Category Archives: Equipment

Thoughts on the Nikon Z6 and Z7

08.23.18

Last night Nikon announced their long awaited mirrorless camera system, which now includes the Nikon Z7 and Z6 models. This announcement and the month long lead up of teasers from Nikon constitutes one of the biggest product launches in the history of the company. Rightly so, the internet seemed to explode with coverage of the...

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Equipment Review: The Elinchrom ELB 1200 Dock

08.04.18

Disclaimer: I am sponsored by Elinchrom and have worked with them for over 12 years now. This product was sent to me to try out. I am a big fan of their products as they work exceedingly well for my work. They are also tough enough to withstand the torture I dish out. This isn’t...

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The Analog Backup

06.07.18

I realize this blog post isn’t going to be that exciting–or that popular. Not many photographers these days actually print their images anymore. It is often said that there will be a giant hole in the photographic record from the last ten or fifteen years because images rarely make it off the hard drives and onto...

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Equipment Review: The Elinchrom ELB 500 TTL

05.21.18

Disclaimer: I am sponsored by Elinchrom and work closely with them on some products. I did not work with them on the ELB 500 but I did see prototypes six months before it’s release. Elinchrom has been kind enough to lend me an ELB 500 TTL kit to test out and shoot with for a two...

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AlbertoMay 21, 2018 - 10:09 pm
Great review. Thank you. It seems Elinchrom is making a lot of interesting developments.
The NEW Elinchrom ELB500ttl… @ Marc Lebryk PhotographyMay 22, 2018 - 9:11 am
[…] brave enough to try such a thing myself but he was very alive when he showed me pictures of this. You can also read Michael Clarks review of the ELB500 […]
JesusJuly 2, 2018 - 9:01 am
Hi,

I have the EBL 500 with the EL-Skyport Plus transmitter. How do I know when the EL-skyport transmitter is in TTL mode? I know I can change the power with the wheel, but did not found any TTL button on the transmitter.

How can I put it on TTL mode? so it can choose the amount of light automatic ?

Kind regards for you
Michael ClarkJuly 2, 2018 - 10:14 am
Jesus – you will have to upgrade the firmaware on your Skyport Plus HS transmitter and then the TTL icon will show up above the far left top button.
JesusJuly 3, 2018 - 8:46 am
Thank you so much!!

I have updated it and now have the TTL mode. I found that the TTL is a little under expose, but manually adjustment a little up works perfect.

Looking forward to get the ELB 400 with 2 HS heads by black Friday and maybe will save some money, your review and comparison have help me to make this decision. Overall I love the colors from the Elinchrom flash.

Best regards
The NEW Elinchrom ELB500ttl… – Marc Lebryk PhotographyJuly 19, 2018 - 3:38 pm
[…] brave enough to try such a thing myself but he was very alive when he showed me pictures of this. You can also read Michael Clarks review of the ELB500 […]
PeterAugust 1, 2018 - 7:22 am
Hi Michael

Been looking for usage info with leaf shutters. Thanks for mentioning it. A few questions though. Hope you could help.

1. Which trigger did you use with your Hasselblad? The ones listed are Canon and Nikon only.

2. Would ELB 400 be a good option instead of the 500 for a 1/2000 sync or is it only the 1200 version that is compatible, because of faster flash duration?

3. Have you used the Profoto/ Broncolor equivalent with the H5D/ H6D? How do they fare?

Best
Michael ClarkAugust 1, 2018 - 7:27 am
Peter – See my Elinchrom articles here on the blog. I use the Skyport Plus HS, now called the Skyport Transmitter Pro. I have the Nikon version, but I don’t think it matters. They all work on my Hasselblad H5D 50c WIFi. And yes, andELB 400 or 1200 is a better option for use with leaf shutters because the Action flash heads have much faster flash durations than the ELB 500 TTl. I would not recommend the ELB 500TTL for use with leaf shutters. I have used Profoto strobes on occasion when i have to rent them, but I have not used Broncolor. I am sure they could work well but since I shoot outdoors mostly, and prefer pack and head systems, not mono blocks, the Elinchrom ELB system is my preference.
PerJanuary 10, 2019 - 3:09 pm
Hi Michael.
Thx for a great article.

I was actualy thinking of selling my elb 400 to change to the 500 as I thought it was more flexible light as the light sounded to have both fast and slow durations. But now i got a little in doubt after reading your article. Especialy the fact that the elb 500 at full power the flash durations are quite slow

I use often my phase one 645db and aptus-ii 8 with leaf lenses to shoot fashion or maybe a canon 5d. I have the elb 400 with hss and action.

So as I could read the elb needs to be closer then the 3-4 m away from subject to owerpower the sun to get a good image?

What is your experience with the elb and distance when you want to owerpower the sun?

And in general would you choose an elb 400 or 500 if you shoot shoot a full figure fashion image with some background on location – a bit simulary to your above image if it was:
1. a sunny day
2. a cloudy day?
3. Studio

Kind regards
Per
Michael ClarkJanuary 10, 2019 - 3:28 pm
Per – Just to make sure we are on the same page – HSS is very different than HS (Hi-Sync). If you are using leaf shutter lenses then I would not get an ELB 500. It does not have a fast enough flash duration to match the higher shutter speeds of a leaf shutter until you get way down on the power. I would stick with the ELB 400 for that. I see the ELB 500 as less flexible than the 400 but faster to use if you are using a 35-mm camera and the TTL function. I am guessing you are referring to the ELB 500 when you say “elb”? For HSS to work with your Canon, yes, you will have to have it within 4 meters at the farthest to overpower daylight.

To answer your last question the answer is it depends. With your Phase One the ELB 400 is the best option. For the Canon, the ELB 500 could work just fine — just depends on what techniques you are using and how fast you want to go and if you want and or will use the TTL functionality of the ELB 500. The ELB 400 is the more versatile of the two if you have the HS flash head and the Action flash head.
PerJanuary 11, 2019 - 5:55 am
Hi Michael.
Thanx for your quick response.

And wow I was a bit surprised that the elb 500 wouldn’t work well with the phase one, as I thought that it also would work on Phase One, with Leaf shutter lenses, by putting the Skyport system in Speed mode.

I had no idea about the problems with flash duration tand high shutter speeds on high power.
Michael ClarkJanuary 11, 2019 - 8:54 am
Per – the ELB 500 will work with your Phase One (in Speed mode on the trigger). It is just that with leaf shutters the flash duration needs to be faster than the shutter speed and until you get down to 2-3rds or lower power on the ELB 500 the flash duration will be too slow. With the ELB 400 and the Action head it will work at all power settings as the flash durations are very fast–even at full power.
PerJanuary 12, 2019 - 2:14 pm
Yes that was what I understand now. I’m was just surprised about this as it was not information I could find in the information from Elinchrom. So thank you very much. I decided to keep the elb 400 🙂
PerJanuary 13, 2019 - 2:21 am
Hi Michael.

Yes I understand that. I was just surprised as it was not information I could find in the Elinchrom material.

So thank you very much for this 🙂
Ed MartinSeptember 22, 2020 - 9:37 pm
Excellent article, thank you for taking the time to write it. Just what I needed to compare options.
Zoe E LitakerNovember 24, 2020 - 11:16 pm
thanks so much for this! I was wondering if you could recommend which elb pack would be most useful for me. I have am hoping to upgrade from the flashpoint/godox that I currently have to an elb system. i photograph dancers on location. hss is currently my go to, but hi sync looks like it has some really interesting possibilities. if you have a minute to let me know your thoughts that would be awesome. thank you!
Michael ClarkNovember 24, 2020 - 11:36 pm
Zoe – HS (Hi-Sync) is much more powerful but it is also not an automatic TTL style flash so you have to spend time dialing in the lighting. There is also a gradation created by the strobe when shooting in HS mode, which can be overcome in post-=processing but it is something to be aware of. The ELB 400 and ELB 1200 are incredibly versatile strobes. The ELB 500 TTL is a better version of your Good strobes but doesn’t offer anything you don’t already have. I think the ELB 1200 is the ultimate kit and I would order it with one HS flash head and one Action flash head so you have every possible option. You can read more about the ELB 1200 here on my blog: https://blog.michaelclarkphoto.com/?p=5971
Zoe E LitakerNovember 25, 2020 - 7:43 pm
Thank you so much! Watching your creative live class now – it’s awesome!

CreativeLIVE: The Professional Photographer’s Digital Workflow

04.02.18

I am very happy to announce that I will be back at CreativeLIVE in the Seattle studio on April 16th and 17th teaching an in-depth two-day class on digital workflow. The class, entitled The Professional Photographer’s Digital Workflow, will cover everything from image capture to the final print. This is not just a class on how...

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Visual Revolutionary Short Podcast

03.29.18

Last week I had a conversation with Ric Stovall of the Visual Revolutionary podcast. This was one of his new short podcasts, i.e. 30 minutes instead of a few hours, where we discussed the future of photography and specifically how the equipment has changed the industry. We covered a lot of ground in this interview...

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Digital Photography: Where do we go from here?

02.27.18

A little over a decade ago, I wrote an article in my Fall 2007 Newsletter, entitled Digital Photography: Where do we go from here?, which discussed improvements I was hoping for in upcoming camera announcements. To be sure, there have been some incredible advancements in both DSLRs and mirrorless cameras over the last decade. Owning...

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