Lencarta

tdodd said:
OK. That makes sense. What a pity it has come to this. Some of us just want to buy good gear, not get involved in argy bargy, politics and lawsuits. Ho hum. :(
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If you haven't yet, you might want to >> READ


however, I now have an urge to change my lencarta heads for 'photonbeard' - what an absolutely cracking name, almost as good as 'Alien Bees' :LOL: Garry, you need to get on the phone and create some imaginative model names... :D
 
Yv said:
If you haven't yet, you might want to >> READ
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Thanks for the heads up on that. I've been a bit distracted from the TP forums recently, so not fully up to speed on the latest news, and when I caught this thread and saw all the weird goings on I was a bit taken aback.

Anyway, point well made. You have my support.
 
Hi Garry,

I just wanted to ask about the Lencarta Safari Powerpack Head.

This looks like a nice piece of kit and would be pretty versatile as an outdoor and indoor strobe. Adding a nice softbox and honeycoombes I think this would give me a pretty nice kit for starting out. Adding this with my current hotshoe, and possible and umbrella, I think I would have a set of lighting kit that would give me a lot of learning and opportunity for create image.

Running this unit how many flashes does it take with one charge?
Can you recommend a stand for it?
Can it be connected via a pc/sync cable to a pocket wizard?
Is the 600w powerful enough diminish ambient light from daylight?

Cheers

Rob
 
N1k0nBob said:
Running this unit how many flashes does it take with one charge?
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1150 flashes from spec

I can answer these based on user experience.

N1k0nBob said:
Can you recommend a stand for it?
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They fit to a standard light stand or a tripod using a £3 adapter

N1k0nBob said:
Can it be connected via a pc/sync cable to a pocket wizard?
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Yes

N1k0nBob said:
Is the 600w powerful enough diminish ambient light from daylight?
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Yes depending on the situation :)

The lights take standard Bowens S fit modifiers so pretty much anything can be added. Personally I would suggest that an extension lead would be helpful it is certainly on my shopping list and allows you to spread out the two lights more. :)
 
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Right, I've removed Elemental from the banned word list, and I'll be cleaning up a couple of posts.

The moment we get a sniff of legal action from Elemental, it will be back on *and* discussion of them in any way shape or form will be banned.
I'll also be sending the doubters the bill from our leech...He's very good but he's very expensive :p
 
david1701 said:
for the picking of nits you say yours gives half that and its being repaired/replaced by lencarta, the 1150 is spec
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Ok nits picked the 1150 answer isn't from user experience but the others are. However my second hand battery would appear to actually be ok now so we'll see tomorrow.

Re-worded the post (y)
 
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david1701 said:
am just screwing with ya
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No it was fair enough I should have worded it like I have now although I got 250 shots from it yesterday or the day before and the battery was showing 3/4 left so it might well be sorted now. I'm going to buy a new one anyway as I will be using the ring flash and safaris quite a bit. Just at £109 I was tinkering with the thought of buying an entire battery/charger box thing and then I can have both safaris AND the ring flash or both safaris further apart with different power settings or even 3 safaris.........
 
david1701 said:
or a 600ws key, 300ws ring fill and 300 ws rim

which would be epic
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Well this is what I was thinking. I would have two chargers so could charge both at the same time and it would give me the extra flexibility. I am a mahooosive fan of these Safari lights. I just wish that Lencarta would produce a mains box for them. If they don't I might do it myself :shrug:
 
cowasaki said:
Well this is what I was thinking. I would have two chargers so could charge both at the same time and it would give me the extra flexibility. I am a mahooosive fan of these Safari lights. I just wish that Lencarta would produce a mains box for them. If they don't I might do it myself :shrug:
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So you guys would recommend the 600 Powerpack Head then? What would its competitors be?
 
N1k0nBob said:
So you guys would recommend the 600 Powerpack Head then? What would its competitors be?
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Not sure there are many competitors really. There are certainly other battery powered heads available but not in the same cost bracket. There is one that is but I can't remember exactly and it has nothing like the capacity.
 
cowasaki said:
Not sure there are many competitors really. There are certainly other battery powered heads available but not in the same cost bracket. There is one that is but I can't remember exactly and it has nothing like the capacity.
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I only ask because £200 seems very reasonable for a portable 600w flash head and power pack that claims over a 1000 flashes. I am sure other makes are much more expensive and I just wanted to be confident that this is a piece of kit, for an off camera portable flash, added with a softbox/umbrella is as good as I think it is and is definatly worth considering rather than the more expensive speedlites.

I've got these things wrong before LOL.
 
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N1k0nBob said:
I only ask because £200 seems very reasonable for a portable 600w flash head and power pack that claims over a 1000 flashes. I am sure other makes are much more expensive and I just wanted to be confident that this is a piece of kit is as good as I think it is. I've got these things wrong before LOL.
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Err, sorry you've got it wrong again :(

It is £200 for the Safari light but NOT including the power pack, a set including the power pack and 2 lights is £969.

Safari Link
 
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N1k0nBob said:
I only ask because £200 seems very reasonable for a portable 600w flash head and power pack that claims over a 1000 flashes. I am sure other makes are much more expensive and I just wanted to be confident that this is a piece of kit is as good as I think it is. I've got these things wrong before LOL.
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No, £200 (£197.95) is for the flash head only. It won't work without the generator, which costs £539.95
 
N1k0nBob said:
I knew I was getting it wrong somewhere. I am sorry but I don't think that site is as clear as it could be. Anyway, cheers for pointing that out for me and clearing up my last hours confusion. LOL.
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It does say that the generator is supplied separately but yes it is not the easiest site to follow.
 
cowasaki said:
It does say that the generator is supplied separately but yes it is not the easiest site to follow.
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Ah I see that now, doh. I think it is staring toooooo long at specs made me miss that. £197 + £539 for a flash head and a power pack seems more on parr of what I was thinking it was based at looking that comparible (as possible) with Bowen et al.

Rob
 
cowasaki said:
It does say that the generator is supplied separately but yes it is not the easiest site to follow.
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My apologies for any ambiguity. The site is in fact undergoing a total revamp, which will make life easier for everyone, but it's taking far longer to get this done than I anticipated.

Believe me, if there was anything that I could do to put this right I would do so.
 
Garry Edwards said:
My apologies for any ambiguity. The site is in fact undergoing a total revamp, which will make life easier for everyone, but it's taking far longer to get this done than I anticipated.

Believe me, if there was anything that I could do to put this right I would do so.
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No worries, I think it is a little hard to get into some of the detail, but all the info is there. Tired eyes after a long day doesn't help.

But, the 600 head and pack would be the set up I want and that gives me a great system, but I would want to add the 10, 20 degree honeycoombes and a softbox/umbrella, as a kit, I think it might push me into the higher end of my budget and not leave much left for anything else. But I'll have to see, and work out if I need to save a few more months and write to Santa too LOL, or maybe reconsider the benefits/cost of speedlite set ups.

Rob
 
Bob, you can swap bits about within kits too. Normally it is like to like so you can swap a light modifier for another etc. I think that Lencarta should have a single light setup on their price list BUT.....

If you buy the Ring light setup at £749.95 and ADD a single light then REMOVE the ring light you get.....


£697.95 for

1 x Safari Battery Generator with battery
1 x Safari 600 Powerpack Head (Order code FLA004)
1 x 'Pelican' style fitted case
1 x Battery charger
1 x battery connector (to allow charging when the battery is not in the generator)
1 x Synch lead
1 x Carrying strap for generator


You would have to speak to Garry but according to the swap rules he explained to me this should be acceptable :shrug:

You could then buy....

1 x portable stand @ 19.95
1 x softbox (either 60x90 @ £89.95, 95cm octo softbox @ £109.95 or 120cm octo softbox @ £129.95)

I listed the foldable ones because linked with the portable lights portable boxes would be best.

MY choice would be the 120cm octobox :)
 
Actually, having worked that out about and if Garry says it is an acceptable kit then I might got for that instead of the generator. Then I would have 3 mobile lights plus the ring light. It would have to wait for a few months though :)
 
I really like Lencarta.

I've got a fair bit of their gear - the Safari, with a studio head as well as the ringflash - the background stands and a white background - the honeycomb grid set and the reflector arm. Can't fault any of it!

The Safari is just superb...

This photo
A nice day for a white wedding - remastered by Nick Tsiatinis, on Flickr
was taken at 10:30ish am on a really bright day, with the Lencarta pumping out enough power to light the 'bride', whilst there was still plenty of detail in the sky / clouds and corn. That photo was shortlisted and commended in a regional competition.

This photo
L'Cham with the Lencarta Safari 600 by Nick Tsiatinis, on Flickr
was taken, again at 10am on a different forum meet. Conditions were far more overcast than the photo above, but the Lencarta completely obliterated the ambient! Excellent! The guys at the meet were extremely impressed with the Lencarta, and one has subsequently ordered Lencarta gear after seeing the product quality.

As for the rest of the gear I've bought from them, it does the job excellently! The background stands are so sturdy and well built and air cushioned. The reflector arm is genius and the honeycombs work beautifully.

The customer service / support is second to none. I've never had anything less than next day delivery, with a couple of Saturday deliveries thrown in for good measure. But the best service I've had, by far, was when I bought the honeycombs - I bought them for use with my Safari, but the honeycombs were 7 inch diameter and the reflector that came with the Safari studio head was only 5 inches (on the Lencarta website it says the honeycombs will only fit 7" reflectors - so really I should have measured my Safari reflector before going to work that day instead of just assuming it was a 7" diameter). I mentioned this to Garry via PM once I realised they wouldn't fit, saying I'd order the 7 inch reflector on Monday...

Garry offered me the reflector free. :clap: . Absolutely no need to do that whatsoever, but it's ensured that Lencarta have a customer for life. (y)

Someone earlier mentioned they'd rather buy a Bowens. Well, I chose Bowens over Lencarta - I bought a Gemini 500pro (which I was going to Travelpak) instead of the Safari. The Bowens didn't last 50 flashes before it died completely and had to be returned to the place I bought it. I had a full refund and bought the Safari - my only regret was that I didn't buy the Safari to begin with.

In summary: Lencarta :notworthy:
 
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Not sure if i am allowed to give an opinion on Elemental, but I have owned and used their top end studio kit for over a year now and have never had a problem, i feind them very well made and very easy to use - fab kit ;)
 
Nick T said:
I really like Lencarta.

I've got a fair bit of their gear - the Safari, with a studio head as well as the ringflash - the background stands and a white background - the honeycomb grid set and the reflector arm. Can't fault any of it!

The Safari is just superb...
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Hi Nick,

Thanks for your comments. I like you images by the way, very similar to the creative lighting I am looking to recreate myself. Good stuff, thanks for sharing. What did you use to create them?

I think that Lencarta is going to my choice of lighting for my first purcase and other equipment in the future. It seems good spec for the value and they have a good range also. Plus lots of good reviews. Ok others may not agree but I would like to go with Lencarta.

I need to get started and get some kit in as i've been using a portable flash with borrowed modifiers and I don't like the results even with months of tweaking, practicing and playing. It just doesn't have the range for my needs.
 
Bob,

I am organising a shoot in Manchester (see my sig) where there will be about 6 models and various studio setups including my Safari/ring light setup. It might be a longish drive but it might be worth the trip to see the various options. There will be a Smartflash and ElitePro setup too plus a serious Pro setup with a MF camera and a cheap sub £300 studio setup too.
 
N1k0nBob said:
Hi Nick,

Thanks for your comments. I like you images by the way, very similar to the creative lighting I am looking to recreate myself. Good stuff, thanks for sharing. What did you use to create them?
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Thanks (y)

The 'Bride' one - just the Safari with studio head, on full whack, firing through a large FITP ez-fold softbox (Lastolite Ezybox clone) - was just out of shot camera right on the same plane as the 'bride'

The second - again, just the Safari with studio head, again on full whack (the game was to see how dark we could get the ambient), but this time firing through a 1m shoot through umbrella, at a traditional 45 degree, camera high angle :)
 
POAH said:
alternative is to get an Innovatronix explorer and normal studio lights.

http://www.theflashcentre.com/innovatronix-explorer-c413.html
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Yeah - they look a really interesting box of tricks.

2 concerns about them (and bear in mind I've never even picked one up)

1. They are pretty heavy. There are some fancy electronics but basically it's a car battery in a box.

2. It would be nice to use studio lights outside - very nice in fact. But they aren't designed for it. I'd really want to pack them away at the first whiff of rain. I'd tend to push dedicated outdoor gear much harder in bad weather (whatever the sissy manufacturers say :) )

Here's another alternative for a fairly powerful location light at a reasonable cost. http://peoplebyryan.com/for-photographers/review-of-the-strobeam-dl4-plus-d4-battery

And back to Elite Pros......

I did a "Help" portrait shoot yesterday in a youth centre in London. 2 X EP 300s in a hilite, 1 X EP 600 with a parabolic umbrella. All running somewhere near 1/4 power to give me f8 ish at ISO 200.

4 hours and 800 shots later I packed them up. No problems at all. Shooting in jpeg with preset whibal the colours never wandered.

I have one black frame caused by shooting too rapidly. Exif says I shot 12 shots within a minute and on the 6th one I was too quick ;)
 
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I think it says something when someone shooting with a Hasselblad H3DII is using Lencarta lights! I'm about to place my order.
 
I only have a Canon so I'll settle for Profoto. I may lower myself to Bowens though.
 
Timmy2wheels said:
I think it says something when someone shooting with a Hasselblad H3DII is using Lencarta lights! I'm about to place my order.
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Dunno if that's supposed to be an ironic first post or not.....but yeah had a heavy day's work yesterday (21 bridal dresses in a day - at least double a sensible day's work). All shot on the H3D which actually got fairly warm and gave me an occasional buffer lock. Part way through I had to swap out the only one of the studio lights I was using - their Elinchrom was mysteriously not firing so I swapped it for an Elite Pro.

2 lights are always more reliable than one. I'd hate to have to buy spare Profotos just in case.....
 
Well this thread was like war and peace :D very interesting :eek: just spent most of the Sunday morning jumping back and forward ...need to get a life :D
 
N1k0nBob said:
So you guys would recommend the 600 Powerpack Head then? What would its competitors be?
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Have just sold my Safari & bought a Bowens Gemini 500R head and Travelpak :), I would say that is the nearest thing that i've looked at anyway.

Has less flashes per charge but can be powered from mains and battery Also has more controls over the Safari as its a studio head running on a battery so everything you expect from your full blown head just with a battery :).

Will post up a little review when it arrives :).
 
I have an ac/dc gun, and they are brilliant. Well done to Bowens for making all their guns ac/dc, very tempting. But there are a few things about my Elinchrom that stop me.

Anyway, the benefit is that I can take the same studio gun to a wedding, and use it wireless when needed and mains when not or if the battery runs out. It is very reassuring, and can be used in a studio without worrying about constantly charging/discharging a battery.
 
I've always maintained that equipment choice is (should be) about a combination of things including price, portability, customer service, build quality, reliabilty etc etc - with the main one being individal need.

If you're going to shoot in a studio 90% of the time then get mains powered studio flash and use hotshoe flashes on location shoots. If it's the other way round then get battery powered studio flash and accept the slower recycling times and lack of a powerful modelling lamp if you need to use it in the studio - there's no right or wrong answer.

I'm not too sure what benefit there is in the Bowens DC connection, I'm assuming that there is something in the flash head that allows it to be used with what is, in effect, a car battery without a step up transformer, but could be wrong about that. I was at one of those trade shows for Lencarta a few months ago, where we all spent most of our time standing around chatting to each other, and I spent a lot of time chatting to the guy who was staffing the Bowens stand. I asked him about the connection of the Bowens lights but didn't really get an answer. AFAIK just about any mains powered flash, regardless of make, can be used with battery packs and so I'm just guessing about the purpose of the Bowens 'computer socket' - maybe someone on here knows?
 
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