Lighting
Buyers’ guide
Let there be light! Whether it’s continuous light or flash, shooting on location, you need lights that are designed for the job. Small and light is a must, but you also need power and control
PRICE: £299 ROTOLIGHT.COM
Rotolight Neo 2 LED If you’re looking for lighting options, Rotolight’s Neo 2
LED gives you more than most. Not only is it a great continuous light for stills or video shoots, it can work as a flash, too. The unit is light in weight and it runs from the mains, six AA batteries or DTaP batteries, so it’s perfect for photographers on the move. The Neo 2’s continuous output is measured at 2000 lux at a distance of three feet, and it’s high- speed sync flash mode will give f/8 at ISO 200 at the same distance. Colour output is adjustable from 3150K to 6300K, and it comes with diffusion and warming filters, too. The Neo 2 can also be mounted on the camera, or used up to 200m away using the built-in Elinchrom Skyport receiver.
WHEN YOU’RE SHOOTING on location, you don’t want your lighting letting you down. And with the kits in this month’s location lighting guide, they won’t. From flashes to continuous lights, and many units that offer both in the same package, there’s sure to be something to suit your needs and make your next shoot a winner. When it comes to continuous lighting, the options and performance of modern LED heads make it a genuine option to use instead of flash, and even though it doesn’t ultimately have the power of flash, that’s offset by modern cameras’ high ISO performance and fast
lenses. Of course, it’s a must for video, but stills photographers can benefit hugely from seeing the light as they shoot, and many subjects that are put off by flash, like babies and pets, will respond better to continuous lighting. As for flash, it’s still the king when you need lots of power, but the latest units can pack plenty of juice into a much smaller size, making them easily transportable. With flash performance improving with every new release, if you’re thinking of replacing an older model, you can very likely look forward to faster recycle times, perfect colours and longer shooting.
PRICE: £1496
PROFOTO.COM/UK
PRICE: £599
KENRO.CO.UK
Profoto B10 AirTTL
Nanguang LED Pad Light Luxpad 43H Four-Head Kit If youwant to work with continuous light, Nanguang’s Luxpad 43H Four-Head Kit has pretty much everything you need to get started.The kit has two Luxpad 43Hheads, giving soft illumination, and two CN-20FC heads, which use Fresnel lenses for more controlled, spotlight effects. Output is stepless, so it’s highly controllable in terms of setting light ratios, and the heads also have a controllable white balance of between 3200K and 5600K for matching daylight or tungsten lighting.The lights can be run off themains, or frombatteries, and six NP-F750 cells are included in the kit.You also get four stands and a pair of hand grips for use with the Luxpad 43H heads, so you canmanually position them, too, and it all fits neatly into its bespoke carry case.
The Profoto B10 is a tiny, but very powerful, high-quality and easy-to-use flash head. At 11x17.5x10cm it’s no bigger than many lenses, and weighing only 1.5kg, its smooth, rounded shape lets it slip easily into your camera bag, so you can add creative lighting almost anywhere. The B10 has an output of 250Ws adjustable over ten stops for masses of control, and it fires fast, too, with a recycle time of between 0.05 and 2secs. It also has a powerful 2500 lmmodelling light, dimmable from 10-100%, and controllable colour between 3000 and 6500K, letting you use it for video or shooting stills with continuous light on a scene. Perhaps best of all, though, is the B10's interface, which makes it
easy to use even for beginners. Its built-in AirTTL system allows effortless HSS and TTLmetered off-camera triggering up to 100m, and 300m in full manual.
Issue 71 | Photography News 33
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