Prophoto B1 Air TTL or Prolite MBX500?

[Derrel]

The Priolite's big draw is the built-in battery pack concept and "cordless" nature. The specifications seem decent, speed-wise. Priolite MBX500 500W/s Monolight (115-230VAC) 01-0500-02 B&H

I guess it depends on priorities and desires. You could buy MANY more monolights of lower-spec for $3,000, but then you would not own the pair of Priolites. Studio flash is one of those areas where individuals can choose between HIGH-end, medium, medium-high, low-end, and ultra-economy....there's a monolight for EVERY budget.

I personally would rather own FIVE, or SIX 150 Watt-second flashes than TWO, high-specification, expensive, $1,500 lights...I am used to having as many lights as I need...four,five,or six lights, with two 2,400 W-s packs and one 1600 W-s and a trio of 400 W-s packs, plus a 200 W-s, and not worrying about cost because I bought Speedotron, and it's low-cost used and has been around so long it's not trendy at all...

But that idea has passed; it's now much more-fashionable to go with monolights. It's all a matter of cash, priorities, needs, wants, impression, image; I'm more concerned with having 4,5,or 6 lights because I often WANT to have five separate lights, but if a guy needs or wants only TWO, then I suppose it makes sense to look at a two-light system. Studio and location flash is a difficult thing to generalize about...it depends on what YOU WANT. I don't really know about your needs; is 220 full-power flashes per battery charge enough? As I read it, after 220 shots at full, the battery will need to be charged, but it seems like you CAN SHOOT when it's connected to the charger, and on active charging.

I think I said that I own already 5 sb910 and two qflashes. That's for my creative work. Now I'm looking for a professional "true & full lit" type of think. Basically studio lightening on the go. That's why I'm debating about these two..

Look at the time stamp of my post...whatever you blurted out was not available when I wrote my post.

Rotsa Ruck. Maybe do some research before you plop down money on useless crap. Two-thousand dollar TTL monolights. LMFAO. Sorry. PT Barnum was correct. There's a customer for any hare-brained concept these days.

 

[hulk2012]

The Priolite's big draw is the built-in battery pack concept and "cordless" nature. The specifications seem decent, speed-wise. Priolite MBX500 500W/s Monolight (115-230VAC) 01-0500-02 B&H

I guess it depends on priorities and desires. You could buy MANY more monolights of lower-spec for $3,000, but then you would not own the pair of Priolites. Studio flash is one of those areas where individuals can choose between HIGH-end, medium, medium-high, low-end, and ultra-economy....there's a monolight for EVERY budget.

I personally would rather own FIVE, or SIX 150 Watt-second flashes than TWO, high-specification, expensive, $1,500 lights...I am used to having as many lights as I need...four,five,or six lights, with two 2,400 W-s packs and one 1600 W-s and a trio of 400 W-s packs, plus a 200 W-s, and not worrying about cost because I bought Speedotron, and it's low-cost used and has been around so long it's not trendy at all...

But that idea has passed; it's now much more-fashionable to go with monolights. It's all a matter of cash, priorities, needs, wants, impression, image; I'm more concerned with having 4,5,or 6 lights because I often WANT to have five separate lights, but if a guy needs or wants only TWO, then I suppose it makes sense to look at a two-light system. Studio and location flash is a difficult thing to generalize about...it depends on what YOU WANT. I don't really know about your needs; is 220 full-power flashes per battery charge enough? As I read it, after 220 shots at full, the battery will need to be charged, but it seems like you CAN SHOOT when it's connected to the charger, and on active charging.

I think I said that I own already 5 sb910 and two qflashes. That's for my creative work. Now I'm looking for a professional "true & full lit" type of think. Basically studio lightening on the go. That's why I'm debating about these two..

Look at the time stamp of my post...whatever you blurted out was not available when I wrote my post.

Rotsa Ruck. Maybe do some research before you plop down money on useless crap.

What you mean useless crap?

 

[hulk2012]

From Qflash and speedlights to those? That's a huge jump, both in price and outright size. If you've got the budget for it then why not? The tech is enough to make just about anyone geek out, but it just doesn't seem practical from a cost standpoint relative to the vast array of other lights on the market. For the cost of two 500ws Priolites and the remote you can get 4 Einsteins (assuming you're in N.America), 4 Vagabond Mini Lithium battery packs, 4 CyberSync Transeivers, and a CyberCommander. It really would make me stop and think a bit.

For me battery built in is a must. Simplicity and easy of use.

 

[Scatterbrained]

The Priolite's big draw is the built-in battery pack concept and "cordless" nature. The specifications seem decent, speed-wise. Priolite MBX500 500W/s Monolight (115-230VAC) 01-0500-02 B&H

I guess it depends on priorities and desires. You could buy MANY more monolights of lower-spec for $3,000, but then you would not own the pair of Priolites. Studio flash is one of those areas where individuals can choose between HIGH-end, medium, medium-high, low-end, and ultra-economy....there's a monolight for EVERY budget.

I personally would rather own FIVE, or SIX 150 Watt-second flashes than TWO, high-specification, expensive, $1,500 lights...I am used to having as many lights as I need...four,five,or six lights, with two 2,400 W-s packs and one 1600 W-s and a trio of 400 W-s packs, plus a 200 W-s, and not worrying about cost because I bought Speedotron, and it's low-cost used and has been around so long it's not trendy at all...

But that idea has passed; it's now much more-fashionable to go with monolights. It's all a matter of cash, priorities, needs, wants, impression, image; I'm more concerned with having 4,5,or 6 lights because I often WANT to have five separate lights, but if a guy needs or wants only TWO, then I suppose it makes sense to look at a two-light system. Studio and location flash is a difficult thing to generalize about...it depends on what YOU WANT. I don't really know about your needs; is 220 full-power flashes per battery charge enough? As I read it, after 220 shots at full, the battery will need to be charged, but it seems like you CAN SHOOT when it's connected to the charger, and on active charging.

I think I said that I own already 5 sb910 and two qflashes. That's for my creative work. Now I'm looking for a professional "true & full lit" type of think. Basically studio lightening on the go. That's why I'm debating about these two..

Look at the time stamp of my post...whatever you blurted out was not available when I wrote my post.

Rotsa Ruck. Maybe do some research before you plop down money on useless crap. Two-thousand dollar TTL monolights. LMFAO. Sorry. PT Barnum was correct. There's a customer for any hare-brained concept these days.

Personally, I can see a lot of use for an ETTL monolight.

 

[hulk2012]

I think I said that I own already 5 sb910 and two qflashes. That's for my creative work. Now I'm looking for a professional "true & full lit" type of think. Basically studio lightening on the go. That's why I'm debating about these two..

Look at the time stamp of my post...whatever you blurted out was not available when I wrote my post.

Rotsa Ruck. Maybe do some research before you plop down money on useless crap. Two-thousand dollar TTL monolights. LMFAO. Sorry. PT Barnum was correct. There's a customer for any hare-brained concept these days.

Personally, I can see a lot of use for an ETTL monolight.

Completely agree.

 

[Derrel]

Personally, I can see a lot of use for an ETTL monolight.

Obviously: each one extracts $2k from a customer's wallet.

Must be why there is exactly ONE TTL monolight on the market too...such high demand, you know...

Next up, monolights with training wheels and sippy cups?

 

[tirediron]

Look at the time stamp of my post...whatever you blurted out was not available when I wrote my post.

Rotsa Ruck. Maybe do some research before you plop down money on useless crap. Two-thousand dollar TTL monolights. LMFAO. Sorry. PT Barnum was correct. There's a customer for any hare-brained concept these days.

Personally, I can see a lot of use for an ETTL monolight.

Completely agree.

Seems to rather defeat the purpose of a monolight. I understand your wanting a fully portable high-powered light, honestly, I think either of your choices are really poor ways to go. Just my $00.02.

 

[Scatterbrained]

Personally, I can see a lot of use for an ETTL monolight.

Obviously: each one extracts $2k from a customer's wallet.

Must be why there is exactly ONE TTL monolight on the market too...such high demand, you know...

Next up, monolights with training wheels and sippy cups?

Personally, I can see a lot of use for an ETTL monolight.

Completely agree.

Seems to rather defeat the purpose of a monolight. I understand your wanting a fully portable high-powered light, honestly, I think either of your choices are really poor ways to go. Just my $00.02.

As a mountain biker I can see the usefulness of a TTL monolight for shooting action sports. I can also see the usefulness in situations where people are already using TTL speedlights. The qflash, at somewhere like 400ws is essentially a mini monolight with TTL capability.

 

[Scatterbrained]

Personally, I can see a lot of use for an ETTL monolight.

Obviously: each one extracts $2k from a customer's wallet.

Must be why there is exactly ONE TTL monolight on the market too...such high demand, you know...

......................................................................................................

Just wait, Profoto has one now so it shouldn't be too long before some Chinese company like Godox comes out with a knock off for half the price. Beyond that, TTL technology in a monolight is quite a task, and I'd imagine rather expensive to implement. Just look at the cost of TTL speedlights from Canon and Nikon. They cost as much as a decent monolight. Then the Chinese come along with their replicas. . . . . . . . .

 

[HitenNainaney]

I'll agree with the OP that at times clients do demand "professional quality equipment"

Barely do the know what difference it makes. And that the same shoot could be done with an elinchrome.

But being born and raised in a place as pretentious as Dubai, I do know many photographers who have been turned down because they don't own a phase one.

You know, "how can you call yourself a professional if you don't own a hassleblad?"

Meh.

Sent from my HTC One using Tapatalk

 

[hulk2012]

I'll agree with the OP that at times clients do demand "professional quality equipment"

Barely do the know what difference it makes. And that the same shoot could be done with an elinchrome.

But being born and raised in a place as pretentious as Dubai, I do know many photographers who have been turned down because they don't own a phase one.

You know, "how can you call yourself a professional if you don't own a hassleblad?"

Meh.

Sent from my HTC One using Tapatalk

You got my point. I'm aiming for the best so I'm battling the best. I'm not in this game to barely make living. I'm here to kill it. Beside the fact that photography is my passion it's also my business which many people forget. It is a business. You can't be the best cashing top prices the same time using amateur level equipment. I'm here for a long run. For a home run. Otherwise I would do bunch of other high profitable stuff to earn a good living. Already few walked away from just to follow one of my passion though... If money allow why not Profoto B1 unless there is something on the market providing better results and more simplistic with wireless trigger informing of all the setting and battery pack (hate wires!) with lower price tag I am not aware of??

 

[hulk2012]

Personally, I can see a lot of use for an ETTL monolight.

Completely agree.

Seems to rather defeat the purpose of a monolight. I understand your wanting a fully portable high-powered light, honestly, I think either of your choices are really poor ways to go. Just my $00.02.

What would you suggest then?

 

[Scatterbrained]

I'll agree with the OP that at times clients do demand "professional quality equipment"

Barely do the know what difference it makes. And that the same shoot could be done with an elinchrome.

But being born and raised in a place as pretentious as Dubai, I do know many photographers who have been turned down because they don't own a phase one.

You know, "how can you call yourself a professional if you don't own a hassleblad?"

Meh.

Sent from my HTC One using Tapatalk

You got my point. I'm aiming for the best so I'm battling the best. I'm not in this game to barely make living. I'm here to kill it. Beside the fact that photography is my passion it's also my business which many people forget. It is a business. You can't be the best cashing top prices the same time using amateur level equipment. I'm here for a long run. For a home run. Otherwise I would do bunch of other high profitable stuff to earn a good living. Already few walked away from just to follow one of my passion though... If money allow why not Profoto B1 unless there is something on the market providing better results and more simplistic with wireless trigger informing of all the setting and battery pack (hate wires!) with lower price tag I am not aware of??

There are some very successful photographers who use "amateur" equipment. Joel Grimes shoots Einsteins, as do a lot of other successful commercial photographers. Light is light. That said, the B1 has two things going for it, battery power built in and TTL. Other than that. . . . . . just bear in mind when you're going on about "the best" and "amateur" that there are a lot of shooters who have attained quite a bit of success who don't shoot Profoto, Broncolor, etc. If you were shooting commercial/advertising then I'd say you may have a valid point about client impressions, but a wedding or portrait client isn't going to know the difference between a Profoto, a Hensel, or a White Lightning. That said, I was always accused of being a tool geek so I can relate, and I see the benefits of the B1 (just not at that price point).

 

[hulk2012]

I'll agree with the OP that at times clients do demand "professional quality equipment"

Barely do the know what difference it makes. And that the same shoot could be done with an elinchrome.

But being born and raised in a place as pretentious as Dubai, I do know many photographers who have been turned down because they don't own a phase one.

You know, "how can you call yourself a professional if you don't own a hassleblad?"

Meh.

Sent from my HTC One using Tapatalk

You got my point. I'm aiming for the best so I'm battling the best. I'm not in this game to barely make living. I'm here to kill it. Beside the fact that photography is my passion it's also my business which many people forget. It is a business. You can't be the best cashing top prices the same time using amateur level equipment. I'm here for a long run. For a home run. Otherwise I would do bunch of other high profitable stuff to earn a good living. Already few walked away from just to follow one of my passion though... If money allow why not Profoto B1 unless there is something on the market providing better results and more simplistic with wireless trigger informing of all the setting and battery pack (hate wires!) with lower price tag I am not aware of??

There are some very successful photographers who use "amateur" equipment. Joel Grimes shoots Einsteins, as do a lot of other successful commercial photographers. Light is light. That said, the B1 has two things going for it, battery power built in and TTL. Other than that. . . . . . just bear in mind when you're going on about "the best" and "amateur" that there are a lot of shooters who have attained quite a bit of success who don't shoot Profoto, Broncolor, etc. If you were shooting commercial/advertising then I'd say you may have a valid point about client impressions, but a wedding or portrait client isn't going to know the difference between a Profoto, a Hensel, or a White Lightning. That said, I was always accused of being a tool geek so I can relate, and I see the benefits of the B1 (just not at that price point).

My aim is advertising to be honest. Tether shooting controlled environment is what I enjoyed the most. I'm on the come up. Will hit some advertising agencies by summer with some print catalogues and marketing materials. Gotta get ready by then having right tools and felling comfortable using the gear if you know what I mean.

 

[Scatterbrained]

You won't be using TTL much for advertising/studio shooting. With commercial/product/advertising work consistency is key. TTL is not exactly known for consistency. TTL is great for events when things are moving fast, but when you've got a planned shoot, you'll more likely be using a light meter than TTL. Even then, I don't think any A.D.s are going to give two squeezes out of a rats backside if you're using Profoto or what, so long as you don't show up with a hot pink Alien Bee, and you know how to set up and adjust your lights you'll be good. If they're hiring you it's because of your portfolio, and likely a recommendation or two, not your gear. What they'll be more worried about is whether or not your camera is up to snuff. If Budweiser calls you up for a beauty shot of a new line of beer, you don't want to show up with a 10mp DSLR for a shoot that will be landing double truck spreads in magazines and on billboards. Quick question? Do you know how to set up your lights with a light meter? Setting ratios, determining light falloff? These are going to be a lot more important in advertising than whether or not you've got wireless, TTL capable monolights.