Elinchrom Quadra

[frank]

Although we are still waiting for a review sample I can already post the manuals online for you to read.

[SeanMcFoto]

I've a set on order.. 2 head set with spare battery. Now all I need is more work

[frank]

that's always the problem now a days

[frank]

Just got a telephone call that the quadra will be here on Friday so keep your eyes glued to this section in the weekend because I will start the review than.

There will be one photoshoot this weekend with the Quadra and some on the 27th and 29th which will also be filmed for youtube and the new instructional DVD and probarbly for use by Elinchrom.
When the unit arrives I will update the review during 2 weeks as much as possible.
It's an exciting product that will change the way some people will work on location.

[frank]

As promised some more information on the Quadra........



Yesterday late the box arrived at the studio and as you can imagine I was more than interested in these little wonders.
I've seen and tested them on several exhibitions before but it's always totally different when you can use them yourself.

The Quadra arrived in a nice hardcase with room for the Quadra, a spare accu and two heads.
Also included is a skyport remote to trigger the Quadra.

Settings are just as simple as the rangers and other strobes from Elinchrom, in other words if you're already used to the Elinchrom system it will be very easy switch to the Quadra.

Say hello to my little friends
Some products are released and they look nice on paper but in reality there are alot of things that are not as good as you thought and in the end you wonder why the product was released in the first place, with the quadra this is not the case.
As we've come to expect from Elinchrom the product has been thought out and the design team made a product that is not only very handy but also looks incredibly....... cute ?

Well looks can be deceiving as we all know, the Quadra might look cute but it gives you a very versatile system to work with.
This could be a product that can change your way of working on location completly.
When I'm on location I'm always carrying the Ranger RX speed when I want to use strobes, but let's be honest it's a big unit and it's heavy.
But on the other hand it gives me more than enough power.

There are however a lot of situations were you don't need 1100Ws or a large accupack.
There are a lot of photographers that are now working with speedlights and wish for something that packs a little bit more but they don't need the ranger or can't not handle the size or weight on a regular shooting day.
Those photographers are in fact dreaming of a small system that packs a lot of power, is light weight and can be triggered without the need for cables and all fits nicely behind the seat of the car.
Well...... enter the Quadra.

For most photographers the 400Ws of the Quadra will be more than enough power for every day shooting, and the small size and the incredible small flashheads will make the quadra an almost invisible setup that allows the photographer to work very fast on location and still get stunning results that a speedlight often can't produce because it's underpowered.

Add to this the fact that you can fit some of elinchroms "big" system modifiers like the 1.00mtr rotalux softboxes, reflectors and umbrellas and you can imagine what this product can do for your work.

Speed
One of the most important things for me when working on location is ease of setup, break down and of course the operation speed of the unit.
But also the flashduration is something I really like to be fast.
On all three counts the Quadra delivers, when fitted with the A heads the flashdurations are in the region of 1/3000 to 1/6000, the S heads are slower but sill in the 1/2000 range which for a strobe is very nice.
Also recycling is fast, you can opt for slow recycling or fast recycling (slow will give you more time to shoot) but even on slow the recycling is very nice but I'm not a photographer that shoots 9 frames a second to be honest, but even with that information I think you will not have to wait for your Quadra in most normal situations and you can just work like in the studio.

And when the battery is empty there is the extra one that is delivered with the Quadra and the batteries are charged in app 90 minutes.

I will start using the Quadra next week on the 27th and 29th both location work and I will try to empty the battery to get a good feel of how long they will last in the field.

Buy ?
When you're a photographer that loves to use strobes but often is leaving the studio without strobes because that day you're not in the mood to carry arround a lot of gear.
You also know the feeling that you sometimes have during the shoot ...... "I wish I took the strobes with me"
The Quadra will be the right solution for those people.
There are no excusses anymore for not carrying your light with you.

The Quadra simply rocks.
It's indeed a photographers best little friends.




More will follow in the coming weeks.

[Edwin IJpeij]

Very interesting product. Was great to have today during my restaurant shoot

[Eero Makela]

Very cool indeed.

Can these be used as main lights in a studio and be as good or better then say the 500BXRi or my BX400's

In other words can you mount a 5 foot (1.5m) umbrella on then?

They are about 2 times cost of my 400bx but portable.

Can you trigger then with a pocketwizard, I assume so?

[frank]

Hi,
They are triggered with the skyports.
They cannot replace the BX or RX series for the simple reason they run on batteries and have no continues modellight.
For location work they are great however.

Today we did two sessions on location with them and they rock.
I will upload some photos tomorrow.

[digitalfrog]

I can't wait to see the pictures !

I was looking at the Profoto AcuteB but I find them way overprices. A beauty dish at over 300 euros ... ouch.

And I found about this nice set.

Are the several distributors in the NL that have it in stock ? I could only find fotoflits but it's unclear if they have any in stock.
The set with the case and so on seem the best value for money.

The advantage of the Profoto seem to be that it can be used equally inside or outside.

Also, can anyone recommend the best beauty dish (compatible or original) with the Quadra ?

Merci !

Ralph

[frank]

Hi,
Fotoflits has stock as far as I know, and our studio can also deliver within 1-2 days.
I would start with the quadra's loose so without a beautydish, somehow the bare setup gives a stunning quality of light.
As mentioned yesterday I will upload some shots today we did yesterday while filming small info pieces on the quadras and the quality of light is really very nice.

You can always add softboxes of course and umbrellas with the ring convertor, everything from Elinchrom will fit with that convertor (but larger modifiers are not recommended of course)

[digitalfrog]

Wow, that comes as a surprise - I would have thought the beam would be too narrow and hard to wrap around a models face, thus the initial thought of purchasing a beauty dish.
But maybe I should indeed pick a set and try it first !

I would start with the quadra's loose so without a beautydish, somehow the bare setup gives a stunning quality of light.

[frank]

one of the shots I did with one quadra.
I did not finish the other ones yet but stay posted.

this is with the normal open reflector delivered with the quadra

[frank]

and three more with 2 quadras

[digitalfrog]

Thanks for posting those, it helps all of us to have an idea of what it's capable of.

Did you use an extension cable then ? Because it feels like the two heads must have been quite spread apart.

[frank]

Well actually I'm using two quadras here.