How I'm using one of my AD200's for wildlife

sk66

sk66

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Steven
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Godox AD200 for wildlife by Steven Kersting, on Flickr

I often shoot from the vehicle as it makes a great mobile hide. In order to accommodate that and get the flash out front I have a cold shoe attached to the hood (yes, I drilled a hole in it). Previously I used an SB800 with a TTL cable, in order to use the AD200 this way I added a metal foot to a small ball head thing I had. I don't worry about flash brackets with long lenses, a close shot is around 10m and even 30cm added height to the flash makes about zero difference in angle.

The AD200 fresnel head (35mm) is roughly equivalent to the SB800 zoomed to max. But I wanted more so I can run it at reduced power settings and to make it worth the effort/weight, so I added even more weight with a MagBeam. The MagBeam has given me slightly more than 2stops gain (best est) for a GN of something around 120m.

This result was in good light and just a touch of fill (catchlight removed).


Tufted Titmouse by Steven Kersting, on Flickr

This was in pine forest understory, heavy shadows and backlit (what little was making it through). Personally, it's a bit too heavy on the flash feel, but better than what I would have gotten otherwise.


SGK_6553.jpg by Steven Kersting, on Flickr


I generally don't like "speedlight gadgets" and I think MagMod is as bad as most with the majority of their offerings. But the MagBeam does work better than the other options and doesn't cost too awful much more... actually, it's about 2x the price of a Better Beamer, but it's about 4x better made and more effective IMO. Last thing will be to paint the interior of the hood white with DIY silicon paint.
 
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Heck of a rig there Steven (y) Does MagMod stuff just fit straight on the AD200 or is it a bit of a force-fit? Be useful to know.

And I really like that sliding rail thing above the door, that I recall is something you build yourself and sell? A link would be handy for anyone that fancies a bit of birding from the driver's seat - sounds ideal to me :)
 
That's an impressive bit of gadgetry, good results too, so it's doing the job.
 
HoppyUK said:
Heck of a rig there Steven (y) Does MagMod stuff just fit straight on the AD200 or is it a bit of a force-fit? Be useful to know.
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It's kind of odd. The "collar" is a hard stretch, at least initially. But the opening in the "hood" is more than large enough. I have to mount the flash ~ 15mm farther into the collar/hood in order to minimize light leaks, and that interferes with the AD200's head lock switch (not a major issue). This light leaking issue would have to be much worse with a smaller/typical speedlight. I tried to make a foamie "snoot" to cover the gaps, but I couldn't get it under the collar.
Another thing to note with the MagBeam is that it is not nearly as "even" as they claim/show... no big surprise there, and it's better/no worse than the other options.
HoppyUK said:
And I really like that sliding rail thing above the door, that I recall is something you build yourself and sell? A link would be handy for anyone that fancies a bit of birding from the driver's seat - sounds ideal to me :)
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Thanks! It's not a "perfect solution," nothing is... but it is very versatile/quick. Here's a video I did comparing it to other options on the market.

View: https://youtu.be/n04QiQYkyFY
 
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Love that rail (y) It says 'not suited to all vehicles' but what are the restrictions, how does it attach? To the door frame or gutter, does it fit frame-less doors etc? Thanks.
 
HoppyUK said:
Love that rail (y) It says 'not suited to all vehicles' but what are the restrictions, how does it attach? To the door frame or gutter, does it fit frame-less doors etc? Thanks.
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It won't work with frameless doors unless the vehicle has gutter rails (uncommon these days). Typically the straps go around the upper frame and are adjusted in length for leveling. The gutter hooks are add-ons and can also be used on the upper door frame on most vehicles... makes it easier/quicker to install, but a bit less secure.

Since that video was made there have been a couple of improvements/upgrades. It now has a security tether that the lens foot goes through to prevent dropping in case the user fumbles or fails to tighten the clamp adequately. It can be seen in the first image, stored around the swivel head :).
And the slider/head is now able to be locked in place... it's not "recommended" to drive with the camera mounted, but some do (i.e. me) and this prevents the camera/lens from sliding back and forth while moving.
 
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I figured out the reason for the light leak/fit issue. The MagBeam is also meant to be used with a wide angle lens and gobo filters which mount at the flash opening (similar to the Light Blaster thing). In order for the gobo's to cover the flash head they have to be a bit oversized.
I think the WA lens/gobos are probably really cool for some uses (I didn't buy them), but the gobos are also made out of shiny metal... so I suspect they would contribute a lot to light leaking.

I came up with the solution of making a baffle from black foamie that fits into the gobo mounting slot/ring and glued it in place (kind of... nothing really adheres to silicon other than silicon).
 
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