[ttosifa]

Hi Pat --

Having recently gone down this route myself, I think you are going to be disappointed in any kit you buy in this price range. Judging from what I've seen of your work, I think we have similar interests in subjects and locations, and I am basing my recommendation on that.

Anyway, I don't think you will be happy in the long run with a low-end continuous-light system. (I understand there might be some good continuous-light systems, just at a higher price point.) To make them cheap, there have to be sacrifices. The lights are unlikely to have good color qualities -- how do they behave colorwise if you raise or lower the power? Do the fluorescents dim at all? (I have to buy special bulbs for the dimmers in my house.)

And I don't think these are really "starter" kits. The equipment is cheap. I still use the stands from my Smith-Vector kit, but just to hold my speedlights. I would not trust them with anything much heavier. The umbrellas are a joke both in size and quality. If you move up, you'll probably have to start all over again.

And the strobe kit listed above -- did you see the 5-7 second recycle time? Yikes, that's forever!

I sorta think of investing in your first lighting kit as a lot like investing in your first camera. You want to take pictures -- do you buy a cheap P&S, a cheapish DSLR, a midrange DSLR, or a high-end DSLR? If all you want is a picture, buy the cheap P&S. But if your goal is to have some flexibility in what you take pictures of and how you take them, then you need to spend a bit more money. Do you need to go high-end your first time? Probably not. It's probably better to go cheapish to middle DSLR so you can add lenses that complement your photos as you learn.

I think buying your first light kit is a lot like that. The low-end kits are like cheap P&Ss. If all you want is light, they'll give you light. But if you really want to learn lighting and use it to your advantage in your work, you probably need something a bit more expensive. I started with the P&S version of lights. I basically threw it away, and started all over with speedlights (would that be cheapish? doesn't seem like it!) Now I am learning, and am adding softboxes, beauty dishes, grids, snoots, etc., to learn more -- this is a lot like buying new lenses.

Anyway, hope this helps.