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p.3 #6 · p.3 #6 · Official: Profoto A1X Flash for Sony ($1,095) | |
In terms of quality of light, I found that the A1 vs standard rectangular head speedlites and strobes has almost no real difference when shot direct on camera (ie head pointed at subject). The flash tube is still rectangular in shape on the A1 and A1X, so the slight difference in the fresnel element shape doesn't translate to much when used like this.
I did however find that the A1 produces more natural looking bounce flash when shot into a wall or ceiling, because the spread of the speedlite with the half sphere dome diffuser acts kind of like the old Gary Fong diffusers. One could recreate a similar look with a variety of diffusers - ranging from the good ol stofen diffusers, magmod diffuser, etc. Personally I don't think this small difference in quality of light is worth the premium by itself. I also found (and this seems to be a common gripe) that the tension on the A1 head should be a little tighter, as it only takes a light tap to make the head lose its orientation and swing around. I'm assuming they've fixed this in the A1X as they mention that's one of the changes in the new model, but will be interesting to see.
Honestly, if you're not already bought into the Profoto system, it'd be a hard sell on this as there are far cheaper options that produce as good results. The Metz 64 AF-1 for example has a really nice UI, built as good if not better than profoto and nikon speedlites, and has a great reputation for reliability longer term.
All of that said, Profoto is in my opinion the best strobe system from a user interface standpoint (especially compared to Godox speedlites) and they're a real pleasure to use, especially for those that put them through hard use on client work. For those pondering picking up an A1 now that prices are for sure dropping on the outgoing model, I would try it out first and make sure you're ok with the head swivel tension, as it was the primary reason I sold mine on. For those that are looking for a backup trigger + speedlite that are bought into the profoto system though, the A1X sounds like a pretty awesome piece of kit, albeit pricey for some.
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