Being a photographer who loves using off camera lighting, I am always intrigued by new and innovative lighting gadgets. Tiffen unveiled the Lowel GL-1 Power LED Light at PDN this week, and it is definitely something different in comparison to the types of lighting I am used to.
From the official press release:
About the New Lowel GL-1 Power LED Light
Designed in conjunction with world-renowned wedding and event photographers Brian Marcus and John Solano, the Lowel GL-1 is the perfect complement to today’s DSLR cameras. It lets shooters harness the creative potential of high ISO shoots.The Lowel GL-1 Power LED is a battery-powered, focusable and dimmable, photo-quality tungsten color LED light. This means users can control the diameter of the light beam, focusing from a tight spot to a wide flood. The beam is very even, from edge to edge, with no hot spots.
GL-1's dimming ability lets users vary the amount of light output from 5-100%, without any shift in color temperature, to perfectly match the atmosphere of the location. With the integrity of the atmosphere maintained, photographers and videographers can see the exact effect the light has on their shot.
The New Lowel GL-1 Power LED Feature and Benefit Highlights Include:
Powerful Output – State-of-the-art LED provides a wide focus range, from spot to flood; allows shooters to create that dramatic Hollywood-style lighting either close up or from 20 feet away
Tungsten Color – Flatters skin tones, outputting a very high-quality photo image
Self-Contained DC Power – Gives shooters maximum portability and speed in lighting placement
Two Ways of Dimming – 1) Use the adjustable Dimming Trigger to quickly achieve the perfect light level for short-term handheld use; 2) Lock the light ON and dial in intensity for longer-term constant output at any level, perfect for mounted use or time lapse “Light Painting”
Silent Diaphragm Cooling – Eliminates distraction while shooting in quiet moments
1/4-20 Screw-Thread on GL-1 Base – Provides option for tripod/stand mounting for longer term lighting setups
Lowel GL1 Power LED Specifications
• Dimmable focusing LED fixture
• Dimming Range – 5-100%
• Color Temperature – 3000K
• Color Rendering Index – 90
• Focus Range – 5:1 (approximate)
• Output Reading at 5 feet, full spot: 398-foot candles
• Output Reading at 5 feet, full flood: 73-foot candlesPricing and Availability
With an MSRP of less than 800.00 USD, the Lowel GL-1 Light will be released in Q4 2012.
To me this all seems really interesting, but generally when a company says "an MSRP of less than ____" it normally doesn't tend to be much less than the number they state. With that being said, paying $700+ for this seems like a big chunk of change for one light. Time will tell the uses and efficiency of this guy once it hits the market. What do you all think? Let us know in the comments below.
Yes I saw the images and they are great. Just not wow-ed enough to leave my battery powered softbox. At least not for the price. Good luck though.
I have also had the opportunity to use the GL-1 in it's early incarnations (not production models). It easily out performs a Brinkman and also a modified Dedo head (why is no body mentioning the cost of Dedo's?) affixed to a "drill handle". The GL-1 produces a much brighter light (when desired, it is dimmable) and is focusable so you can have a wide or narrow beam. When working at the huge ballroom of the FS on Wilshire, it produced a circle of light with nice fall off at the edges from 75 feet away (guesstimating here) where as the Brinkman wouldn't even illuminate a subject that far, nor a modified Dedo. This is an entirely different tool, thus the allusions to Aston Martin and Bentley vs. a Honda or Nissan. Both are the same category- Car. One out performs the other. If you are a honda person and are fine with that, then a Brinkman is sufficient, if you prefer a higher performance light with more power and flexibility, then the GL-1 may be more your "speed".
To be fixated on the price and refer to it as a flashlight is naive and short sighted. It is another tool in your arsenal. You can DIY whatever you like, if you're happy with that. If you prefer to arrive to your gig with top quality equipment then you arrive with the best, looking your best, and offering a great experience to your clients. You don't half ass, you don't spray and pray and fix it in post, you don't learn on your clients dime.
The price is high. As is the price of our gear. Pro bodies cost $5000 and last for about 4 years, lenses $1500 and can last for decades, camera bags (why hasn't anyone DIY'd their own ThinkTank or Pelican case, as aren't they modified suitcases according to some arguments on here?) $300+.
So don't get fixated on price, no one is in business to "break even" or invent a product, see it thru R&D, test it, market it, and sell it at a loss or in order to make friends and influence people.... Using the same short sighted arguments I've seen on here, clients could argue that all you're doing is showing up with a camera to take pictures, why should they pay so much? Am I right?
If this is not a tool you can see using, then don't buy it, but don't compare apples to oranges (it is not an Einstein head, nor a strobe), it is not a Brinkman, it is not even a Dedo, it is an entirely new product that is top notch. Wait until you can hold one and see it in use before you make up your mind. Also, it is not intended to be held by the photographer while holding the camera, as it seems one poster implied.