Tungsten Par Cans
Tungsten Pars come in a variety of sizes from Par 16 to Par 64. The numbers denote the diameter of the globe. To find the diameter you divide the number by 8, so Par 64 would be 64/8 which is 8", while a Par 16 would be 2". You can find globes for it anywhere between 50w to 1200w with a variety of beam spreads, the common beam angles you'll find are:
Very Narrow Spot - VNSP
Firestarter - Par 64 1200w VNSP
Narrow Spot - NSP
Medium - MED
Wide - WFL
On April 11th, 2019, Osram announced they were discontinuing all large PAR lamps and recalling all lamps that had been previously manufactured since November 2016. Osram Notification
Uses
Par 16's are small lights that are great for accents, could be used to light a painting or anything else you want to highlight in the scene. They are also very inexpensive.
Par 64’s are very efficient tungsten lights. For example, a PAR 64 can be brighter than a 2000w light in some circumstances. They can be used used for bounces or a cheap push through a diffusion frame.
They're also good if you need to be able to see a lighting unit on screen as they are often used in stage lighting, so could be good for any sort of theatrical or rock n roll venue.
Could be rigged on condors with VNSP globes to highlight things in the background of your shot.
VNSP globes are also used as a hard hit of late afternoon sunlight outside of a window for a day interior scene.
QC Process
Accessories
- Gel frame for use of adjusting color with Rosco/Lee or similar gels
- 300w Hand Dimmer, 1k Inline Dimmer, or 2k dimmer for 1200w globes
- Dimmer Pack (Can be patched into a dimmer pack for remote control)
- TVMP to put a bail block onto the lamp.
- Pipe Clamp to hang the light
Troubleshooting
If you are having issues striking the lamp, start by checking there is a firm connection on the globe, as the sockets often times shake loose. Check bulb with multimeter to see if you should use the spare globe. The hubbles will sometimes get hot on these units or wires will get loose within them.
Substitutions
150w Arri Fresnels or Inbetweenie 200w Mole Fresnels can be used as a substitute for a Par 16.
Usually, the par 64 is used as the substitution for another light, but a 1k fresnel or open face light could be used as a substitute for Par 64.