French manufacturer DMG Lumière has announced that its SL1 Switch, an LED fixture designed specifically for cinematography, is now available in the UK via cinema equipment specialists Octica and CVP.
The rectangular SL1 is notable for its size/weight/power ratio and innovative design. At just 2cm thick – around one-seventh the thickness of a standard fluorescent fixture and a third of the weight – the SL1 produces 15% more light. The DMX-controllable power box ranges from 3000 to 5600 degrees Kelvin and renders a clean quality of light. CRI values are 96% for the SL1-5600, and 94% for the SL1-3200. Without diffusion, the SL1-Switch offers 3000 lux at 1 metre.
DMG Lumiere is a family company comprising of brothers Mathieu, a cinematographer, Nils and Jean de Montgrand, plus European gaffer Nicolas Goerg. The SL1 range was conceived from a wish-list of features and capabilities they wanted from a new LED fixture.
“The original idea was to take full advantage of the potential of LEDs for feature productions, instead of re-lamping or using fixtures designed for architectural lighting or some other field,” says Nils de Montgrand. “The result was the SL1, which has been very successful in continental Europe and North America since the introduction of the prototype in 2012. We’re very excited to partner with Octica and CVP and offer it to the UK market.”
Thierry Arbogast AFC used the SL1 on a feature directed by Luc Besson. “I really like the beam of the SL1, with the softness it has,” he says. “I used it on car rigs in broad daylight, and it turned out to be very useful for its weight and low power consumption.”
DMG Lumiere is due to launch the SL Mini, which is half the size of the SL1, and eventually, a larger version the SL Maxi. All will maintain the same size/weight/power ratio of the SL1.
