Photography News Issue 60

Photography News | Issue 60 | photographynews.co.uk

First tests

Imaging kit First tests We get our hands on the latest kit and share our first impressions – so you know whether or not to add it to your wish list

Reviews by Will Cheung

Profoto B10 250AirTTL £1410

Specs

Prices B10 head £1410, B10 Duo kit £2810, Core backpack S £228, B10 Li-ion battery £180, Battery charger 3A £144, Stand adapter £90, B10 case £72 Maximumpower 250Ws Output (2m/ISO 100) F/22.7 with OCF Magnum reflector F/11.9 without reflector Power range 10EV (1.0-10) Flashduration Normal mode: level 10 1/400sec. level 1.0 1/4900sec (t.01), colour temperature 6400K Freeze mode: level 10 1/400sec, colour temperature 6400K; level 5 1/7700sec, colour temperature 7400K; level 1.0 1/14,000sec (t.01), colour temperature 8200K, (all t.01) Recycling time 0.05-2secs TTL/HSS Yes (with AirTTL trigger) Operating range Sync and remote control – 0.5-300m HSS and TTL – 0.5-100m SupportedAir features Flash sync, remote control, TTL, HSS Modelling lightmax output (lumens) 2500lm Lamp type LED Dimming range 10 to 100% LEDColour temperature

Adjustable 3000-6500K Colour rendering (CRI) 90-96 Bluetooth Yes, supports Profoto app Photocell/IR slave and switch Yes Umbrellamount Yes Interface USB-C for firmware upgrades Power supply Rechargeable Li-ion battery Dimensions (wxlxh) 11x17.5x10cm Weight 1.5kg with battery andmount adapter Contact profoto.com

Off-camera flash is a hugely popular technique that opens up many creative avenues for the photographer to explore. Profoto has certainly played its part with its B1 and the B2 off-camera flash systems. First along was the B1 (the B1X is the latest head), a studio monobloc style unit with an in-board rechargeable Li-ion battery and 500Ws of power. Then came the B2, two really compact flash heads connected to a separate power pack with cables providing 250Ws. The newB10 head is a logical next step. It features 250Ws of output, has an onboard rechargeable battery, a colour temperature adjustable LEDmodelling lamp andmore. And it comes in a really portable bodyform. You can get a couple of heads and a trigger plus your camera with a lens or two in a backpack. Add a sling bag for a couple of lighting stands and a modifier or two and beautiful location portraits are well within your reach.

or the ProfotoA1. TheA1 is a very portable light source but also a fully featured AirTTL unit. Push down the white button and the flash comes on; a second or two later you get a confirmation beep when the unit is charged. The white button is also the test flash button. Pushing the button on the left of the three turns on the LED continuous light. Pressing this button again brings up a simple scale and rotating the same button adjusts the colour temperature of the LED output, from 3000K to 6500K. Very useful if you want to balance the B10with ambient light when shooting with continuous light. Pushing the larger central button bring up the B10’s menu where you can alter channels, groups and flash mode among either items. Using the menu is simple. If you prefer, download the free Profoto app to your smart device and you can select menu items, adjust

Handling very straightforward. The basic B10 outfit comes with a case, rechargeable battery, charger and an adapter to fix the unit to a standard lighting stand. This adapter has ahole to take a standard brolly lighting stem. Thereisnoradiotriggersuppliedasstandard so you need to budget £339 for an AirTTL Remote trigger if you want to get the most from the B10 – versions for Canon, Fujifilm, Olympus, Nikon and Sony are available. With anAirTTLRemote youget TTL flash, HSS flash and manual and impressive working range – up to 300m to remotely fire the flash, 100m for TTL control. I used the Nikon and Fujifilm versions in this test. The unit can be triggered with other radio remotes and infrared remotes too. There is no cable sync option. The head offers four different groups and eight channels, working with the Air remotes is impressive and