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Archive 2018 · Godox alternatives ...

  
 
rscheffler
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p.5 #1 · p.5 #1 · Godox alternatives ...


dmacmillan wrote:
Here’s the https://youtu.be/y9rrMrEC2aQ]video[/url] showing the AD200 Dual head being used.

I’m intrigued by the HSS capability. It would be great to shoot >250th to be able to shoot environmental portraits at large apertures. Also, shoot with both Canon and Fuji. The triggers are so inexpensive that it would be easy to have one flash system for both.


So, my experience with the AD200 and HSS has been at weddings for outdoor family photos shooting into a ~60" umbrella. It will work if the subjects are in the shade/backlit. I don't think a single unit has the power to overpower sunlight in HSS mode at farther distances, but might be OK at nearer distances for individuals or couples. Biggest potential headache, IMO, is that in HSS mode thermal protection kicks in within about 30-40 full power pops in relatively short succession. So it will depend on how you shoot, lighting conditions, distance of light to the subject, etc. If thermal protection is tripped, it's a ~10 minute delay before the unit is up and running again. Not saying this is a deal-breaker, but something that needs to be known and worked with/around to minimize interruptions during shoots.

In contrast, I did a similar kind of shoot with the Elinchrom Quadra with the HS head in the 100cm/39" Deep Octa modifier, shooting individuals and groups up to 6 people at half to full power output (200-400 W/s) and ran into thermal protection after a few hundred pops, switched packs and kept going for a few hundred more.

HSS and TTL is a lot simpler to get up an running in a few shots without much fuss, but IMO, hypersync style triggering gets you more light on-subject for a given W/s..

If anything, I think the new AD600 Pro is more interesting with its much shorter recycling times (AD200 is over 2 seconds at full power), allowing the use of lower power settings with the added benefit of shorter flash duration, if desired. Or greater HSS range. But the tradeoff is size, weight and cost. And that it's brand new and still needs to be field-proven (I'm still a bit wary of Godox QC).



Jan 16, 2018 at 12:37 AM
rscheffler
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p.5 #2 · p.5 #2 · Godox alternatives ...


RustyBug wrote:
As long as the Godox doesn't fall into the last category of "dog slow", I should be fine for my foreseeable needs (table top / trail). Given the number of positive feedback, and nobody really complaining about flash duration ... I suspect, they will fall into the moderate category just fine.


It's 'dog slow' at full output. If you can work at half or quarter, the flash duration will shorten considerably. You'll also benefit from shorter recycling time at lower output settings. Its full power flash duration is pretty much on-par with what speedlites offer...

I think one reason full power flash duration is less of a factor today is many instead shoot HSS in order to minimize subject motion. The other option is HS/hypersync triggering, though not offered by Godox, which requires a long, flat flash duration. As you know, it used to be you were stuck at the shutter's maximum normal flash sync speed and therefore it was necessary to have short t.1 times to freeze motion. Hence the bi-tube and quad-tube heads for various pack systems of decades past.



Jan 16, 2018 at 12:49 AM
dmacmillan
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p.5 #3 · p.5 #3 · Godox alternatives ...


rscheffler wrote:
So, my experience with the AD200 and HSS has been at weddings for outdoor family photos shooting into a ~60" umbrella.

Thanks for sharing your real world experience. I'm long retired from professional photography, my use would be for portraits at a more relaxed pace. The shortcomings you mentioned would not be a deal breaker for me.

I'm used to the days of slow strobes. It didn't matter that much when shooting portraits with RB67's that required re-cocking the camera and then advancing the film. Back then we used frames per minute instead of frames per second to measure speed!



Jan 16, 2018 at 09:05 AM
RustyBug
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p.5 #4 · p.5 #4 · Godox alternatives ...


Just got my box of goodies.

First impressions (non-shooting, yet):

Pocket Flash isn't really an appropriate name, but it is a compact unit.

First impression of build, not a tank, but not cheap junk, either. Heft of tanks gets to be "anti-thetical" to portable, so it's a fine line on where to draw it. This should do okay.

First order of business was to replace the speedlight head with the bare bulb head. Head interchange is easy enough. Actually, I was slightly impressed by the four corner "key slot" metal plate design (+1).

Next up ... check out the Norman (actual Norman brand) reflector mounting onto the bare bulb head.
Compared to my Armatar, the AD200 has a bit different securing approach, with it just being a side plate pushing in (vs. a clamp squeezing 360).

The Norman reflector didn't want to stay on, kept slipping off. A quick study shows that the Godox has a different design than the Norman. The Godox has two "pins" in the head. The Godox reflectors have matching slots that lock in to the pins. Whereas, the Norman reflector has no slots (will need to modify, no biggie), but once I get slots cut into it, it should be just fine.

Put on one of the Godox reflectors, and screwed down the lock ... feels secure. On & off ... pretty straightforward to switch reflectors. This is the one I wanted to see. I hate fidgeting with modifier setup, just let me switch & go. Out of the box, seems like it's gonna function "switch & go" okay. Being able to go from bare bulb, to standard reflector, to colored, grid, dome or small softbox by merely loosening one knob is okay by me.

Played with controls ... seems pretty straightforward on the unit itself. We'll see once I get to the controller & an actual camera use.

That's as far as I got this evening.




Jan 18, 2018 at 12:34 AM
ZoranC
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p.5 #5 · p.5 #5 · Godox alternatives ...


dmacmillan wrote:
Here’s the http:/ /https://youtu.be/y9rrMrEC2aQ showing the AD200 Dual head being used.

I’m intrigued by the HSS capability.


That shoot was done in very overcast light / in shade with small modifier very close to subject. Try doing HSS for full body shot with large modifier far away in full Southern California sun. In my experience it is not going to happen with HSS. That is one of reasons why I switched to Elinchrom. They use Hi-Sync, not HSS.



Feb 07, 2018 at 08:06 PM
ZoranC
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p.5 #6 · p.5 #6 · Godox alternatives ...


rscheffler wrote:
So, my experience with the AD200 and HSS has been at weddings for outdoor family photos shooting into a ~60" umbrella. It will work if the subjects are in the shade/backlit. I don't think a single unit has the power to overpower sunlight in HSS mode at farther distances, but might be OK at nearer distances for individuals or couples.
...
In contrast, I did a similar kind of shoot with the Elinchrom Quadra with the HS head in the 100cm/39" Deep Octa modifier, shooting individuals and groups up to 6 people at half to full power output (200-400 W/s) and ran
...Show more

Same here. I found not even AD600 gave me enough power in HSS to fight SoCal sun at bigger distance and/or larger modifier. Had no problem with ELB-400 and HS head.



Feb 07, 2018 at 08:14 PM
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