Sure, it did put a pleasant little backlight on the flowering crops, sufficient to recommend daylight on an overcast day – when taking pictures macros of bees, not less than.
Point out the concept the movie trade didn’t invent interchangeable modifiers, and somebody will instantly point out K5600’s stalwart Jo-Leko, a projection attachment which predates the widespread adoption of flash-shaped LEDs with snap-on choices. Nonetheless, whereas we’re calling it a Bowens mount, we must always in all probability settle for that we owe among the conveniences of recent lighting to the world of stills.
This dialogue is prompted by Nanlite’s new 25 to 45-degree projection attachment, which the corporate intends for Bowens-mount lights such because the FC-500C. For comparability, we additionally see the 18-36 diploma attachment for lights with the corporate’s smaller FM mount. This kind of lens tube has improved enormously in the course of the age of LED; the optics utilized in most trendy designs are sometimes significantly higher than these of a decade in the past, lowering aberration in a means that helps issues look much less like a projected impact and extra like an precise shadow and with out the sunshine lack of conventional workarounds.
Compatibility points
The corporate means that the Bowens-mount design needs to be suitable with lights from different producers, which sounds simple: a Bowens mount is a Bowens mount, certainly? Nicely, there’s a motive Arri developed a customized mount for Orbiter, and it’s not simply because it needed electrical contacts. Traditionally, the Bowens design specified the one-third-turn latching association, however not a lot else – notably, there’s vagueness on how far the emitting floor protrudes by way of the latching ring, and the way massive that emitting floor is.
That uncertainty makes cross-compatibility tough. There are methods to mitigate the problem, notably utilizing a big (due to this fact costly) condenser factor in the back of the lens tube. In observe, making an attempt the 25-45 lens tube on Model X appears to work nice – both it’s a intelligent design, the compatibility points are exaggerated, or luck intervened. Due to that third chance it’s nonetheless a bit dangerous to make high-stakes assumptions, however on out there data, compatibility appears good. Definitely, projection attachments from Model X have been proven to not work nicely on lights from Manufacturers Y and Z prior to now. Wanting good to date.
The diminutive Forza 60C gentle is suitable with the 18 to 36-degree lens tube. Projection lens preparations corresponding to these are inevitably considerably inefficient, although the comparatively massive diameter of the lens tube ensures a fairly wholesome f-number (sure, f-stops go each methods). The 60C is a modestly-powered gentle and the result’s naturally not the kind of searchlight beam produced by a 500W LED. Extra crucially, the sector shouldn’t be fairly as flat – the beam hotspots barely. Nonetheless, projected patterns appear clear and sharp.
That is the smaller 18 to 36-degree projection attachment. It isn’t fairly the identical in measurement and form to the full-sized Bowens-mount possibility, however the controls, ending particulars and common association are very related.
Color high quality
Whereas now we have these lights on the bench, let’s take the chance to evaluate color high quality, which is an fascinating query given the differing expertise underlying all of it. FC-500C is an RGB plus white gadget, although metering suggests the white could be very heat. Forza 60C is an RGBACL design. Evaluating color high quality, we uncover that each do nicely – particularly given the bigger gentle’s easier color engine. Its purple and blue channels appear to incorporate two completely different species of LED, broadening their spectrum, and the result’s a lightweight which minimises the drawbacks of different four-channel designs.
The Forza 60C naturally measures very in a different way, with a spectrum that’s moderately extra steady – albeit missing in super-deep reds and blues as most LEDs do. The selection between RGBW and RGBACL is basically one in every of, respectively, energy over spectral high quality.
One nice shock is that each match pretty nicely when requested for a similar factor. Measurements have been taken at 100%, 50% and 5% output and at a number of color temperatures. The RGBACL design is able to something from 1,800K to twenty,000K (so large that UPRTek CV600 meter refused to think about it a white gentle on the minimal). CCT accuracy is great throughout the whole vary on each lights, although the RGBW design affords a decreased vary of two,700K to 7,500K.
The enterprise finish. The geometry of this space impacts compatibility, notably within the case of precision units corresponding to projection attachments.
Technological variations
The RGBACL design appears to supply extra constant R9 and R12 responses – not larger than the RGBW possibility, however much less changeable throughout completely different intensities and color temperatures. The 60C achieves a minimal of 86 R9 and 67 R12 on the tough 20,000K setting; in any other case, numbers are within the excessive 70s and round 90 respectively. TLCI is mostly higher on the 60C, as we would anticipate. The FC-500C maintains a minimal of 80.8 and that solely on the tough 5% output; TLCI is in any other case not less than 90. The 500W gentle maintains a minimal of 63 R12 and 82 R9, measured at 7500K and 4200K respectively.
Each of those lights default to a maximum-output technique, so midrange color temperatures are brighter. Naturally, the lens tubes enhance level depth. With out the projection attachments, and with reflectors, at one metre, the FC-500C approaches 48,000lx and the 60C 11,500lx (its reflector is far, a lot narrower).
In the long run, it’s tough to be goal about how nicely the corporate’s high-compatibility lens tube design maintains efficiency throughout completely different LED lights, as a result of lights have variances in efficiency anyway. Suffice to say that it’s significantly extra cross-compatible than many designs, and common readability and construct high quality is nice. Maybe in the future somebody will handle to ascertain a greater specification for modifier mounts, however till then, engineering designed to desensitise expertise from compatibility points can solely be a very good factor.
