Forums > Photography Talk > Strobes need input.
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Photographer

Tom Noga

Posts: 33

Addison, Illinois, US

Can anyone tell me what they think of these lights?
I haven't learned much about lighting yet and am looking for lights that arent that pricey.

http://www.skaeser.com/servlet/Detail?no=375

Apr 08 08 04:31 pm Link

Photographer

Kevin Connery

Posts: 17824

El Segundo, California, US

At the top of the forum there's a thread entitled Photography Talk: Rules, Resources and FAQ. In that thread, there are links to key threads on Photography. One of those is the Lighting, Flash, Ring, & Battery Strobe Reference thread, which has a large section on What to Buy.

In general, without knowing what your specific needs are--how much space, how much light, how much robustness, how much portability, etc--it's hard to give much useful feedback.

Issues about this specific unit:

How much are replacement flashtubes? With a stated life of 8,000 flashes, their lifespan is much shorter than usual strobes (which are typically in the 100,000-250,000 range). That may have a serious financial impact over the life of the unit.

Will you ever use a softbox? If so, that design is poorly suited for it
Will you ever use a beauty dish? If so, that design is poorly suited for it.

What are your needs? (There's a couple of buying guides listed in the above reference thread which should help you narrow things down.)

Apr 08 08 04:41 pm Link

Photographer

Mark Brummitt

Posts: 40527

Clarkston, Michigan, US

Kevin Connery wrote:
it's hard to give much useful feedback.

Except to say that for $99.00 if they are crap you haven't lost a ton of money.

EDIT: BTW, that's a helpful link Kevin.

Apr 08 08 04:44 pm Link

Photographer

Stephen Fletcher

Posts: 7501

Norman, Oklahoma, US

I bought a similar 150w/s from another dealer on ebay.  When I got it I found I could adjust the power and it seemed to be working OK, when I put the meter on it and compared it to a fixed 55 w/s light I figured its max output was about 40 w/s.

Then I bought Alien Bees.

That is a little too much to spend for something that I personally would not put much reliance on.

Apr 08 08 04:54 pm Link

Photographer

Tom Noga

Posts: 33

Addison, Illinois, US

Kevin Connery wrote:
At the top of the forum there's a thread entitled Photography Talk: Rules, Resources and FAQ. In that thread, there are links to key threads on Photography. One of those is the Lighting, Flash, Ring, & Battery Strobe Reference thread, which has a large section on What to Buy.

In general, without knowing what your specific needs are--how much space, how much light, how much robustness, how much portability, etc--it's hard to give much useful feedback.

Issues about this specific unit:

How much are replacement flashtubes? With a stated life of 8,000 flashes, their lifespan is much shorter than usual strobes (which are typically in the 100,000-250,000 range). That may have a serious financial impact over the life of the unit.

Will you ever use a softbox? If so, that design is poorly suited for it
Will you ever use a beauty dish? If so, that design is poorly suited for it.

What are your needs? (There's a couple of buying guides listed in the above reference thread which should help you narrow things down.)

Thanks alot just what i needed.

Apr 08 08 05:02 pm Link

Photographer

Rp-photo

Posts: 42711

Houston, Texas, US

Looks like  Fleabay-style Chinese junk.

Only a 1/4 turndown.

Same power as AB400's, which are universally agreed to be under-powered.

Kevin Connery wrote:
How much are replacement flashtubes? With a stated life of 8,000 flashes, their lifespan is much shorter than usual strobes (which are typically in the 100,000-250,000 range). That may have a serious financial impact over the life of the unit.

Beware of "Cheap printer-Expensive ink" syndrome, which clearly is the case here.

Also, the modeling light is near useless @ 35W, and may be non-standard as well.

Apr 08 08 05:03 pm Link

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