Photography News Issue 55

Photography News | Issue 55 | 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 and Kingsley Singleton

Interfit LM8 18in ring light £189.99

Specs

LEDs have revolutionised lighting offering high quality, colour- consistent light output from small cells with good power efficiency and generating hardly any heat. Interfit’s new ring light uses LEDs, this version having a colour temperature output of 5600K (+/- 200K) so the same as daylight. At £30 more, a bi-colour version is also available and here the colour temperature of the output can be varied from 3200 to 5600K. A mains adapter comes with the unit but for location shooting it will accept optional two Sony NP rechargeable batteries. This test was done with the mains adapter only. There’s not much in terms of controls. An on/off switch and a dial to control output, from 0 to 100%. I tested the colour temperature of the light output by shooting an X-Rite colour test chart at 50% and 100% output. To the human eye comparing the shots side-by-side there was no discernible difference at those power settings and the colour chart was well reproduced in both instances with a slight leaning towards the warm side. In Raw processing I did prefer the look of shots with the colour temperature slider down to 5000K but that is a matter of personal taste. Next, I moved to light output. For this I

Prices £189.99. Bi-colour version (3200- 5600K) £209.99 In the box LM8 ring light, carrying case, 5in mirror with accessory shoe, mobile phone holder, 15V DC power adaptor Watt usage 220W Fitting Standard ⅝in stand mount Output – colour temperature 5600K +/-200K Lux/foot-candles at one metre 1430 Lux Lux/foot-candles at two metres 329 Lux Power supply 15V DC 5A Battery type Accepts two Sony NP-F series (not included) Dimensions 27x24x7cm Weight 1.39kg Contact Interfitphotographic.com

Light quality was lovely and shadow free, thanks to the light’s white translucent diffuser panel

Above Shoot through the ring light for shadowless lighting; great for still-lifes and product shots.

Verdict

Pros Lovely light, build quality, adjustable output, colour output consistent, option of battery power, good for videos and stills Cons Power output isn’t that great other light sources, but going for the Bi-colour version for an extra £30 is probably worth the money. That said, the daylight-only LM8 is worth the money with its solid build, consistent performance and light quality. Add its ability to be powered by battery for location is an additional attraction. The Interfit LM8 gives lovely, shadow-free results and ring- shaped eye catchlights. Obviously it depends on your needs and how you intend to use the LM8 in terms of mixing in

on modern cameras. Just make sure you focus carefully so that you get depth-of-field where you want it. I tried the LM8 with portraits and close-ups of food to assess light quality and coverage. With the supplied 5in mirror and phone mount, I also did some self portraits. Light quality was lovely and shadow free, thanks to the light’s white translucentdiffuserpanel, and you get a nice sheen on the skin that you can control with the highlight slider in editing. In portraits, the ring highlight effect in the eyes is very obvious and not something that is easily edited out, so while it is an attraction it could equally put some photographers off too. WC

took incident light readings using a Gossen Digipro F2 lightmeter. At ISO 200 and at a distance of 2m from the light, the meter gave a reading of f/2.8 at full power and, showing good output accuracy, f/2 at 50% power. Moving in closer to 1m gave a reading of f/4 at full power and f/2.8.5 at 50%. We’re not talking high levels of light but certainly good enough for headshots, which is probably what you are going to shoot with a ring light and if you need an extra f/stop it’s not an issue going up to ISO 800 Left A ring light gives circular catchlights that can look stunning.