Glow Parapop / Fast to Collapse and Setup Octabox in the UK?

J

Jeffs

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I'm looking to get a Glow Parapop 38" softbox, but from I can see, it is an Adorama house brand and expensive to get in the UK. I only see it on Amazon and the postage is £160!

Does anyone know if it is marketed under any other names or if anything is available similar in the UK. What I like about it / looking for:

- Can be setup easily without putting the softbox on the ground e.g.: you pull out each of the rods one at a time, rather than having to put pressure on a central opening mechanism (which in my experience is really hard to do unless you put your softbox on the ground (potentially in the mud!).
- Light - bowens mount and rods are primarily plastic.
- Can be opened closed without messing with the diffusers.
- Has 16 rods/segements - so yo get a rounder catch-light than other octas.

Any ideas?

Thanks
 
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The Lencarta 100cm folding BD? Without the reflector is pretty close.
Easy to set up 16 ribs, can’t see a downside.
 
Thanks, just took a look, but I think the Parapop stands to be quite a bit faster and easier to set-up. I've got a 28" folding beauty dish not dissimilar to the Lencarter 100cm, and I find it quite hard going to quickly collapse and setup, so I tend to rarely fold it.

I've done some more research and it seems that the parapop mechanism is licensed by SMDV for their Speedbox models. Quite nifty, as you can open the softbox from the outside (whereas the Lencarta requires you to open your diffusion panel) and it is easy enough to do with bare hands without a hard surface to press on. It also has quick-release collapse buttons - example here:
View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hy19Yyw8YBc


I can only find the Parapop direct from Adorama - which means you spend almost as much on postage and import duties as the product. The SMDV also seems quite hard to source. I've found one EU stockist in the Netherlands, but its about £300 - so pretty pricey...
 
@mike weeks has some SMDV stuff. Maybe he has some pointers.
 
Thank-you - I might just splurge for an SMDV model as I'm likely to get a lot of use out of it. Would you be able to advise who your imported yours from? I've seen the SMDV korean website and webstore - but the webstore, as far as I can see is all in Korean. Tempting to try and get a quote from them and compare with some of the european stockists.

Thanks!
 
Jeffs said:
Thank-you - I might just splurge for an SMDV model as I'm likely to get a lot of use out of it. Would you be able to advise who your imported yours from? I've seen the SMDV korean website and webstore - but the webstore, as far as I can see is all in Korean. Tempting to try and get a quote from them and compare with some of the european stockists.

Thanks!
Click to expand...

I bought mine from a German store

Mike
 
I've got the SMDV model, had it for a couple of years and used it on a location shoot Sunday with my AD600 up and down in a couple of minutes, easy to mount, lightweight and perfect for location stuff.

Expensive but then you get what you pay for, wouldn't be with mine now and it was bought via Ebay.
 
Toxic said:
I've got the SMDV model, had it for a couple of years and used it on a location shoot Sunday with my AD600 up and down in a couple of minutes, easy to mount, lightweight and perfect for location stuff.

Expensive but then you get what you pay for, wouldn't be with mine now and it was bought via Ebay.
Click to expand...

Couple of minutes? Must be faulty, seconds in my case

Mike
 
mike weeks said:
Couple of minutes? Must be faulty, seconds in my case

Mike
Click to expand...

From taking it out of the bag to mounting it on the flash takes me a couple of minutes, congrats on doing it in seconds obviously you've had plenty of practice.
 
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