Why Profoto Is Betting on High-End Cinema Lighting – The Thinking Behind the ProPanel 3×2

by Alexandra ThompsonJune 8^th, 2026

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At their Cine Gear booth, Johnnie sat down with Profoto’s Rod Gammons to skip the usual spec sheet and dig into a broader question: why a company with more than 60 years of history in professional photographic lighting is pushing further into cinema LED at a time when much of the industry is chasing the creator segment. The conversation centered on the ProPanel 3×2, billed as the world’s brightest soft LED panel at 2200W, and the company’s deliberate decision to enter the market from the top.

Profoto has long been associated with high-end lighting tools for professional photographers, especially flash and light-shaping systems. Now the company is pushing further into continuous LED lighting for cinema and hybrid production. If you missed it, we already published a full hands-on review of the Profoto ProPanel 3×2, as well as a separate review of the Profoto L600C. This article looks at the thinking behind the product rather than the test charts.

The ProPanel 3×2 as a starting point

The ProPanel 3×2 is a 2000W RGBWW soft LED panel with an IP65 rating, four zone pixel mapping, and a listed weight of 28 kg. In the interview, Rod described it as the world’s brightest soft panel and pointed to its lower weight compared with similar high-output fixtures.

That weight is central to Profoto’s pitch. A lighter panel can make life easier for gaffers by simplifying rigging and allowing the fixture to be used on a regular combo stand. In other words, Profoto is not only selling output, but also speed, handling, and fewer practical headaches on set.

Why cinema, and why the high end?

Profoto’s move into cinema reflects the way many professionals now work. The company’s roots are in photographic lighting, and continuous LED cannot replace everything flash does. Very short flash durations, for example, remain a separate tool. What has changed is that many photographers, studios, and rental houses now need both stills and video tools, often within the same production day.

For users already invested in Profoto modifiers and accessories, the lack of a Profoto LED option meant looking elsewhere for continuous lighting. Profoto arrived later to cinema LED than some competitors, but the company’s position is that it waited until it could bring something meaningfully different to the market rather than simply adding another panel to its lineup.

Johnnie also asked why Profoto is entering the cinema LED market from the premium end, while many manufacturers are chasing creators and smaller production teams. The answer comes back to brand identity, consistency, light shaping, and long-term use. With the ProPanel 3×2, the pitch is not only about brightness, but also about lower weight, easier rigging, and a design intended to make work simpler for gaffers. Profoto also left the door open to other parts of the market, noting that it is “just getting started” in LED.

Pricing, service, and long-term use

Pricing is where that strategy becomes clearest. Profoto manufactures in Europe and positions its products at the premium end, so the ProPanel 3×2 is not a low-cost fixture. The argument is essentially buy once and use a product for years, rather than replace something after a short cycle because it is unsupported or no longer useful.

That logic matters especially for rental houses, where return on investment over five or seven years depends on a fixture staying in service. In the US, Profoto has its own service operation in New Jersey and works with a partner on the West Coast. The company also described a 72-hour promise: once a product is received at the service center, Profoto will either repair it or replace it so the customer has a working unit available for an upcoming shoot.

Profoto is also training rental houses to handle repairs and keep parts available. For a company still building its reputation in cinema LED, that support structure is clearly part of the pitch.

Price and availability

The Profoto ProPanel 3×2 is now available and priced at $14,995 / €11,000. The fixture is also available to rent through Panalux in Europe and MBS in North America. In the interview, Profoto also mentioned MBS and RST Visions in Los Angeles, with the possibility of arranging a one or two-day complimentary rental to test the panel on a production. For more information, please see the Profoto website.

Does Profoto’s service and support promise help justify the premium price? Or does the ProPanel 3×2 make more sense as a rental house fixture than an owner-operator purchase? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.