DIY Photography

Hacking Photography - one Picture at a time

Search

Submit A Story

TurtleRig bulb extensions say they provide up to a whole stop of extra light with Godox strobes

by 4 Comments

One of the big problems with the Godox AD600 and AD600 TTL was the position of the bulb relative to the modifiers. It just sat a little too far back into the head, and many people felt they weren’t getting the power they should. Godox largely solved this problem with the AD600Pro and AD400Pro, but there are still many AD600 owners out there.

TurtleRig has now announced its newest solution to this problem, with their version 3 bulb extensions. Essentially, they’re shims which sit between the strobe head and the bulb, offering extension pins to bring the bulb out further from the modifier. They’re available for the original AD600 models as well as several other Godox strobes.

[Read More…]

How I shot a nightmarish mirrored cat using strobes, constant light and gels

by 4 Comments

A few days ago I submitted a photo to the new DIYPhotography facebook group, I am very happy to share how it was taken. Feel free to join our community and submit your best shots.

Lately, I have been playing with color gels quite a bit. While this is something I enjoy, I felt I was falling into a repetitive pattern. I started looking for a way to grow above the technique and use colors to tell a story.

Like many good things, my chance arrived part via collaborating and part via accident. My partner in crime was Yael.di . She is an amazing cosplayer. She is also a kick-ass hula hoop dancer, but I digress. One of her customs caught my attention. It is a one-of-a-kind full-body mirror outfit (check it out here).  I thought that this outfit, combined with smoke and colors would tell a good mystery story. Smoke and mirrors, you know. Here is how we did it, or actually did not.

[Read More…]

Here are all of the popular Godox portable strobes compared for size

by 7 Comments

Since posting my AD400 Pro review a few days ago, I’ve had a lot of people asking me how it compares to other lights. Most notably the AD200 and a pair of AD200s with the AD-B2 head. They want to know how the power, recycle times and other features compare, but they also want to know how the size compares for storage and travel.

I have a second AD200 and the AD-B2 head on the way to me now so I can test how the power and features compare. But in the meantime, my friend Mark Ratcliffe has been able to shoot a size comparison for me of his Pixapro (the main UK Godox distributor) branded versions. And he’s allowed us to post the images on DIYP for you guys.

[Read More…]

Godox set their sights on Elinchrom with new flavour of AD600 strobe

by 11 Comments

With Bowens now out of the picture, it looks like Godox have realigned to set their sights on Elinchrom. While there’s been no official announcement yet, a new link has popped up on the Godox Downloads page. That link is to the manual for a new “Godox AD600E” strobe.

Functionally, it’s the same AD600 TTL 600Ws strobe we know and love, but with one exception. Instead of the familiar Bowens mount, it accepts Elinchrom EL mount modifiers. It seems like a pretty shrewd move from the Chinese manufacturer to try to take on another well known brand.

[Read More…]

Rumour suggests Godox will announce an AD600 replacement before the end of the year

by 2 Comments

Yes, this is just a rumour, but the clues do suggest that it may turn out to be true. Prices for the Godox AD600BM (and its various rebrands) have been dropping pretty drastically lately. Typically available for $595 in the USA, I’ve seen them as low as $399 in the last couple of days.

Usually when this happens, it means that Godox are about to announce a new product that will compete heavily with an existing one, and the retailers know something.

[Read More…]

The Godox AD-B2 makes your AD200 lights even more powerful

by 4 Comments

The Godox AD-B2 has been dreamt of ever since the AD200 was announced a few months ago. It wasn’t much of a stretch to assume Godox would release something like this given the H1200B extension head. The head lets you plug in a pair of AD600 lights to get 1200Ws of power. The AD-B2 essentially does the same thing for the AD200, letting you double up the power.

According to this review from photographer Rob Hall, though, not quite. When one compares a single AD200 in the standard S-Fit adapter to a pair of AD200 in the AD-B2, one expects there to be a stop of difference (double the power). Robert’s observations yield quite a substantial increase over that. And it’s all down to a very simple difference in design.

[Read More…]

We took the Godox AD600 for a test in the sand dunes

by 3 Comments

We have heard quite a bit about the Godox AD600 and just had to take it for a test. We accompanied photographer Tom Saimon in a sports apparel shoot to see how the strobe performs in a harsh outdoors environment.

Overall, we were very impressed, both with performance and especially performance compared to price point. More sports photos and the full review after the jump.

[Read More…]

Considering a Godox? Here is what you need to know about power

by 5 Comments

In 2016 I adopted the Godox X series, specifically the Godox AD600 and the V860II speedlights. Later I added the AD360II as a portable option. While I was satisfied with that product lineup, they kept adding new releases that intrigued me. Eventually, I added the H600B and H1200B, as well as the AD200 pocket flash and QT600II studio strobe. One thing I’m often asked in groups is how the output compare between the products. While w/s ratings tell us the amount of power the light draws from the battery, it doesn’t convert to light output perfectly (think about an inefficient strobe, for example, lots of W/S, not a  lot of light). By metering lights at the same distance with the same modifiers, we can truly tell the power difference between products.

[Read More…]

How to use coloured gels with studio strobes and softboxes

by 1 Comment

Using coloured gels with speedlights has become pretty common. Many people who shoot with speedlights have given it a go at least a couple of times. But speedlights are quite easy to gel. All you need is a small strip of gel which you then gaffer tape over the front of the head. Studio strobes, though, are a different matter entirely. They’re not flat on the front like speedlights, and they project light in all directions.

You could, of course, just cover the entire front of your softbox with a massive gel sheet. But that can get expensive if you use many different colours. So, what can we do? Photographer Robert Hall shows us two options in this video on the Godox AD600 strobe. The first is the way he has been doing things, although it does have a problem. White light is still able to come out of the front, without a second piece of gel attached. One of his viewers sent him a solution to try that seems to work brilliantly.

[Read More…]

How to protect your strobes when going on a snow shoot

by 1 Comment

https://youtu.be/Ow9RVRRtlu0

If you go out on a shoot in the rain or in the snow, you;d better make sure your gear is protected. I mean Cameras, strobes and water don’t mix well together. I know Ilko does a nylon bag thingy when he goes out in the rain, and now, I see Manny Ortiz doing a similar thing in the snow.

They both use a plastic bag to protect strobes. (Well, Manny also uses a collapsible wescott brolli to hide from the rain).

I wonder if this nylon thing is common for shooting in harsh conditions. My hacker brains tells me it’s a great idea, then my skeptic brain is worried about color shifts, heat building up and nylon melting on the strobes.

[Read More…]

Free Resources

Advanced lighting book

Recent Posts