Unboxing the Godox e300 ($100 Monolight)

Is it possible to get a decent monolight for the price of a speedlight?  The Godox e300 is a monolight that seems to promise just that.  Check out the specs:

• 300 watt-seconds of power
• 150 watt modeling lamp
• compact size (20.3 cm long) and light weight (1.45 kg)
• radio-based wireless remote adjustment capability with separate FT16 accessory (~$30)
• available for less than $100 on eBay

For comparison, the Alien Bee B800, already one of the most affordable monolights, has 320ws of power and costs $280.

I ordered one last week and just got it yesterday.  Here is the unboxing:

I conducted preliminary tests last night and will post my first impressions soon.

Formal Portraits with a Flashmeter

Over the weekend I had the opportunity to take portraits for two beautiful families.  I'll discuss the lighting setup as well as the equipment I used, including the Paul C. Buff CyberCommander, which not only controls Paul Buff strobes but also functions as a flashmeter.

Lumix LX5 for Lighting Lunatics

You probably know that the aspect of my photos that I'm most passionate about is the lighting.  My passion for lighting carries over even when I'm shooting with a point and shoot camera.  Of course, looking for good ambient lighting is an option with any camera, but as much as possible I want to have maximum control over lighting by using a flash.  This obsession with lighting is why I love the Lumix LX5.  This hands-on review of the LX5 will focus on its use with an external flash, both on-camera and off-camera, and even with AlienBees!

Are You Ready for AlienBees?

In the last several years, speedlights have been roped into tasks that have traditionally been filled by studio strobes.  The underlying premise is that speedlights are much more compact, and easier to bring to and set up for a location shot.  Combined with their TTL and high-speed sync capabilities, plus their lower upfront cost, speedlights do offer practical advantages over studio strobes.

At some point though, we run into barriers that remind us of the natural limits of speedlights.  The most significant limit is of course power.  Another is the speedlight's reflector design, which sends light only forward.

It is possible to engineer solutions around those obstacles.  For example, if we need more power, we can combine two or more speedlights.  However, sometimes those solutions create problems of their own.  If we gang four speedlights, we indeed get more power but then we limit our options for light modifiers (there are only a few softbox designs that can accommodate 4 flashes).

Instead of going to extreme lengths to stretch our speedlights, however, perhaps we could reconsider using a studio strobe instead.  One particular studio strobe stands out for its dependability and very high power-to-cost ratio: AlienBees.   Hit the jump to learn more about AlienBees and whether they are right for you.