Have you ever wished you could light up
your entire studio with a single light,
or maybe you just like the idea of having a fixture
that can throw as many lux on your face as the sun!
Well for both of those cases, as well as a vast array
of other more artful and actually practical applications,
Aputure has you covered with their new Light Storm 600d Pro.
And fun fact: this light is only at 50% power
and I’m shooting at f/7.1. Let’s get undone!
[offbeat music]
♪ Gerald Undone ♪
♪ He's crazy ♪
♪ Gerald Undone ♪
♪ He's crazy ♪
What’s happening, everybody?! I’m Gerald Undone
and I shoot it in post.
Alright, as usual, some disclosure.
Aputure sent me this light to review, and as far as I know,
I don’t have to send it back. Aputure has not paid me
to make this review and they don’t get any input
on its production or get to see it before it’s published,
but I’ll be the first to admit that this light does have
a hefty price tag, nearly $1900,
so it’s not as if nothing of value changed hands,
but as I’ve explained in the past,
I will do my best to review this product as objectively
as possible and focus primarily on the facts.
Fact number one is, this thing is powerful.
Essentially twice the output of the 300d II, which is
already overkill for most of the applications I throw at it.
We’re talking over 20,000 lux at one meter away
from just the bare chip on the 600d Pro,
and nearly 100,000 lux with this hyper reflector on.
For some context, that’s approaching the illuminance
of the sun in good conditions at midday.
So, if you wanted to simulate that effect, you could.
Or if you’re feeling particularly outrageous,
throw the Fresnel on there and you’re getting
closer to a quarter million lux at one meter,
and still over 10,000 lux at five meters away.
So you can do stuff like this:
♪ Renegade! Renegade! Renegade! ♪
Hello TikTokers!
Put a finger down if you're planning to--
Oh! Oh!
Gerald!
[Gerald] What's happening everybody? I'm Gerald Undone
and I have a beginning, and a middle, but no...
So, every once in awhile we make a review for a product
that starts to take on a more conventional structure--
Gerald!
Come on!
Aright, but kidding aside, the main benefit of more output
is the ability to modify the light in more interesting ways
without reducing your illuminance as much.
So think outdoor night for day shots,
or like I alluded to earlier, making a dark studio
look like it was bathed in sunlight.
But this new level of output requires a new control box,
so let’s go over that now.
First off, running from the light head
is this hefty, 5-pin, SF20 connecter,
which has a 10-foot or 3-meter cord to the control box.
That connects here at the top of the control box
and then, at the bottom we have a 20-foot/6-meter cord
that runs the mains power.
But the light can also be powered
from either V-mount or Gold mount batteries
depending on the model you choose.
If you use 14.4 volt batteries, you’ll only be able
to run the light at half power, so if you want to run it
at full power you’ll either need 26V batteries at 18A
or 28.8V batteries at 16A.
The control box can also charge your batteries
when connected to mains power as long as the unit
is powered off or below at least below 70% intensity
when using the linear dimming curve. Because yes, this unit
thankfully inherits the 300d II’s
dimming curve selection options. You can also enable Studio Mode
if you prefer to control the light
from a master switch or breaker.
There’s also a fan adjustment, which right now
is just an on/off setting, but I’m told
this is going to be getting an update in March 2021
to clear up the language and provide
a bit more functionality. The update will give you
two modes, an Auto mode which will run the fan
based on the cooling needed for the intensity you set
as well as the ambient temperature,
and then the other option will be the silent mode.
Right now, off is the silent mode which disables the fan
and if the light gets too hot it will just shut down,
but I’m told the new silent mode will cap the light’s output
at 60 watts and allow it to run indefinitely with no fan
at the reduced power setting.
It’s not extremely loud when on auto,
probably just slightly louder than the 300d II,
but here, have a listen, the mic is here just out of frame,
about a meter away.
And I'm going to turn it up to 100% power.
[slight fan whirring]
So, this is what it sounds like everything running at 100%.
[slight fan whirring]
And this'll be the worst of it, because it's actually in line
of the microphone too, which normally,
you would have them on the other side of the microphone.
You can control the light in many different ways.
You can use the knob and buttons on the control box,
which are straightforward and pretty intuitive.
It has DMX512 in and out ports on the bottom
as well as wireless DMX, art-net, and ethernet,
and the light also comes with Aputure’s standard remote,
which... throw me the remote!
This one! Which works with the older fixtures as well,
and it can also be controlled using the Sidus Link app.
There’s no colour controls using the app,
because this is a daylight-only fixture,
but it does have 8 built-in lighting effects
similar to the ones that we’ve seen before
like faulty bulb, tv, lightning, etc.
A couple more things about the control box.
It has a fan in it so you do have two sources of noise
to consider. Overall the sound isn’t too bad
and it doesn’t suffer from any of the whiny noise issues
of the earlier Aputure control boxes,
but it is something to be aware of.
This is what the control box by itself sounds like
without the fan making noise.
[very slight electrical humming]
So, it kind of has a little bit of that,
like, I don't know, electronic sound.
But again, if this is on the ground out of the way
I don't think it'd be a big issue, and I like that they made
the cord that runs from the light to the control box,
like ten feet long, so you can create
a decent amount of distance there.
And it also comes with the lightning clamp
that we saw on the 300d II for easy attachments to a C-stand.
So, to this light stand right here.
And then, on the back of it, there's, like,
a quick release plate, essentially.
And you just...
Clip it in like that.
And then it attaches. Now, I'm just using, sort of,
a heavy duty light stand, but keep in mind this whole outfit
is pretty heavy, and you would want to use,
probably a C-stand, or at least the heaviest light stand
that you have. This is already pretty shaky with one of these,
you know, premium light stands. But it's better on a C-stand.
Anyway, overall the build quality is great.
Solid construction, well thought out details.
The lamp head-- let me bring that back down and show you.
has a curved, handbrake-locking yoke
that allows for 360-degree rotation,
and it has mounting support for dual junior
and baby pin configurations. And like most of Aputure’s COBs,
it accepts Bowens mount modifiers.
This is also Aputure’s first light that I’m aware of
to claim weather resistance. They don’t declare
an official rating, but they do say it’s capable
of withstanding inclement weather conditions
like dust, light rain, and water spray.
Oh, and the control box has a 48V/15A DC input on the bottom
if you want to power it from an external battery station.
When it comes to photometrics, like most Aputure lights,
it’s quite good. It has a CRI & TLCI of 96,
and a daylight SSI of 72. Colour rendering is pleasing
and very accurate, the only complaint I have
is that it comes in a touch cooler than advertised.
It’s rated for 5600K +/- 200,
but I’m often getting readings in the 5900-6000K range,
so just slightly cooler than spec.
But the green/magenta shift was 0.1G,
meaning this light leans a little more magenta,
which is probably a good thing for a new LED
as they tend to green up a bit over time.
So not perfect, but very good and no major complaints.
Oh, and before I forget, Aputure is also launching
this new lantern alongside this light. This is the Lantern 90,
which is essentially just a much bigger version
of their previous lantern, and creates a really pleasing look.
It works quite well for product lighting and even
key lighting people, but what I found it most useful for
was illuminating an entire space without much harshness.
It's the one I was using at the beginning of the video.
It delivers a welcoming, soft light
to the entirety of my studio. Really fun modifier.
The only thing I don’t like about it is that the rods
often don’t always deploy evenly spaced
like the smaller lantern does,
so you have to push them around a bit sometimes
to get them to space out correctly.
No big deal, but I do find it to be a minor annoyance.
And it comes with a skirt you can Velcro on
to control the spill of your light.
I also think it’s important to consider the size and weight
of this package. Not the lantern, but the light kit.
This whole kit weighs 18.2 kilos or 40 lb
including the case. And that case is quite large,
but very well made and definitely rugged enough
to double as a stool if needed. And it also has wheels
and a luggage handle that's hidden behind a flap.
And, if you use that case as a stool,
it's not going to be as squeaky as the stool I'm using.
Hell, let's sit on it right now.
[stool clattering]
OK, not too bad.
I'm a little bit lower in the frame than I was before
but at least it's not squeaking.
Overall, I think this is a great light.
It’s Aputure’s new flagship and it’s the brightest light
in their lineup, and that pretty much says it all.
It continues on Aputure’s streak
of improving and refining their products
and adding value and innovation in the category.
Obviously this light is not for everyone
and is going to be downright overkill for many,
but for those that need the extra output
for their creative purposes,
I think you’ll be quite happy with this light.
Or, like I alluded to earlier,
might macking, mecking--
mecking a duck, steady-oh, leckat sked-a-a!
That it comes in a touch cooler than advertised.
It's rated for fif--
[ffing sound]
Gerald!
By the way, this is a teleprompter remote.
You guys always wonder why I'm, like...
I'm just adjusting the teleprompter.
Little bit lower in the frame than I was been fore.
"Than I was been fore?" Why do I keep saying that?
[English accent] Than I was been fore!
[Faruk] Yeah, I think it's good.
It's rated for fffffffffff.
[English accent] Little bit lower in the frame
Than I was been fore.
But that's gonna be it for me. I hope you found this video
entertaining or at least helpful. And if you did,
make sure you leave it the old thumbs up
and consider subscribing if you haven't already.
But if you did not find this video helpful or entertaining,
try setting the playback speed to 75%.
Alright... I'm done.