Kit review
41
Profoto B2 ON TEST With its B1, Profoto took location flash lighting to a new level. The B1 system offers the convenience of speedlights with auto TTL metering plus the power and modifier line-up of a mains-powered flash head
SPECS
CONTACT www.profoto.com/uk PRICES £1415.50 B2 250 AirTTL To-Go kit including B2 generator, li-ion battery, B2 head with protective cap, B2 location bag, carrying bag, battery charger 2.8A B2 head £450 li-ion battery £150 car charger 1.8A £69 B2 AirTTL extension cable 3m £130 ENERGYRANGE 1-250Ws (9 f/stops) SHORTEST; LONGEST FLASHDURATION 1/15,000sec; 1/1000sec RECYCLING 0.03-1.35secs FULLPOWER FLASHESFROM ONECHARGE 215 DIMENSIONS Generator (incl. battery) 16x8x17cm Head (excl. stand adapter) 10.3x10cm WEIGHT Generator (incl. battery) 1.66kg
Words by Will Cheung
B2 is much more sophisticated when partnered with the Profoto Air Remote TTL
Last year, Profoto launched its B1 system, a battery-powered studio flash system and the first with full TTL exposure control for Canon and Nikon DSLRs. It was quite possibly one of the most exciting innovations for many years in the world of lighting, merging the worlds of studio- based flash and portable flash and bringing them bang up to date. Not content with that, Profoto has followed up with the introduction of the B2 system. Again it’s a battery powered flash system, but this time the very compact heads are connected to a separate power pack with leads, rather than having the battery on board as with the B1. Is it Profoto’s answer to the popular Elinchrom Ranger Quadra? Well kind of, in that it is a reliable, consistent and portable light source, but the
control (Canon and Nikon options are available). And there is the option of full auto TTL flash control; manual is available too should you prefer to be in total control.
Out of the box It’s impossible not to be impressed with the B2 as you unpack it. For a start the heads feel reassuringly solid and you get the impression that it will survive hard use and even moderate user-inflicted abuse. The B2 heads use the same modifier fitting as existing mains-powered Profoto heads and the flash tube is protected by frosted diffuser glass. The neat thing with Profoto heads is that there is no fitting bayonet as such to fight with – no need to marry the two components up and then to lock the unit in place. On many heads it is possible to accidentally bend the bayonet fitting which makes life more awkward. With a Profoto unit, the modifier simply slides on to the head and it is then locked in position with a gripping clamp mechanism. Neat, robust, secure and effective. The B2 power pack weighs in at 1.66kg, complete with the lithium-ion rechargeable battery – the battery on its own is a mere 387g, and B2 heads weigh around 680g each. In the supplied shoulder bag, you can squeeze in the B2 power pack, two heads, spare battery charger and mains lead. Add a bag with a couple of stands and modifiers of your choice and you have a very portable and versatile location lighting system. It is also very easy to use. There are even nice touches like white spots on the leads and pack to help correct insertion. When using the Air Remote TTL control, and with the Air option selected on the power pack, you can wirelessly adjust output in 1/10EV, turn the modeling lamp on and off, and turn off one of the heads if both are connected. The Remote Air’s working range is excellent. If you prefer, the units can also be used manually and here again flash output can be adjusted wirelessly using the Air Remote: press A, B or C to control heads individually. You can assign heads to a group too, so you can have group A as your main light with groups B or C as a fill-in, for example. Or have both heads in the A group. The system is extremely flexible and the design and handling of the Air Remote are excellent, with no scrolling through menus needed to find the group or flash head you want to adjust.
FEATURES A full house including auto TTL with an Air Remote TTL PERFORMANCE 24/25 It works very, very well and has impressive battery capacity HANDLING 25/25 Neat design, compact heads, compatible with the Profoto modifier system. Brilliant to use VALUE FOR MONEY 23/25 Quality costs, and no exception here, but the B2 still delivers a lot for your investment The B2s can also be fired in slave mode, where they are triggered by picking up the burst of light from another flash source. There is also a standard mini phone socket to accommodate radio triggers such as those from PocketWizard and Cactus. Of course, with such third-party remotes you have to use the B2s manually. With a single head connected you’ll be able to get up to full power – indicated by the number 10 on the pack. Fit two heads and flash A gives 9.9 and flash B 6.1 as maximum output. With both heads at maximum output I got 140 bursts and still had one bar remaining on the battery indicator. Recharge times start at around one second and after 80 flashes this just about doubled. After 120 bursts an exclamation mark showed and recycling was around four seconds. Basically, battery capacity is excellent and spares are available at £150 should you need backup or extra capacity. Verdict The B2 system is a solid, beautifully engineered piece of kit, but it does much more than look the part: it’s great to use and delivers excellent results. The controls are smooth with no stiffness and will stay that way for a very long time. Simply, there is not much to dislike about the B2 system, and a great deal to enjoy. If you are in the market for a quality, easy to use, portable lighting system you should consider the B2. PROFOTO B2 25/25
Head (excl. stand adapter) 0.70kg
OVERALL
97/100
A lovely and very impressive portable lighting system
PROS Build quality, great to use, compact, modifier fitting, manual or full TTL option CONS A serious investment
ABOVE Pro shooter Andy Kruczek took the B2 250 Air TTL To-Go kit out on an exclusive portrait location shoot, photographing model Molly Victoria Owen. Here he added a little extra drama courtesy of a 20° grid.
www.absolutephoto.com
Issue 18 | Photography News
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