The GetDPI Photography Forum

Great to see you here. Join our insightful photographic forum today and start tapping into a huge wealth of photographic knowledge. Completing our simple registration process will allow you to gain access to exclusive content, add your own topics and posts, share your work and connect with other members through your own private inbox! And don’t forget to say hi!

portable battery system

dseelig

Member
I saw the hensel porty lithuim battery system. quite frankly though a bit lighter it still felt heavy. Also the heads were big. I will wait for broncolor or dynalite which a rep of there's said, when I asked if they were developing a lithuim system said, "we are not allowed to talk about products in development."
David
 

schweikert

New member
I shoot with a Comet CBm-1200, it uses 2 NiMH batteries yet still provides 150 or more full power flashes and that goes much higher with lower power. The new Hensels are nice but nothing that is earth shattering using lithium batteries.

I do wish Comet was better represented in the U.S. since Dynalite doesn't put the best effort in advertising, promotion and the Comet website, but does provide decent support on the back end.

Atleast the lithium Hensel packs support full size heads. That's the downfall with some such as Broncolor with the small packs and even smaller heads that are almost pointless with modifiers.

Buy what exists, and use it. Waiting for something in the future is an endless losing game.
 

Bob

Administrator
Staff member
I like my Elinchrom Rangers.
Yeah, a bit heavy, but so am I.
-bob
 

LJL

New member
Have not seen anything that suggests the lithium ion batteries more than cost more and maybe weigh in lower. They should have the ability to be charged more total cycles than other batteries, IF the right technology is used in their construction. They are going to deliver the same voltage, but no idea how they handle load for each charge. I was looking into some of this kind of technology with portable tools from companies like Dewalt, Makita, and others. There are significant differences in the battery material construction, but all that does is permit more recharges. Does not deliver any more power or anything like that. Am wondering if the same sort of thing is going on with some of these light kits. Just because they say lithium battery, may not mean much more than higher cost and greater number of recharges....maybe. The rest of the electronics determines how fast the lights recycle. Granted, the reduced weight might be nice, but not if the battery power suffers.

I had DynaLites and ran them off a DynaLite battery power inverter (sealed lead acid), and they worked quite well. Not enough power now to drive my Profoto D4 pack, but there would be enough to drive a couple 500Ws D1s....when I finally get them. I like that all the stuff from the studio kit will work on the portable kit, as some others like Elinchroms will do also.

LJ
 

Frank Doorhof

New member
Hi,
If you want lightweight look at the new Elinchrom Quadras.
We have been testing a few over the last few weeks and they are really very nice, incredibly small for the power and speed they give.

If you need more power than 400Ws the Ranger RX is a great option but takes in a lot more space and is heavier, on the other hand compared to some other brands it's still small :D
 
D

ddk

Guest
Hi,
If you want lightweight look at the new Elinchrom Quadras.
We have been testing a few over the last few weeks and they are really very nice, incredibly small for the power and speed they give.

If you need more power than 400Ws the Ranger RX is a great option but takes in a lot more space and is heavier, on the other hand compared to some other brands it's still small :D
Are the modeling lights continuous and bright enough on these or the same as other portables?
 

Frank Doorhof

New member
Hi,
Outside modeling lights are never bright enough.
However they do have a rather high output for such small units, but I never use them to be honest unless I'm shooting inside.
 

dfarkas

Workshop Member
Where in the US can we get them.
Guy, the Ranger Quadra units aren't commercially available yet. All we are hearing as a dealer is "soon". I'd be happy to post availability once we have all the details.

The modeling lights are white LEDs and can be run continuously pretty much all day. I handled these units at Photokina back in September and they are indeed very, very small. I'll dig around and see if I have some pictures from the show.

David
 
D

ddk

Guest
Hi,
Outside modeling lights are never bright enough.
However they do have a rather high output for such small units, but I never use them to be honest unless I'm shooting inside.
Thanks Frank, I realize that the modeling lights are useless outdoors but I have indoor shoots in places that have no electricity. I have the Profoto 7B but the modeling lights drive me crazy.
 

fotografz

Well-known member
Indoors they work nicely but it will never beat the normal monoheads.
400 w/s is 400 w/s ... these will be the same as most any other 400 w/s unit. The difference between this and 400 w/s units is the Sky Port trigger which allows control of the box from the camera. Pocket Wizard triggered units do not allow this.

They should be fine outside if all you need is 400 w/s total max light output.

The obvious advantage is portability and no need for a power outlet ... which is a major advantage over standard Monos outdoors.

Most battery driven units are quite a bit bigger and a lot heavier. You can use standard monos with a battery unit such as the Hensel Visit... but trust me that is a really big battery and difficult to carry along with big Mono heads unless you have assistants on the job.
 
Top