If you want to see some behind the scenes images and videos from my commercial work then head over to my instagram account instagram.com/scottchoucino/
Great video. Would be interesting to see an image comparison using the cheap reflector and the expensive reflector so we can see the huge difference you're talking about if that was possible?
Nothing hurt my wallet more than the day I tried focus stacking with my Godox lights. Took me a good two weeks to come to terms with the fact that I would have to shell out for Profoto/Bron if I wanted to keep pushing my work forward. Godox was amazing value and is probably a good fit for most people, but it just couldn't keep up in color consistency when I needed it to. Great points all around, looking forward to more videos!
@@nicosochadesign This was with 2 AD600 Pro in color consistency mode. Probably fine for a simple 3-4 image stack but unusable as the stack size increases since I notice the color shifts would get more extreme as the shots progressed. My guess is that it's heat related, and I could probably have managed them if I took a much longer interval between shots, but then I'd end up taking 20 minutes for a single final image or something. Also critical problem was that the shift was different between the two lights when they were at different power, so was getting stronger shifts in different parts of image depending on which light was at higher setting, so can't even apply simple color grade to clean it up. I still think they are the right lights for a lot of people, just weren't right for me personally. Most people aren't going to need that level of color accuracy. My Profoto isn't perfect but it is significantly better color wise. Price wise though, Profoto is killing me haha
Hello Scott.., Very interesting.. I’ve heard you saying about the importance of high quality modifiers several times.. and I trust you ., but as also someone else said, it would be very useful to see the comparison between the same picture made by a cheap and a premium modifier .. Thank You and keep on the good work my friend..
5:35 I could be wrong here, but if you're talking about Godox X1T being identical to Broncolor RFS 2.2, my understanding was that Broncolor licensed it from Godox
Thanks very useful ...but you could have posted this 6 months ago before I had decided to move from Elinchrom to Godox !!!- ha ha I was impressed with the way the Godox trigger works with all their flashes, from speedlites to their portable strobes and all the way through to their studio strobes. And that I was the mug for not using a cheaper more flexible brand like Godox, but after investing in some Godox studio heads I am now fully appreciating the Elinchrom quality... so I am wallowing in buyer's remorse!
I was waiting for this video so badly. Hopefully I haven't invested so much into the "CHEAP" brand. And I've totally experienced the shifts in color temperatures, and it was for a bundle of shots that needed to be consistent. I also suffered from multiple miss firing... Having your feedback to confirm my thoughts is a great motivation to start investing in some good quality stuff. Cheers Mate 🍻
When I worked as a lighting tech in Los Angeles Broncolor lights failed more than any other lights we rented out. Cheap vs expensive is not the issue in my experience when it comes to consistency. Many of our past clients noticed flash output fluctuation with Broncolor and even Profoto. Many of the more expensive lights have a wider spectrum of output that can cause issues with output. Sometimes using power conditioners for lights helps when plugging into dirty electric situations. Sometimes lights have circuit board issues. Quality control has become an issue for every manufacturer these days and so has power issues on set or in the studio. Sometimes you buy the light that has an issue and you have to return it regardless if it was made in the USA or China. Sometimes your outlet destroys the light and the light gets blamed.
Thank you. Can you elaborate more on older 'higher-end' gear vs newer 'lower-end' kit? Have you found the consistency in the older kit to be acceptable? Most of my own lighting kit is 30+ years old as well, and still reliable, but It's incredibly limited in terms of control capabilities, not to mention heavy, bulky, and mains-only powered.
I own a big studio with many different sets (hollow man/top shot/packshot etc.), if I would equip every place with broncolor, I would pay more than 100.000€. So I decided to buy the Godox QT series (which are the most expensive ones from Godox). This investment was a fraction of the investment I would have with bron or profoto and believe me or not, the QT series is very very color stable (tested several times with thousand of shots). Nevertheless, to be completely accurate we use an X-Rite profile and the X-Rite card to match the colors, I also would do this process with bron or profoto. But yes, bron and profoto are better don't get me wrong, but are they so much better to justify the price? And yes, for a production outside, I would bring a spare strobe with me no problem at all.
Check Robert Hall's comparison against Profoto and Broncolor so you get complete idea about godox. He has done all the comparisons technically. Btw awesome channel. Subscribed.
I didn't see the images you mentioned at the beginning. You may have forgot to edit them in. I'm just starting out and I recently bought some cheaper lights but not the cheapest for sure. Someone was going to sell me all the Hensel strobes and Porty packs from his studio for a steal, about $1500 for 2 Porty packs and 4 strobes and a million other things, modifiers and other lights, but I just can't justify more than I need. I have a portable 400w strobe (Neewer Q4, which was recommended by some local jobbing photographers, they say Neewer has upped their game recently), a Neewer LED continuous, a Canon 580EX speedlight, a Godox softbox and Lantern. I bought the modifiers before watching your video on how important modifiers are compared to everything else. I should've bought a used Broncolor/Profoto softbox instead of those? I dunno. My cameras are the Canon R5, 70D and R50. I thought Ineeded the R5 for Video work as well as photo work as many want 4k120 slow-mo. But I should've got a cheaper alternative, but it was the only Canon that did that and I have many Canon Lenses so... yeah. I binge watch (listen to on headphones) your channel everyday, all day. You have THE MOST USEFUL INFO on ACTUAL professional photography on TH-cam, hands down.
@@TinHouseStudioUK yes, they paid money to godox for development and making of this product. How it can be another way? The reality of today is lights and accessories, in particular, is not so overpriced, in general, like it was before (you can look up price, for example for Profoto and Bowen’s fresnel 200, it’s same fresnel, but profoto was 2 or 3 times pricier). “Luxury” brands are here to stay, but photo lights in general is more accessible today.
£50,000 a day?! Had to rewind that a few times. Even somebody like Rankin wouldn't make that! Who is that comment about? Maybe Gursky or Leibovitz?? Don't think they are worried about how much a Bron pack costs.
This is such an important topic and one that fascinates me enormously. I'm in the Flashpoint system but adapt my lights to Profoto in many instances and am always looking for replica modifiers. The Glow white umbrellas for instance are almost exact replicas of the Profotos. I use FotodioX zoom II reflectors that are actually better than OEM because the white balance of the modifier is more accurate whereas Profoto's are a touch warm. I'm so glad I never wasted money on the $10ish "standard reflector" options that plague the Internet. Glow makes replicas of the Broncolor reverse mounted parabolic reflectors, and I have the small and large. But other brand "parabolic reflectors" aren't truly parabolic and are total rubbish. I personally plan to invest in Profoto lights and modifiers for portraiture down the road. It really does make a world of difference, like you say especially with modifiers. These are the hard discussions we need way more of. There are far too many "TH-camrs" who do budget videos based on 5 setups you can do with a potato. Having someone like you who is actually working competitively to sit down and be like "listen - gear matters. Expensive lights make a difference. Get your head out of your arse and invest in your lighting or stop expecting the same results. End of discussion" is so sorely needed.
It's interesting that this video is telling the truth - that you don't need "expensive" lights for many photographic applications. I like my Godox lights. They don't misfire any more than my previous, much more expensive kit - meaning they don't misfire at all (at least in my experience). I probably wouldn't use these for product photography, but for what I do, they are great. As for modifiers, I don't know if I agree with there importance. I don't have fine test tools, but I really don't see a lot of difference between my expensive and inexpensive modifiers. I can't speak to the little 7" reflector modifier that comes from Godox, because I haven't used it. Regardless, I think it is very difficult to make blanket statements. For a good technical discussion of these issues, consider looking at Robert Hall's TH-cam channel. He delves into these issues and has some gear to test results.
If i could i would love to use Profoto or Broncolor lights but until i win the lotto it ain't going to happen. I have used various old Bowens lights and modifiers on studio days and they are great, if a little massive, and I have used Godox and Neewer ones which were great but gave out different light for each one even when they were part of the same set
Seriously - there’s nothing wrong with Godox, if that’s what you can afford, I’ve been using their portable battery lights for the last 5yrs for location work. I do use Profoto in the studio on a daily basis. Do your research though, what Broncolor and Profoto charge for some of their modifiers is simply ridiculous. The Profoto deep parabolic umbrella retails for around £300 (or it used to) The exact same brolly from Interfit - £65 😂😂
If you want to see some behind the scenes images and videos from my commercial work then head over to my instagram account instagram.com/scottchoucino/
Great video. Would be interesting to see an image comparison using the cheap reflector and the expensive reflector so we can see the huge difference you're talking about if that was possible?
I’ll see what I can do :)
Yes! I was just about to commenting asking the same thing!
+1!
+1!
Nothing hurt my wallet more than the day I tried focus stacking with my Godox lights. Took me a good two weeks to come to terms with the fact that I would have to shell out for Profoto/Bron if I wanted to keep pushing my work forward. Godox was amazing value and is probably a good fit for most people, but it just couldn't keep up in color consistency when I needed it to. Great points all around, looking forward to more videos!
Which Godox did you use? I do a lot of stacking with the Godox QT600ii and they are consistend.
@@nicosochadesign This was with 2 AD600 Pro in color consistency mode. Probably fine for a simple 3-4 image stack but unusable as the stack size increases since I notice the color shifts would get more extreme as the shots progressed. My guess is that it's heat related, and I could probably have managed them if I took a much longer interval between shots, but then I'd end up taking 20 minutes for a single final image or something.
Also critical problem was that the shift was different between the two lights when they were at different power, so was getting stronger shifts in different parts of image depending on which light was at higher setting, so can't even apply simple color grade to clean it up.
I still think they are the right lights for a lot of people, just weren't right for me personally. Most people aren't going to need that level of color accuracy. My Profoto isn't perfect but it is significantly better color wise. Price wise though, Profoto is killing me haha
Hello Scott.., Very interesting.. I’ve heard you saying about the importance of high quality modifiers several times.. and I trust you ., but as also someone else said, it would be very useful to see the comparison between the same picture made by a cheap and a premium modifier ..
Thank You and keep on the good work my friend..
5:35 I could be wrong here, but if you're talking about Godox X1T being identical to Broncolor RFS 2.2, my understanding was that Broncolor licensed it from Godox
Fantastic video. Balanced take, and all good points.
Much appreciated!
Excellent information once again.
Your Videos are always so helpful.
Thanks very useful ...but you could have posted this 6 months ago before I had decided to move from Elinchrom to Godox !!!- ha ha
I was impressed with the way the Godox trigger works with all their flashes, from speedlites to their portable strobes and all the way through to their studio strobes. And that I was the mug for not using a cheaper more flexible brand like Godox, but after investing in some Godox studio heads I am now fully appreciating the Elinchrom quality... so I am wallowing in buyer's remorse!
Great video mate. Thanks, could we have a video on your top 5 modifiers?
Thank you for the great videos!
Thanks :D
At last someone who tells the truth , not a sales man !
Thanks
I was waiting for this video so badly. Hopefully I haven't invested so much into the "CHEAP" brand. And I've totally experienced the shifts in color temperatures, and it was for a bundle of shots that needed to be consistent. I also suffered from multiple miss firing... Having your feedback to confirm my thoughts is a great motivation to start investing in some good quality stuff. Cheers Mate 🍻
When I worked as a lighting tech in Los Angeles Broncolor lights failed more than any other lights we rented out. Cheap vs expensive is not the issue in my experience when it comes to consistency. Many of our past clients noticed flash output fluctuation with Broncolor and even Profoto. Many of the more expensive lights have a wider spectrum of output that can cause issues with output. Sometimes using power conditioners for lights helps when plugging into dirty electric situations. Sometimes lights have circuit board issues. Quality control has become an issue for every manufacturer these days and so has power issues on set or in the studio. Sometimes you buy the light that has an issue and you have to return it regardless if it was made in the USA or China. Sometimes your outlet destroys the light and the light gets blamed.
Thank you.
Can you elaborate more on older 'higher-end' gear vs newer 'lower-end' kit? Have you found the consistency in the older kit to be acceptable? Most of my own lighting kit is 30+ years old as well, and still reliable, but It's incredibly limited in terms of control capabilities, not to mention heavy, bulky, and mains-only powered.
thankfully I can still stick with my godox flashes (or pixapro) :D
I own a big studio with many different sets (hollow man/top shot/packshot etc.), if I would equip every place with broncolor, I would pay more than 100.000€. So I decided to buy the Godox QT series (which are the most expensive ones from Godox). This investment was a fraction of the investment I would have with bron or profoto and believe me or not, the QT series is very very color stable (tested several times with thousand of shots). Nevertheless, to be completely accurate we use an X-Rite profile and the X-Rite card to match the colors, I also would do this process with bron or profoto.
But yes, bron and profoto are better don't get me wrong, but are they so much better to justify the price? And yes, for a production outside, I would bring a spare strobe with me no problem at all.
Check Robert Hall's comparison against Profoto and Broncolor so you get complete idea about godox. He has done all the comparisons technically.
Btw awesome channel. Subscribed.
Hello Hello Hello, I haven't seen the video yet, but I believe it's amazing as always
You're the best!
@@TinHouseStudioUK yay
I didn't see the images you mentioned at the beginning. You may have forgot to edit them in. I'm just starting out and I recently bought some cheaper lights but not the cheapest for sure. Someone was going to sell me all the Hensel strobes and Porty packs from his studio for a steal, about $1500 for 2 Porty packs and 4 strobes and a million other things, modifiers and other lights, but I just can't justify more than I need. I have a portable 400w strobe (Neewer Q4, which was recommended by some local jobbing photographers, they say Neewer has upped their game recently), a Neewer LED continuous, a Canon 580EX speedlight, a Godox softbox and Lantern. I bought the modifiers before watching your video on how important modifiers are compared to everything else. I should've bought a used Broncolor/Profoto softbox instead of those? I dunno. My cameras are the Canon R5, 70D and R50. I thought Ineeded the R5 for Video work as well as photo work as many want 4k120 slow-mo. But I should've got a cheaper alternative, but it was the only Canon that did that and I have many Canon Lenses so... yeah. I binge watch (listen to on headphones) your channel everyday, all day. You have THE MOST USEFUL INFO on ACTUAL professional photography on TH-cam, hands down.
One or two cheap shoot thru umbrellas with speedlights works for me better than a softbox, because a softbox needs more powerfull lights.
i would love to see a comparison between the cheap godox reflector vs the 200$ broncolor one, bc i cant imaginethe difference between them.
Ooh I can deffo do that
Broncolor triggers was developed and produced by this "chinese brand" :)
Yes, but with the financial backing of a brand.
@@TinHouseStudioUK yes, they paid money to godox for development and making of this product. How it can be another way?
The reality of today is lights and accessories, in particular, is not so overpriced, in general, like it was before (you can look up price, for example for Profoto and Bowen’s fresnel 200, it’s same fresnel, but profoto was 2 or 3 times pricier). “Luxury” brands are here to stay, but photo lights in general is more accessible today.
Have you tested any of the Interfit lights? Rumor is they are made in the same factory as Profoto.
We have Einstein here is the US. Its what I saw other pros using before moving to Broncolor.
Im sticking budget i got some lights 2 years ago for 50 american. And they do their job
£50,000 a day?! Had to rewind that a few times. Even somebody like Rankin wouldn't make that! Who is that comment about? Maybe Gursky or Leibovitz?? Don't think they are worried about how much a Bron pack costs.
That’s including usage haha, not just the day rate. So any world wide above the line campaign would top that.
This is such an important topic and one that fascinates me enormously. I'm in the Flashpoint system but adapt my lights to Profoto in many instances and am always looking for replica modifiers. The Glow white umbrellas for instance are almost exact replicas of the Profotos. I use FotodioX zoom II reflectors that are actually better than OEM because the white balance of the modifier is more accurate whereas Profoto's are a touch warm. I'm so glad I never wasted money on the $10ish "standard reflector" options that plague the Internet. Glow makes replicas of the Broncolor reverse mounted parabolic reflectors, and I have the small and large. But other brand "parabolic reflectors" aren't truly parabolic and are total rubbish.
I personally plan to invest in Profoto lights and modifiers for portraiture down the road. It really does make a world of difference, like you say especially with modifiers. These are the hard discussions we need way more of. There are far too many "TH-camrs" who do budget videos based on 5 setups you can do with a potato. Having someone like you who is actually working competitively to sit down and be like "listen - gear matters. Expensive lights make a difference. Get your head out of your arse and invest in your lighting or stop expecting the same results. End of discussion" is so sorely needed.
It's interesting that this video is telling the truth - that you don't need "expensive" lights for many photographic applications. I like my Godox lights. They don't misfire any more than my previous, much more expensive kit - meaning they don't misfire at all (at least in my experience). I probably wouldn't use these for product photography, but for what I do, they are great. As for modifiers, I don't know if I agree with there importance. I don't have fine test tools, but I really don't see a lot of difference between my expensive and inexpensive modifiers. I can't speak to the little 7" reflector modifier that comes from Godox, because I haven't used it. Regardless, I think it is very difficult to make blanket statements.
For a good technical discussion of these issues, consider looking at Robert Hall's TH-cam channel. He delves into these issues and has some gear to test results.
If i could i would love to use Profoto or Broncolor lights but until i win the lotto it ain't going to happen. I have used various old Bowens lights and modifiers on studio days and they are great, if a little massive, and I have used Godox and Neewer ones which were great but gave out different light for each one even when they were part of the same set
Seriously - there’s nothing wrong with Godox, if that’s what you can afford, I’ve been using their portable battery lights for the last 5yrs for location work. I do use Profoto in the studio on a daily basis. Do your research though, what Broncolor and Profoto charge for some of their modifiers is simply ridiculous. The Profoto deep parabolic umbrella retails for around £300 (or it used to) The exact same brolly from Interfit - £65 😂😂
Yes this is very true. There are some items from the big brands that are stupid money, others that seem reasonable for what they offer.
I’ve built a successful business using Godox ad600 lights but I don’t shoot products.
+1000%