Westcott Spiderlite TD5 Review

[KerryG]

In my search for awesome lighting I discovered the Westcott Spiderlite TD5. This is probably the most versatile lighting system available. For constant lighting it uses a 5 pack of flouresenct bulbs or you can swap that out for a set of plug in-strobes if you want the higher output of flash.

These are certainly studio quality lights and do not have a budget-friendly pricetag, but if you are looking for great lights, do yourself a favor and check this out.

Spiderlite review at L7Foto.com

[stefano7]

TIP: I added higher wattage florescent bulbs to my TD5. While the spacing of the 5 sockets generally limits the use of larger/higher wattage bulbs, one can opt to not use the center socket and use larger bulbs only in the perimeter sockets. I picked 42W (200W incandescent equivalent) BlueMax daylight spirals. These have a 5900k color temp and CRI 94+ color rendering. Basically, the 4 bulbs in the TD5 pops the wattage to 800W, or about double the included bulbs.

[KerryG]

Where did you find the new bulbs?

[stefano7]

The ones I purchased are BlueMax 42W spirals #BLDS429459 from Full Spectrum Lighting and Light Therapy. I ordered a case (bit of discount) to replace all bulbs in my Spiderlite TD5's (2) and TD3 (1). I was able to use all three 200W equivalent replacements in the TD3 but had to leave the center socket open in the TD5. I may check to see if a smaller form factor bulb will fill the center socket in the TD5 just to add a few more watts. The three criteria used for selection were: light output, color temp, color rendition index, and non-flicker.

By the way, thanks Kerry for the video clip on assembly of the softbox. I think that will be helpful to anyone purchasing these lights since the enclosed assembly instructions leave a bit to the imagination. Perhaps Westcott should have an assembly video on their site.