ParaBeam’s features include proprietary optics that compress the focal range of the light wave to produce a broad soft source along the horizontal axis and a narrow beam on the vertical axis. The 24" x 24" ParaBeam 400, for example, can light a four-person news desk from approximately 15 feet away. It sweeps back the darkness in the foreground without washing out the background on the set. With a simple rotation of the fixture, it can focus like a hard light on just one of the four subjects.
The unique beam structure produces denser shadows than Kino Flo’s traditional line of production lighting systems, renowned for near shadowless illumination. A ParaBeam luminaire, depending on its orientation, can create or erase shadows on the set. Positioning can also change the characteristics: when close, the light flattens and wraps, from a distance it can create definition.
ParaBeam comes in two sizes: the ParaBeam 400 which operates four 55W compact True Match lamps, and the ParaBeam 200 which takes a pair of 55W lamps. The ParaBeam 400 puts out as much light as a 3k tungsten softlight, but uses under two amps of power, whilst the ParaBeam 200 is equivalent to a 1.5k tungsten softlight, and operates on less than one amp of power. Both models can be turned on or off, or dimmed, remotely from a DMX control board. On-board manual dimming is also available.
According to company founder and ParaBeam designer, Frieder Hochheim. "The ParaBeam is tailored to set lighting in a television broadcast studio, but the reality is, our equipment is used worldwide on major productions including Matrix II and III (Australia), Lord of the Rings (New Zealand), Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon (China), Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone (UK), and Spiderman (US), plus daily on hundreds of television production, commercial and music video sets. So we have to be proactive about making these fixtures more durable than typical TV broadcast fluorescents."
The ParaBeam also employs a new quick release Power Card ballast system. Customers can replace or upgrade the ParaBeam electronics without using any tools, on location or in the studio.
(Ruth Rossington)
