Ceiling Track Lighting System

[Newpics]

Just wondering has anyone out there has ever installed the Studiodecor (UK) Mini Kit 400 Celing Track lighting system in their Studio,as I am thinking of having one fitted. Your comments would be appreciated.

[iwatkins]

I looked into this and many other track systems when I was setting up my studio.

Cost aside, they are difficult to fit if the ceiling you are going to attach to is weak in any part. I.e. a suspended ceiling is no good nor it seems is plasterboard on joists, purely because of the combined weight once all your lights and pantographs are up.

What you need is a solid fixing for all the fixing points of the rails. This means they need to be attached to beams or joists directly. In most cases this requires access above the ceiling.

Other than that, once you have a system installed and you have power to the whole thing they work really well. I haven't used the Studio Decor system, but have used the Bowens system in another studio and it is great at keeping the floor clear, nothing to trip over at all and you can place the lights almost exactly where you want. But look carefully at the maximum and minimum heights for lights above the floor you can acheive with the pantographs you go for. On the Bowens system I used I couldn't get one light low enough for my liking.

I'll be going for a system like this once I have the money to invest in providing a solid mount above my current suspended ceiling, but this is going to wait for now. In the meantime i'm just going to invest in sturdy, heavy wheeled lightstands rather than the tripods that are just too unstable for my liking.

Cheers

Ian

[Newpics]

Hi Ian,
When I built my home studio (at the back of house) I fitted extra beams to support a ceiling system (i just hope their strong enough I also fitted 4 double power points on the ceiling with access) The price of the Studio Decor System (Two Lights) is £599 +vat compared to the Bowens Hi Glide(3 Lights) at £1037+VAT . What height (app) was your ceiling ?. Your right re the freestanding tripods on the floor, every time I have someone in my mind is on my Public Liability Policy rather than focusing on the job.

[iwatkins]

My ceilings are 12 feet high, well, up to the suspended ceiling anyway. The actual roof (which is solid) is another 4 foot above that. Plenty of room to put in supporting beams but just couldn't stand the cost when I was setting up.

The price differentials in track systems are quite large, I saw that myself, but they all do the same job. As usual it will come down to the details. The Foba and TredEng systems are also two more i looked at but they were more expensive than the Bowens gear.

Good luck with it. :)

Cheers

Ian