The Most Versatile, and Best Wedding Light Ever!

flbdig · Dec 13, 2021

https://lightandmotion.com/collections/stellapro/products/reflex

Let me start by saying the Light and Motion Reflex and CLX10 are the BEST Lighting products that I have ever use. Period!

NO, they are not the most power lighting solution I have used, NO, they are not a Flash Replacement in Bright Daylight for group shots. Yes, I still have and use my 400 and 200 watt stobes. I just use them a LOT less now.

But these are the Most Versatile, Most Powerful LED and with the Reflex, the Smallest 10,000 Lumen LED light in the World. Yes, I said 10,000 lumen LED. I will explain shortly. Let’s not get hung up on whether the Reflex is a Stobe or LED, instead focus on what it is. A Powerful Lighting Tool that can work wonders for any skilled photographer.

As a professional photographer who has shot weddings for over 30 years. I am a huge fan of adding light via on or off camera flash, strobes and now LED’s. After investing into the StellaPro LED System, they are now my most used and valued part of my Lighting Kit. To be clear, I am not a sponsored photographer from any company, I purchased two CLX10’s and two Reflex’s with my own money. So, I am sharing an unbiased opinion based on how these products have performed in my workflow on fast moving wedding days and for portraits.

These lights are Crazy Bright, I use them with the Fresnel on Bright days for Engagement couples and single subjects and they work great with the Sun as Back light and the Reflex as the Main Light, wonderful for outdoor portraits.

Compared the 10,000 lumen CLX10 to the Reflex. To me the Reflex is a Variable Lumen light based on what Power supply is attached. It’s rated as a 6000-lumen light but when you attach a 100-Watt PD battery to the Reflex you get an entirely different light.

For this test, each light was placed 3 feet from light meter, side by side on stands, ISO 100, shutter speed at 1/125th.

Spot Lens:

CLX10 @10000 Lumens f8.0

Reflex @6000 Battery Handle f10.0

Reflex @9000 Lumens f12.7

Medium Lens:

CLX10 @10000 Lumens f7.0

Reflex @6000 Battery Handle f8.0

Reflex @9000 Lumens f10.0

Fresnel Head:

CLX10 @10000 f8.0

Reflex @6000 Battery Handle f8.0

Reflex @9000 Battery Handle f9.0

The consensus was the Reflex @6000 with the Battery Handle was equally as bright as the CLX10 @10000 lumens. But with the 100-watt PD battery attached via USB-C the Reflex output MORE Light than the CLX10. And that amazing because the CLX10 is the Brightest Compact LED with a built in Power supply that you can buy.

Of course, the best benefit of LED lights is the WYSIWYG, but we also get Better AF reliability because the Reflex creates contrast on the subject which allows Contrast Based cameras to not hunt in low light situations.

I have also placed the Reflex inside of my MagMod MagBox and my Westcott Rapid Box Switch using the Light and Motion Bowens Mount Adapter, great for family group shots. And the StellaPro lights have been God send for the Video teams and 2nd photographers because with indoor ceremonies and receptions we are all using the same light set up. And they can be easily gel for Tungsten venues.

To summarize, experienced wedding photographers who shoot all year round know that we don’t shoot most of your wedding in bright mid-day sun. we shoot in all kinds of light situations and subject, from the people of the wedding to the details and amazing for Sunset images. I cannot think of a wedding this year that I could not have used the Reflex and CLX10 and I know that they will be used on EVERY wedding day from now on. They make setting up lights easy, they allow guest with cell phones to get a better shot, which I don’t mind at all, and they let us see the shadows before we shoot. I average about 350-400 images per hour on a wedding, so having the versatility of the Reflex and CLX10 have been refreshing and liberating. These are my New Favorite Tools for Weddings and Portraits. I am sure that anyone who tries one will feel the same way.

Back Lit with Reflex and CLX10

Cross lit with Reflex

With Fresnel Head

--
https://www.1cor1313.com/
1cor1313_photography - Instagram
1Co 13:13 But now we still have faith, hope, love, these three; and the greatest of these is LOVE!!!

stateit · Dec 15, 2021

LED light is getting really interesting of late.

As an electrician I've recently fitted some 150W led lights in a tall church bell tower, @120 lumen/watt, so 18000 lumen output. They are bright. And relatively cheap. But, of course, only with a CRI in the lower 80s.

My one reserve with the really bright COB lights is that to achieve 'really bright' on so few LEDs in the array, is that the LEDs have to be massively overdriven. Which dramatically reduces their life.

As a part-timer (photography) I'm looking on eagerly to see how these pan out over time. I'd like to have the money to invest in them, but it would take me too long to amortise the cost.

The lights I've fitted in the church tower I mentioned at the start have an array of I guess a hundred LEDs, which are underdriven compared to a lot of other lights, and will last many years.

--
https://sullivangeorge.photo

FujiFullCircle · Dec 15, 2021

It would seem the closest competitor will be the newest generation Rotolights that were just on kickstarter, which have a similar flash+continuous concept and I believe are rated at for a higher output. What are your thoughts at this time?

flbdig · Dec 15, 2021

FujiFullCircle said:
It would seem the closest competitor will be the newest generation Rotolights that were just on kickstarter, which have a similar flash+continuous concept and I believe are rated at for a higher output. What are your thoughts at this time?

I think the Rotolights will be a good product, but it is not a direct competitor to the Light and Motion Reflex. It is more in line with a LitraStudio LED since it also stobes and changes color Temps and has lighting effects. I own 2 of of the LitraStudios and they are an excellent product.

But the Reflex has NO direct competition besides the Light and Motion CLX10. The Reflex is super small. It weighs less than 800 grams with the Battery Handle attached and less than 350 Grams without the handle. So it's easy to mount, hide, hand hold or modify.

The Burst mode is also adjustable in output and the Reflex works with my Godox remotes or V1 and the Elinchrom family of remotes.

K e n n e t h · Dec 15, 2021

Small form factor, very high output: “37,775 lux at 1 meter with the specially designed Hyper Reflector Mini (15°)”

https://www.aputure.com/products/amaran-cob-60x/

Can’t do strobe though, just continuous light

Much cheaper, I’m glad I didn’t pre-order the Rotolites

I’m now on the fence between the Reflex S and the 60X

flbdig · Dec 15, 2021

K e n n e t h said:
Small form factor, very high output: “37,775 lux at 1 meter with the specially designed Hyper Reflector Mini (15°)”

https://www.aputure.com/products/amaran-cob-60x/

Can’t do strobe though, just continuous light

Much cheaper, I’m glad I didn’t pre-order the Rotolites
I’m now on the fence between the Reflex S and the 60X

Yes and it looks like it will be an excellent product also.

But it's Not water resistant, is much bigger and heavier, and not as Bright as the Reflex using the handle battery is 43,000 lux @1 meter with the Spot Lens, and a stop brighter with the 100w PD battery

Apurture 60x WEIGHT

Fixture675g / 1.49lbs

Power Supply557g / 1.23lbs

Mounting Bracket255g / 0.56lbs

Total2.060kg / 4.54lbs

So the weight is almost 200% heavier and it's more volume to pack, which is extremely important to me.

K e n n e t h · Dec 15, 2021

Size and weight are big factors too, especially when I have to fly with equipment

I wonder if I can use the FusionTLC Raven to control the Reflex S?

flbdig said:
K e n n e t h said:

Small form factor, very high output: “37,775 lux at 1 meter with the specially designed Hyper Reflector Mini (15°)”

https://www.aputure.com/products/amaran-cob-60x/

Can’t do strobe though, just continuous light

Much cheaper, I’m glad I didn’t pre-order the Rotolites
I’m now on the fence between the Reflex S and the 60X

Click to expand...

Yes and it looks like it will be an excellent product also.

But it's Not water resistant, is much bigger and heavier, and not as Bright as the Reflex using the handle battery is 43,000 lux @1 meter with the Spot Lens, and a stop brighter with the 100w PD battery

Apurture 60x WEIGHT

Fixture675g / 1.49lbs

Power Supply557g / 1.23lbs

Mounting Bracket255g / 0.56lbs

Total2.060kg / 4.54lbs

So the weight is almost 200% heavier and it's more volume to pack, which is extremely important to me.

flbdig · Dec 15, 2021

K e n n e t h said:
Size and weight are big factors too, especially when I have to fly with equipment
I wonder if I can use the FusionTLC Raven to control the Reflex S?

You can because it controls Godox lights. When they did the Reflex review on Petapixel they used the Fusion Raven to control the Reflex.

I have my entire LED light kit with 7 LED's and batteries, and a Panasonic Lumix S1R with 50mm f1.4 attached in a Think Tank Airport Advantage XT bag.

K e n n e t h said:
flbdig said:

K e n n e t h said:

Small form factor, very high output: “37,775 lux at 1 meter with the specially designed Hyper Reflector Mini (15°)”

https://www.aputure.com/products/amaran-cob-60x/

Can’t do strobe though, just continuous light

Much cheaper, I’m glad I didn’t pre-order the Rotolites
I’m now on the fence between the Reflex S and the 60X

Click to expand...

Yes and it looks like it will be an excellent product also.

But it's Not water resistant, is much bigger and heavier, and not as Bright as the Reflex using the handle battery is 43,000 lux @1 meter with the Spot Lens, and a stop brighter with the 100w PD battery

Apurture 60x WEIGHT

Fixture675g / 1.49lbs

Power Supply557g / 1.23lbs

Mounting Bracket255g / 0.56lbs

Total2.060kg / 4.54lbs

So the weight is almost 200% heavier and it's more volume to pack, which is extremely important to me.

Click to expand...

flbdig · Dec 21, 2021

To test the Reflex vs a Stobe in HSS, I took images of my son, who was an Extremely reluctant test subject because it was freezing cold, LOL, and put the noon day sun behind him.

Set the camera on Manual, ISO 50, and shutter speed at 1/1000th and placed light stand 3 feet away.

I used a Bare Bulb Godox V1 at Full Power and used Reflex with Spot Lens. Reflex was powered by 100w PD battery. Used the same Godox remote to fire both units.

V1 measured f4.0

Reflex measured f4.5

I shot the test several times until the cold made my son run inside. But I repeated the test inside with same parameters and the output was still the same.

But the real plus was that the V1 missed frames while powering back up were as the Reflex kept outputting the same amount of light while never missing a frame. I'm going to try the same test again when I get my Sony a9 and see if the Reflex pumps out 20 frames per second with no missed frames.

NO the total output of the Reflex is Not more powerful. When used as a HSS vs Digital Burst, the Reflex is 1/3rd more powerful and seems to never miss a shot. That adds to the Powerful LED brightness of the Reflex to show how this is such a Versatile and powerful tool for wedding photography.

tugwilson · Dec 22, 2021

What was the zoom setting on the V1?

Also what was the aputure with just the ambient light? Unless we know that the results aren't very useful.

flbdig · Dec 22, 2021

tugwilson said:
What was the zoom setting on the V1?

Also what was the aputure with just the ambient light? Unless we know that the results aren't very useful.

V1 Zoom on max Tele and camera set to f1.4 but the images were Over exposed. I used the light meter in front of face to measure the light hitting the subject.

So the camera was on Manual everything. The Godox was on Manual 1/1 Full Power. Reflex was on Full Power and 100w PD battery.

So the results are going to be the Same no matter what the f stop. The HSS is syncing with the Shutter speed, not the f stop.

tugwilson · Dec 22, 2021

flbdig said:
tugwilson said:

What was the zoom setting on the V1?

Also what was the aputure with just the ambient light? Unless we know that the results aren't very useful.

Click to expand...

V1 Zoom on max Tele and camera set to f1.4 but the images were Over exposed. I used the light meter in front of face to measure the light hitting the subject.

So the camera was on Manual everything. The Godox was on Manual 1/1 Full Power. Reflex was on Full Power and 100w PD battery.

So the results are going to be the Same no matter what the f stop. The HSS is syncing with the Shutter speed, not the f stop.

I was interested in what proportion of the light was ambient. I would guess that it would be a pretty large amount. A V1 hasn't the power to "overpower the noontime sun". As it stands the data doesn't tell us the difference in power of the two lights you tested.

If there are X lumens falling on the subject due to ambient light. then there at X+Y with the V1 and X+Z for to other light. Your experiment gives us a value of the difference between the power of the two lights but tells us nothing about the power of the two lights.

For example, if the difference was 10 lumens if one light was 10 lumens and the other 20 then the difference would be signifiant. If one was 1000 and the other 1010 the difference would be negligible.

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The Most Versatile, and Best Wedding Light Ever!

flbdig

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stateit

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FujiFullCircle

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flbdig

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K e n n e t h

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flbdig

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K e n n e t h

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