Light Stands

saul01 · 11 Jun 2013

Hi,

Looking to buy some light stands, mainly for speedlite photography, and have come across 2 brands Konig off Amazon, and Cotswold from ebay.

Are light stands pretty much what you see is what you get? Trying to keep within a budget, or is it better to look at some of the more branded names so to speak and invest for the future.

saul.

musicalbloke · 11 Jun 2013

I have the Konig one's from Amazon and they are fine for Speedlight work, which is what I use them for.

joel222 · 11 Jun 2013

I bought similar stands to them as I to was on a budget, but wish I'd bought decent ones as I'm now looking at replacing them with some from lencarta. The old saying 'buy cheap, buy twice' is what comes to mind. Are you going to want to add softboxes etc to the speedlights, as that will test them more than the speedlight alone.

saul01 · 11 Jun 2013

joel222 said:
I bought similar stands to them as I to was on a budget, but wish I'd bought decent ones as I'm now looking at replacing them with some from lencarta. The old saying 'buy cheap, buy twice' is what comes to mind. Are you going to want to add softboxes etc to the speedlights, as that will test them more than the speedlight alone.

At some point yes, I have some cheapo ebay soft boxes that I will work with now, and will look at some "real" stock later.

Also been looking at the Lencarta and Lastolite stands and agree with your "'buy cheap, buy twice" saying.

Saul.

saul01 · 11 Jun 2013

Can Garry Edwards from Lencarta kindly offer any advise in to which is would suit better between the STA001 & STA002

Thanks in advance.

Saul.

itsdavedotnet · 11 Jun 2013

The cheap stands are fine for speedlights tbh, as long as they go tall enough for what you're doing ( they probably do).

Just need some weight on the bottom - that you'd need with any expense or quality of light stand.

saul01 · 11 Jun 2013

itsdavedotnet said:
The cheap stands are fine for speedlights tbh, as long as they go tall enough for what you're doing ( they probably do).

Just need some weight on the bottom - that you'd need with any expense or quality of light stand.

The problem is in a few months time I will also start looking at proper flash heads and then the cheap ones will have to go.

itsdavedotnet · 11 Jun 2013

yes, the konigs won't hold a studio head. But they will hold your speedlights fine, which you'll likely want to use at the same time

Phil V · 11 Jun 2013

Why is there no UKdistributor for Cheetah stands. Surely someone should get on the case.

Paule23 · 12 Jun 2013

I've just had a Konig delivered and it was damaged, bottom bracket is made out of some less than sturdy plastic and it has snapped. On its way back to express pro now, and I'm off to but some Lencarta stands!

Love the 'buy cheap, buy twice' quote, hope to doesn't apply to my Yongnuo flash which should be here any day now

Bayrunner · 12 Jun 2013

Phil V said:
Why is there no UKdistributor for Cheetah stands. Surely someone should get on the case.

From their website Cheetah have also recently discontinued international shipping. I did speak to them a while back about their auto stands, but the dealer terms weren't good enough to offset the shipping without ignorant idiots here slagging them off as a rip off.

I did source a similar product through Denny of which I have a small quantity - See EZ stand here http://www.studiodecor.co.uk/studio-accessories

ah5168 · 12 Jun 2013

I have a few of the Costwold photo stands from ebay they are very light and pack down small but unless you need the small size and low weight a more substantial stand may be more flexible.

Garry Edwards · 12 Jun 2013

saul01 said:
Can Garry Edwards from Lencarta kindly offer any advise in to which is would suit better between the STA001 & STA002

Thanks in advance.

Saul.

The STA001 is an excellent stand for speedlights if used bare or with light accessories - but it isn't designed to cope with large softboxes, beauty dishes etc, especially when extended.

The STA002 is a good general purpose stand, with a large footprint, spring damped, it will cope with pretty well everything. But it's fairly heavy.

Then there's the new STA012, just as capable as the STA002 but very light weight, air damped and with a brilliant locking system. That's the one that I personally would go for, I don't think that anything else comes close to it.

As for the Cheetah stand, I haven't seen it personally but if there's a demand for it, Lencarta can stock it - right now I'm supposed to be in China, assuming that I do eventually get there I can take a look at it. Right now though I don't really understand its benefits. If someone who has actually seen/used it can explain what's special about it...

saul01 · 12 Jun 2013

Garry Edwards said:
The STA001 is an excellent stand for speedlights if used bare or with light accessories - but it isn't designed to cope with large softboxes, beauty dishes etc, especially when extended.

The STA002 is a good general purpose stand, with a large footprint, spring damped, it will cope with pretty well everything. But it's fairly heavy.

Then there's the new STA012, just as capable as the STA002 but very light weight, air damped and with a brilliant locking system. That's the one that I personally would go for, I don't think that anything else comes close to it.

Hi Garry,

Thank you for the advise, as per the lencarta website the STA002 seem to be slightly lighter than the STA012. However you are stating that the STA012 are lighter.

Can you please reconfirm this for me.

Thanks

Saul.

Phil V · 12 Jun 2013

Garry Edwards said:
...

As for the Cheetah stand, I haven't seen it personally but if there's a demand for it, Lencarta can stock it - right now I'm supposed to be in China, assuming that I do eventually get there I can take a look at it. Right now though I don't really understand its benefits. If someone who has actually seen/used it can explain what's special about it...

I've used one owned by Nick (Wedding Photos) and I believe Simon Revill also uses them?

The beauty is that the legs fold up when you lift them, and automatically splay as the bottom of the stand hits the floor, making them great for carrying around busy places.

It means you don't need eyes in your arse to watch where the legs are going when carrying them about.

Cistron · 12 Jun 2013

Garry Edwards said:
As for the Cheetah stand, I haven't seen it personally but if there's a demand for it, Lencarta can stock it - right now I'm supposed to be in China, assuming that I do eventually get there I can take a look at it. Right now though I don't really understand its benefits. If someone who has actually seen/used it can explain what's special about it...

What about grip/C-stands? Offers are a little scarce in the UK.

Paule23 · 14 Jun 2013

I've been on the website and have the same query as Saul01, from what I can tell the STA012 is heavier than the STA002, and as the 002 is cheaper is this a better option?

joel222 · 14 Jun 2013

I recieved a sta002 from lencarta today and just wish I'd invested in these earlier instead of buying cheap alternatives. I have a smartflash and 120cm octabox attached and it's as steady as you like, very happy with it.

Garry Edwards · 14 Jun 2013

Paule23 said:
I've been on the website and have the same query as Saul01, from what I can tell the STA012 is heavier than the STA002, and as the 002 is cheaper is this a better option?

I've just weighed both of them.

The STA002 weighs in at 2.60kg
The STA012 weighs in at 1.89kg

Someone else is supposed to have corrected errors on the website, but hasn't. Sorry about that, I've now updated the website

saul01 · 14 Jun 2013

joel222 said:
I recieved a sta002 from lencarta today and just wish I'd invested in these earlier instead of buying cheap alternatives. I have a smartflash and 120cm octabox attached and it's as steady as you like, very happy with it.

Nice to see your happy with them. I've ended up ordering some interfit stands..let's hope they work out too.