Sunpak 19 Ring Light Review
The best ring lights for YouTube, Zoom, videos and more
Included in this guide:
Whether you're a vlogger who needs to up their game, want to look better on video conferences, or need a light to improve your stills and videos for your online shop, a ring light is one of the best options you have when it comes to low-cost, high quality lighting.
Once upon a time, ring lights were only really used by professional photographers and videographers. One reason was they used to be massive, expensive fluorescent things that did an amazing job of creating beautiful lighting effects, but were far out of the average buyers budget. Thanks to advances in technology and the widespread use of LED lighting, we can all now access that incredibly soft, flattering light for a fraction of the price. The diffused shadows that these lights produce enhances the look of portraits and conceals, rather than highlights, skin blemishes.
All of today's best ring lights are powered by LEDs and the best are powered by hundreds of LEDs that work in combination to consume minimal power but output incredible luminance. They come in all sizes and won't cost you the earth with most giving plenty of control over colour and brightness. More sophisticated models even have RGB colour options and creative lighting effects to mimic natural lighting such as lightning or campfires.
We've picked out a range of the best ring lights for most use cases. Whatever your needs, you should be able to find the right ring light for you and quickly upgrade the look of your videos, photos and even Zoom calls. And if you're looking to upgrade more of your hardware, don't miss our pick of the best cameras for vlogging, the best camera for YouTube or best webcams. Or to bag a bargain be sure to follow our Black Friday Hub for all the best Black Friday and Cyber Monday 2021 deals.
The best ring lights available now
01. Fositan 18-inch LED Ring Light Kit
The best ring light for YouTube
Specifications
Colour temperature: 3200-5500k
Weight: 3.92kg
Power source: Mains
Dimensions: 52 x 11 x 52cm
Reasons to buy
+Super bright +Phone holder +1/4" hot shoe adapter
Reasons to avoid
-Mains power only -Light gels only to change color
An absolute bargain and easy to operate there's not a lot to go wrong with the Fositan 18" ring light. All 240 SMD LEDs are dimmable and produces an excellently balanced 5500K colour temperature. Use the attachable light gels to drop that down to 3200K to match Tungsten lights or produce a warmer tone. A general purpose 1/4" hot shoe mount and phone holder come with the kit, and it even includes a Bluetooth self-timer for smartphones.
A tall, 2m light stand holds the light sturdily with the light itself able to tilt forward and back by up to 90 degrees for improved flexibility when it comes to composition.
02. Neewer Table Top 10-inch USB LED Ring Light
The best ring light for Zoom calls
Specifications
Colour temperature: 3200K-5600K
Weight: 467g
Power source: USB
Dimensions: 29 x 27 x 5cm
Reasons to buy
+Built for desktop use +Lots of settings +Built-in phone holder
Reasons to avoid
-Not as versatile as other ring lights
You don't want to be messing about with tripods if all you need is one of the best ring lights for Zoom calls. This 10-inch ring light from Neewer makes things nice and easy with its handy desktop stand. Powered by USB it's simple to keep the lights on when live streaming or recording a video on your computer without needing a power point - that means it's as portable as you are. There's an in-built phone holder with flexible neck for hands-free filming in any orientation.
With 120 LEDs it'll light you up well even in the darkest home office, and there are three light modes as well as 10 brightness levels, so with a bit of experimentation you'll quickly find a lighting setup that shows you at your best.
03. Neewer 20-inch LED Ring Light Kit
The best big ring light for pro illumination anywhere
Specifications
Colour temperature: 3200k to 5600k
Weight: 5.4kg
Power source: Mains/battery
Dimensions: 69.5 x 10.5 x 74cm
Reasons to buy
+Massive 20-inch light +Mains and battery power +Impressive stand
Reasons to avoid
-Plastic stand mount
For pro-grade lighting wherever you are, this absolute beast of a ring light from Neewer should fit the bill nicely. It's a whopping 20-inch model powered by 352 LEDs, with a wide colour temperature range that you can control with a good old-fashioned knob, and while it'll take mains power at home or in your studio, if you want to take it on location it'll also run off Li-ion batteries.
The Neewer 20" is a little bigger than most on this list and so requires a sturdy base, luckily the heavy-duty stand is adjustable from a minimum height of 90cm up to a maximum of two metres. Extras come in the form of a phone holder for faff-free records and a hot shoe for mounting other digital cameras or accessories.
04. Mactrem LED Ring Light 6"
The best ring light for iPhone
Specifications
Colour temperature: Not specified
Weight: 440g
Power source: USB
Dimensions: 29x 19 x 4.2cm
Reasons to buy
+Compact and lightweight +Adjustable settings +Lots of extras
Reasons to avoid
-Not as powerful as other models -Separate phone holder
Compact, lightweight, and easy to use this ring light from Mactrem is suitable for anyone shooting from an iPhone or other smart device that wants a little extra panache. The light itself has three colour temperature settings, 11 brightness levels, and it's perfect as a fill light for whatever indoor or natural light you're working with.
As an added bonus you also get all the extras to make this light really work for you. There's no option for mounting your phone directly to the light, but it does come with a mini tripod for your phone, plus its own mini light stand tripod. Aside from that, the only extra you'll need to supply is a USB power bank to get the light going.
05. Neewer 12-inch RGB Ring Light
The best ring light for added colour
Specifications
Colour temperature: Not specified
Weight: 1.5kg
Power source: USB
Dimensions: 38 x 28.3 x 9.5cm
Reasons to buy
+16 colours +Four lighting modes +Tripod, remotes and phone holders included
Reasons to avoid
-Lacks full RGB control
All of the best ring lights give you plenty of control over colour temperature and brightness, but if you want to bring a little extra atmosphere to your lighting then this RGB model from Neewer is a great choice. Choose from 16 RGB colours to work with, all of which are fully dimmable. Extra light control comes in the form of four lighting modes, including: strobe, flash, smooth, and fade providing lots of creative options to experiment with.
The light comes with two remote controls – one for the ring light itself, plus a Bluetooth remote for your phone. The tripod, which extends up to 54 inches, has two phone holders: one inside the ring light and another on the tripod leg.
06. Neewer Camera Photo Video Lighting Kit
The best ring light for your home studio
Specifications
Colour temperature: 5500K
Weight: 5.2kg
Power source: Mains
Dimensions: 61.4 x 51.3 x 11.2cm
Reasons to buy
+Big ring light +Fine lighting controls +Good for DSLRs
Reasons to avoid
-Mains only
Ideal as a home studio ring light, this 18-inch model from Neewer is studded with with 240 LEDs, and outputs a colour temperature of 5500K. Balance the light perfectly with other light sources by using the in-built dimming which ranges from 1 to 100%.
Instead of colour temperature controls, this ring light instead comes with white and orange colour filters that attaches to the light and, alongside the dimming controls, users can craft the exact colour temperature they need. It has a lightweight but strong tripod, and as well as a phone holder it also comes with a hot shoe so that you can work with a DSLR instead of your phone.
07. Ivisii 19 inch Ring Light
The best ring light for creative control
Specifications
Colour temperature: 3000K-5800K
Weight: 5.12kg
Power source: Mains
Dimensions: 58 x 51 x 11cm
Reasons to buy
+Powerful lighting +Versatile colour options +iPad holder included
Reasons to avoid
-Mains only
Climbing up the price tree, this monster ring light from Ivisii is perfect for filming direct to iPad thanks to its wide 19" diameter and large tablet holder. Of course, it can also accommodate a smartphone or other digital camera due to the myriad adapter options that come with the kit.
The light gives you full control over both colour temperature and brightness. It fires out incredibly bright white light when whacked up to full power and for more creative control it comes with a set of white, green, red and blue filters that you can mix and match in order to set up amazing-looking multicolour lighting effects.
08. Rotolight Neo 2
The best ring light for video and stills
Specifications
Colour temperature: 3150k to 6300K,
Weight: 354g
Power source: AA batteries or DC
Dimensions: 14.5 x 5 cm
Reasons to buy
+Flicker-free +HSS flash +Custom lighting FX
Reasons to avoid
-No lithium-ion battery
A tiny form but a lot of power, the Rotolight Neo 2 isn't strictly a true ring light, but it does output light in a ring shape and gives very similar results. The benefit of the Neo 2 is that it can output dimmable, colour temperature varying light continuously for movies or adapt to HSS flash for stills to freeze subjects up to 1/8000 sec.
It's unique in this line-up in that the Neo 2 also uses CineSFX custom lighting to replicate real-world lighting situations such as: lightning, fire, TV, Gunshot and more lighting effects. Truly portable it's powered by 6 x AA batteries it can continuously light at maximum power for up to 1.5 hours or 85,000 flashes providing plenty of power for a shoot.
What size ring light should I get?
Ring lights come in a wide variety of sizes but which one is best for me?
Generally, the bigger the light source the more flattering the image. That's because bigger light sources produce softer shadows which fall more gracefully across the face. However, it's important to bear in mind the size of your recording space. If a small, desktop-mounted ring light is all you can fit in, then move the light closer to you.
Do I need a ring light with changing colour temperature?
Ring lights offer different colour temperatures either through the use of dimming specific LEDs or snap-on filters, but do I need this?
Most users can get by with just white LED ring lights, as this is the easiest way to get accurate, true-to-life colours. However, for those utilising available lighting such as tungsten light bulbs, or others who want to fine-tune the lighting based on skin tone, a ring light with colour temperature control might be important.
Are battery-powered ring lights worth it?
Do I need a ring light that is both mains and battery-powered or will I be able to work with just one or the other?
Having the option to both plug-in to the mains or draw power from a battery on a ring light is the most flexible option as it allows both studio and location lighting. But ring lights with both are often pricier than models that stick to just one or the other. If you're filming for long periods inside, stick with a mains-powered ring light. But if you're going to be outside and can film in shorter bursts then opt for a battery-powered light.
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Jim McCauley is a writer, cat-wrangler and occasional street performer who's written for a multitude of publications over the past quarter of a century, including Creative Bloq, T3, PC Gamer and a whole load of long-dead print magazines.
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Sunpak 19 Ring Light Review
Source: https://www.creativebloq.com/buying-guides/best-ring-lights
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