Lighting and accessory manufacturer Westcott has announced a studio-style battery operated portable flash head that it claims has a recycle time of less than a second at full power, and which can be triggered by a wireless controller that’s compatible with the TTL flash system of ‘virtually any camera brand’. The Westcott FJ400 is a mono-block style head that takes Bowens S mount modifiers and which is powered by a 4400mAh lithium polymer battery that is said to deliver more than 480 full power bursts per charge. The heads also come with an AC power lead.
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A dial on the side of the unit allows the power to be adjusted over a 9-stop range in full or 1/10th stop increments, and flash duration varies between 1/1280sec and 1/19,000sec depending on output levels and the mode set. The head can pulse to match a 20fps camera drive and allows high speed sync with shutter speeds as short as 1/8000sec. The wireless system in driven by a particularly powerful 2.4GHz radio communication network that the company says has a range of 300m/985ft, and heads can be organised in 10 groups over 16 channels.
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A large display panel on the side of the flash allows users to see at the glance the unit’s settings and a 20W LED modelling lamp helps to preview the look of the light before the shutter is pressed. Westcott has mounted the flash tube well away from the body of the housing to push light out at a wide angle and a diffuser dome is supplied in kits as an accessory to soften the light before it enters the modifier.
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Westcott has also introduced wireless controller for the head that it says is compatible with a wide range of flash systems from different camera manufacturers. Each Westcott FJ-X2m Universal Wireless Flash Trigger is said to work with Canon, Nikon, Sony (with adapter), Fuji, Panasonic Lumix, and Olympus cameras, as well as the Canon RT flash system. It is powered by its own lithium ion battery that is good for over 200,000 triggers per charge, and sits in the camera’s hotshoe. The controller is also supplied with a Bluetooth connection that allows it to be adjusted remotely using a smartphone app.
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The Westcott FJ400 basic kit costs $ 569.90 and the FJ-X2m controller costs $ 99.90, and both are due to ship in late October. For more information see the Westcott website.
Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)