And that kit consists of a light stand a Key Light 2.0 panel, power supply, gooseneck, and a quick release.
Your first step is going to be on your light stand release the legs. And a unique thing about our light stand is you can actually use this flat on a counter top or you could put it flat on the ground. You can slide it under a cabinet. Most people will use it in this position. Just spread them a little bit wider—the wider, the sturdier the light stand.
Then as you are setting this down, you can start raising your different segments and then snug each segment down. Can raise this next one on the top segment.
I'm actually going to leave that a little loose because the secret is to setting this up quickly—don't try to spin the gooseneck on to the light stand. Leave your top segment loose and then spin the segment on to the gooseneck. Once you have that snuggly on you're going to see on the actual Quick Release there's a tip like an arrow. Point that up, and once you've located the direction you want to point the panel lock that segment down.
Take your panel. Make sure this half of the quick release is in the open position. Slide it on. Click—you can hear it lock into place. Now you can move this any direction you please.
The Power Supply is next. We have a universal Power supply—works around the world. We have a US plug adapter on this since we're in the US, but it comes with three other regions. Universal voltage, don't even need an adapter. I already have one plugged in, just for convenience sake.
So, we just plug this in and it actually comes with a thermal dimmer so you can just tap dim it to the setting you want. And then I usually just kind of wrap this around the different knobs on there, just to lock it into place.
Hope this helps! We'll see you soon.
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Transcript: Hi, Michael here with The Makeup Light and today we're just doing a quick tip about our magic mount set. this one has already been used so it has our restick for reuse sheet on it.
So, w're going to peel that off and take it, place it onto your surface. Press it in the center first, then you're just going to smooth out any air bubbles. Go around the whole edge of the product. That's what give sit its sheer strength.
Today we're using the Eyelight. And any of our light panels would work on the Magic Mount Set. Place it on, throw the lock, and you're good to go.
And then when you're finished with the project, you just do the reverse. Take off, through the quick release, take off the Eyelight. And then simply peel off from the corner like this. Restick for reuse pad. Put it right on there. And off you go to your next project.
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Transcript: Hi, Michael here with The Makeup Light. We often get asked, "Is a one light set up good enough for doing makeup? Can you really get away with one light?" Absolutely.
Megan here is using a single light set up. She has a Key Light on a Gooseneck on a Stand. Positioned over her shoulder. She does not have to block the light to see my face. It's brightly illuminated, evenly illuminated, and gives her all the detail to be able to see.
So, yes, a single light set up is perfectly suited for doing makeup.
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Transcript: A lot of people ask us, well, are The Makeup Lights good for photography? Are they good for video? Absolutely they are.
The quality of light is amazing for that. We have 95+ CRI, so it's daylight-balanced, 5000 degree Kelvin. They're dimmable. Photographers love these lights. Videographers love these lights. A lot of Influencers are using our lights now as well.
So, absolutely, if you're looking for a great light to do photography, to do video, and do makeup, pick up The Makeup Light.
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Transcript: Hi, Michael here with The Makeup Light and today we're going to do a quick assembly on the Articulating Arm. It comes in a few pieces. We just want to kind of clear it up as to exactly the best way to assemble this for your use.
So, first thing you're going to do it to attach the C-clamp to a solid surface. It can be vertical. it can be horizontal. We have this clamped to this countertop, so it's very sturdy on here.
Next, we're going to take the Articulating Arm. This is the piece that actually flexes out. There's a simple post down here that goes into the slot like this. We're going to tighten it down a bit like that. You still have movement with it.
Then we're going to take the panel mount and it attaches. You'll see some slots. It'll have some little hooks there You put those in, press up from the bottom, and it'll click into place. And this is the feature that actually holds your light panel.
Then you're going to take your light panel, loosen this level here, raise this up, drop your light panel in. You center it up into the bracket. Close it down, then you're going to tighten it. You're going to tighten these little grippers here on each side and that holds your light panel.
Now, your light panel has complete use and flexibility, and you can turn it and angle it any way you like. And get full extension out of it as well.
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Transcript: Hi, Michael here with the makeup light, and today we're going to do a quick lesson on how to attach a quick release to any of our TML light panels. First, orient the light panel so you can read "TML" in front of you.
Position this portion of the quick release so the red lever is pointed towards you. Attach the conical shaped bolt to the short end of the allen wrench so it looks like this. Insert it into place. Start to tighten it down. Then, hold it in position so the red lever is toward you. Then, firm it up. And your quick release should look just like this.
So, now that you've placed half of the quick release set on the back of your panel, the other side of the quick release goes on whatever attachment you're going to be putting it on. In this case, this is on our gooseneck. It just slides on. You flick the lock, and there it is.
But this piece is the interchangeable piece. Once this piece is on, you can simply unscrew it and attach it to the Suction Mount, you can attach it to the Magic Mount. You can even attach it to the EZ Clamp. So going forward, any light panel can fit on any attachment that you have
And just in case you missed anything, included with your kit is an instruction sheet. And if you misplace this, we'll also have this video and the instruction sheet online on our website, http://themakeuplight.com
]]>Transcript: Hi, this is Michael with The Makeup Light. and today we're going to talk about our power supply and what makes it unique. All of our power supplies are universal voltage. That means they work from 100 volt to 240 volt.
If you purchased your kit here in the United States, it will come with the US plug set. But since makeup artists travel around the world, we also include with your set, the European plug set, the United Kingdom, and the Australian plug set.
So, let's say your next job takes you from New York to London, you would simply unplug the United States plug set, grab the United Kingdom plug set, snap it into place, and you're good for working.
Here's another quick tip about our power supply Each power supply comes with a velcro strap holding your cord together. When you're finished with your project, it's recommended that the velcro strap go back around your cord set, and that will help the longevity and safety of your power supply.
]]>Transcript: Hi, Michael here with The Makeup Light. Today I wanted to introduce you to our latest product which is called the Sticky Suction Mount. This is going to replace the old one. And really the only difference is you peel off your protective coating when you first get it. You're going to find it is a sticky surface on this suction. And what that does is it just helps you adhere stronger to your smooth surface.
So, we have a glass door here. We're going to apply it to the glass door, and even though, yes, it's going to sit up there by itself, you never use it that way. Press. Lock into place. Half of the Quick Release is already attached. The other hals if on my light panel. Attach it. Lock it into place, and you're good to go. And yes this will work on both the Key Light and the Eyelight.
Then to remove it, after your project, just do it in reverse. We're going to flip the switch. We're going to take off the Key Light. Place it down. Release the pressure. It's still stuck on there. It's going to take a little effort to peel this off because it's sticky and it will remain sticky. Use our included re-stick for use pad. Place it on. Back in the kit it goes ready for next time.
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Transcript: Hi. Wanted to talk a little bit about our Articulating Arm. Originally used by nail technicians, a lot of other artists soon realized that they could use it too.
Because of the versatility, how you can show it, and arrange it, and manipulate the light, many other artists—tattoo artists, sculptors, wig makers, cosmetologists—all started using this Articulating Arm because they needed to get the light out and manipulate it into position for their clientele and what best suited them.
So, yet again it's the most versatile lighting system out there, and we have a product that can suit any need.
]]>Transcript: So now you're asking yourself, then what is the differences between a Key Light and an Eyelight.
Well, the Key Light was originally developed for its portability and ease of transportation. You can tuck it in a bag, use multiple different mounting options, take it on location anywhere you want to go.
Well, we came out with the Eyelight originally for estheticians to work in spas, salon situations. It wraps around the face better because it's a longer, wider light source.
Well, soon makeup artists decided they wanted to take it on location as well. It comes in a felt pouch. It's easy to put it in your own bag, one of ours, and take it on location. And it works on all of our mounting options. You have a Sticky Suction Mount. You have a Magic Mount. you have an EZ clamp. A light stand. it will work on all of these.
So, no matter which light you choose you'll have an amazing light source and be able to use it in any situation.
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Transcript: Hi, Michael here with The Makeup Light and today I want to talk about the similarities between the Key Light and our newest edition, the Eyelight.
Well, they both use the same light engine ,and that means you get the same quality of light out of either that you choose. 5000 degrees. Daylight-balanced. 95+ CRI. Dimmable. And they both work on all of our mounting options.
So whether you're using a Sticky Suction Mount, an EZ Clamp, a Magic Mount—whichever light you choose you'll get the same quality of light no matter where you choose to use it.
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