Originally posted by bdery Come one. Using a tripod, with a static subject with a reflective front surface, of course a fixed LED can work.
Direct lighting however rarely is the way to go with a human subject. Not having the ability to bounce IS limiting. For use outside in daylight, a LED panel is useless.
In short, it's a useful tool, but a limited one, and certainly not the one to start with when diving into artificial light.
I generally agree with you.
With that said, when I first set up my small studio for "people stuff" on the north side of the house it was all Godox constant lights ranging from one 200W to two 150W and a pair of 20's. For the smallish space they were quite adequate and let me get up to speed a whole lot faster learning studio lighting placement and effect. But I've always needed at least two, more often three. Even then I had to watch apertures. You're right, they don't bounce.
But I still use 'em for static images where they work really nicely for me. I don't like too many surprise reflections, and patience in lighting is not a strong-point for me.
Since then I set up one small studio on the south side for my "people stuff" and that one is 3 Godox strobes and more often than not just a single one needed, or even just window light and a reflector if the sun is just right.
Bonus: Strobes can be less expensive than trying to outfit a room with high-power LED's.
Now out in the field I do carry a couple of small handheld LED's for lighting mushrooms, or insects, or small flowers in shade and other darker small subjects, and they've been pretty effective and adaptable.