Ring Flash?
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You may want to check out this thread on Wetpixel:
Kraken Ring LIght 3000 - Lights, Strobes, and Lighting Technique
Kraken Ring LIght 3000 - Lights, Strobes, and Lighting Technique
snowdog61
Contributor
Great for macro/super macro but that's about it. Expensive and a 1 trick pony IMHO.
Rred
Contributor
What snowdog said.
The problem in water, as opposed to air, is that any light emanating out from your lens (and effectively the ring is just a fatter lens) gets reflecting right back into it, from any particles in the water. Where lights that are off to the side at some angle aren't reflected back at you until after they hit the subject.
Pretty much the same reason that "fog lights" on a car are supposed to be located well off-axis and not up close to the main driving lights.
If you take the brightest dive light you have, try using it right next to your eyes, and then try using it while holding it with an extended arm. You should see less glare and better visibility when it is held "out there" especially as the particulates in the water increase.
The problem in water, as opposed to air, is that any light emanating out from your lens (and effectively the ring is just a fatter lens) gets reflecting right back into it, from any particles in the water. Where lights that are off to the side at some angle aren't reflected back at you until after they hit the subject.
Pretty much the same reason that "fog lights" on a car are supposed to be located well off-axis and not up close to the main driving lights.
If you take the brightest dive light you have, try using it right next to your eyes, and then try using it while holding it with an extended arm. You should see less glare and better visibility when it is held "out there" especially as the particulates in the water increase.
bvanant
Contributor
To the contrary, ring flashes can be quite amazing. I wrote an article on ring strobes underwater (Using a Ring-Flash for Underwater Photography) and really love using them, BUT there are none currently available. The weefine ring light is nice (the 3000 lumen version) but it is not a strobe but is awesome for super macro video. There was an Inon quad flash that was great but it didn't apply to digital very well. I hope Athena brings out a new version soon. Saga has a fiber optic array that couples to a strobe, but it is not quite the same (fiber NA is like 0.4) but can give really nice results if you have a DSLR. There is no version for u 4/3 that I know about. I have an Athena that is being repaired (I hope), I love the look.
Bill
Bill
Patrickweill
Registered
Hello guys,
The Hong Kong housing maker sea frog just came out with a ring light /flash called SL108 it is quite cheap for what it offers, I am considering getting it for my TG4 for macro have a look at the following link :
SL 108 Underwater Diving Macro Ring Flash Light Fill Lighting For Sony A7 II A7R II Fujifilm X100F Waterproof Housing Case-in Macro & Ring Lights from Consumer Electronics on Aliexpress.com | Alibaba Group
and tell me what you think
All the best
Patrick
The Hong Kong housing maker sea frog just came out with a ring light /flash called SL108 it is quite cheap for what it offers, I am considering getting it for my TG4 for macro have a look at the following link :
SL 108 Underwater Diving Macro Ring Flash Light Fill Lighting For Sony A7 II A7R II Fujifilm X100F Waterproof Housing Case-in Macro & Ring Lights from Consumer Electronics on Aliexpress.com | Alibaba Group
and tell me what you think
All the best
Patrick
bvanant
Contributor
Patrick:
This is NOT a flash but rather an LED array very similar to the Kraken 3000 lumen version. The Kraken is $350 but uses discrete batteries meaning you can run one and charge one. This appears to be USB charged.
Cheers
BVA
This is NOT a flash but rather an LED array very similar to the Kraken 3000 lumen version. The Kraken is $350 but uses discrete batteries meaning you can run one and charge one. This appears to be USB charged.
Cheers
BVA
Technically, it is a flash, just not a strong one - it has continuous 1200lm output, and a 2500lm flash mode, with optical sync, very similar to the Kraken ring flash, but at half the cost. I don't think USB charging is a big deal - can charge it off a powerbank during surface intervals.
bvanant
Contributor
I have the Kraken 3000 and like it a lot, but even 3000 lumen (probably the same as the Kraken), what I should have said is that it is not the same as a traditional ring strobe (the LED pulse is both weak and quite long compared to a xenon flash tube). Not terribly useful for stopping action, but you can get some nice pics if you are willing to raise your ISO quite a bit.
Bill
Bill
Ring flash is great for easy, well lit macro photography...but great macro images is about light and shadow play which adds depth and drama to your image.
If its just ring flash, just use a strong torch and play angles with it
photography is not about shooting subjects, its about capturing the light as it falls on your subject
If its just ring flash, just use a strong torch and play angles with it
photography is not about shooting subjects, its about capturing the light as it falls on your subject
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