Photography News Issue 68

Photography News | Issue 68 | photographynews.co.uk

First tests

Profoto A1X £949

Specs

Just about two years after the original A1’s launch, Profoto has updated its distinctive speedlight in the form of the A1X – bettering the original in several ways, but certainly making it no bigger. It’s available in Canon, Nikon and Sony fits, the latter of which is new. The A1X is exactly the same size and weight as the original, and therefore no larger, or heavier than your average speedlight. The original felt very solid and well built, but the A1X takes this on a step. Moving the tilt and swivel head is significantly stiffer and quieter than the A1. I had no problem with the original A1 head in that regard – it certainly wasn’t floppy as some speedlights are – but the head did move if you gave it a good shake, and its clicking was quite obvious. The A1X does neither of those things – it’s rock solid and only shifts when youwant it to. On the same score, the head’s zooming mechanism noise is more muffled, suggesting there’s extra protection there, too. In handling, the A1X, like the original A1, is a dream to use. Anyone who’s tried to fathom a new flashgun will find relief in the A1X’s simple menu and buttons. In fact, they’re so easily understood, that some markings on the buttons have been removed since the A1. It’s so much better than having tiny hieroglyphics showing you need to press three things at once. You get a bright and simple display that’s updated from the A1 to look just like

Prices

£949 What’s in the box

Profofo A1X, battery, charger, case, dome diffuser, bounce card, wide lens, flash stand, USB 2.0 lead and mains lead Power output 76Ws Power output range Nine stops Flash exposure compensation -3 EV to +3 EV (in 1/3 EV steps) Number of flashes 450 full power Groups/channels 6 groups, 20 channels Flash duration 1/800 to 1/20,000sec Trigger modes RF up to 300m; master or slave TTL and HSS up to 100m Modelling lamp Yes Modes TTL and manual Recycling 0.05 to 1.0sec High speed sync Yes, up to 1/8000sec Power supply Rechargeable li-ion battery Dimensions (wxhxd) 108x75x165mm Weight 560g Including battery Contact profoto.com

Images The ProfotoA1X is incredibly simple to use, even in full sunlight, but somemight find the price prohibitive

Profoto’s B10 units (though the A1 can also be updated to this refreshed look via firmware). At maximum brightness I found it easy to read even in full sun, which was great. Like the A1, a switch on the side swaps mode from TTL to manual, and the main dial operates power from 2.0 to 10.0 covering nine stops of adjustment with 0.1 steps. Each full stop is a doubling of power, just like on Profoto’s other flashes, so there’s a good commonality there, and adjustment via the wheel is extremely quick. My only wish would be to make the scale the same across all Profoto products – integrating the A1X with other heads is easy, but the scales don’t match in term of pure output. The main display also shows channel and group, zoom setting, and battery life in a simple bar. The latterworks fine, but isn’t as accurate as a percentile, and it’d be great if it showed how many flashes were left at the current power setting. Themainmenu is also super-clear and easy to use and has also been updated to match the B10. Activated by the centre button, it’s a long list, but that’s fine as it means you don’t have to hop through many menu levels. Everything is clearly labelled and I didn’t have a single moment of

head scratching, or wondering what or where something was. At 76Ws, power output is identical to the A1, and the familiar rounded flash emitter gives a softer look to the fall-off of light than a rectangular head. This can be improved further with the included dome diffuser, and light from the unit looks great. It comes with a wide lens and a bounce card, but at this price, some gels would be nice to help with colour balancing indoor light. I shot a mix of images in TTL and manual including lots of fill flash pics on a very sunny day. Shooting in TTL with the A1X off-camera and triggered by an A1 mounted on my Nikon D850, I found results excellent, needing only a little positive compensation to balance the sun. In aperture-priority, shooting at f/2 and ISO 100 with a shutter speed of 1/2500sec, the A1X slipped into high speed sync mode faultlessly and had no problems with punch at a distance of about 5ft. Basically it has plenty of juice and there’s a Hi-S Boost mode too. Triggering the A1X was also a breeze, and adjustment was easy both in TTL and manual modes; my only criticism being that the A1 I used as a trigger didn’t show the resulting power, just my alteration.

Profoto made great claims when the original A1 was released, calling it ‘the world’s smallest studio light’. But the simplicity of control, excellent build and handling of the updated A1X makes good on this idea. The A1X is a real joy to use, and while the price – around £100 more than the A1 – is obviously a significant outlay, its quality does not disappoint and the improvements justify the increase. Pros Simple control and superb quality of light as before, but now with even better build, extra channels and more battery life. Sony shooters get to play now, too. Cons The price will be a stretch for some It’ll connect up to 300m, though you’re not likely to need that much, and closer up the connection is rock solid. You can also use the AirTTL remote, Profoto’s new Connect trigger, and there are 12 more channels available than on the A1. Battery life and recycle times on the A1X have both been improved, and it’s claimed you’ll get 450 full power flashes from the new unit, compared to 350before. Inpractice, I shot about 200 images, many on full power, and the A1X was on about half battery at the end, so battery life is certainly good. The added benefit of the lithiumbattery is you don’t get fading performance. Recycle times are faster than the A1, too, but only by 0.2sec at the top end. KS Verdict

Anyone who’s tried to fathom a new flashgun will find relief in the A1X’s simple menu and buttons