Adaptalux Macro Photography LED Lights - Quick Review

[@MicaelWidell]

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[@Adaptalux]

Thanks for featuring our product Micael! Your thoughts and experiences are good feedback for us, and we're super happy to hear you are enjoying the product!

[@paulcollingridge8387]

Due to the relatively modest output of the lights I would like to suggest an alternative application (or opportunity for a new product). Many of us are ecologists who spend a considerable time observing small invertebrates or plant parts under a stereo dissecting microscope (binocular and trinocular). Lighting is always a difficult task and subtle changes can make a huge difference. Flexible-arm lighting is usually prohibitively expensive. What about investigating this opportunity?

[@MybitofHistory]

Purchased my combo set with 5 arms and diffuser about 3 years ago and the mini pod a few months ago - I sell my work/photos and videos, but initially, I was looking for a good budget lighting system with versatility and consistency during tight creative photo shoots with deadlines. Can't say I've ever been let down with the Adaptalux System - Arms a bit too springy - move the tripod slightly. As a professional photographer, I would always highly recommend the Adapalux system for pros and amateurs alike, but you're going to be the one using this tool and defining its parameters. Adaptalux may not be making a profit out of me as a customer - 3 years later and my system (knocks and all) is still going strong ;)

[@cynthiamiller1]

Thank you Micael for an interesting review of the Adaptalux Studio lighting system. I've been using Adaptalux for 2 + years now and love the product. I was a little surprised you found the lighting dim as that hasn't been my experience in my macro photography. I noticed you featured the Adaptalux control pod 3 (which is their latest usb C updated release of the main control pod) but did you know there is a mini pod which can be purchased which takes a single LED lighting or flash arm. I have 2 Pod Minis and because they are small and light I've found them useful not only in a studio environment but also out in the field. Despite its smallness the battery charge lasts a surprisingly long time (less so with flash) and it can be powered and charged from a power pack. Additionally, the pod minis can be daisy chained together if need be. All in all I've found the Adaptalux Studio to be an excellent product, versatile, easy to use with very good customer service. I certainly won't be ditching my Adaptalux kit any time soon. Prior to Adaptalux I tried the cheaper versions you can buy and they went in the bin as I didn't consider them fit for purpose.

[@d.g.l.photography89]

i agree, i wont be ditching my Adaptalux anytime soon, i use additional lighting for the backgrounds of my toy shots, but always use the adaptalux for my main subjects, even if i need a main light to fill a larger area then i can with the Adaptalux main arms, i light up my main subject with the adaptalux arms, quick and easy to move around

[@d.g.l.photography89]

Nice review, i got mine mounted on a grollia pod when at home as well 😀. I've had the Adaptalux since around 2017, the 2nd time i saw them at the NEC photography show, i brought them for the UV led arms, but purchased the large combo pack with the coloured arms. yes the arms are a little bouncy to begin with, but do give a little with time. As with any system, nothing is perfect, but for quick easy to use system i love it, and now with the mini pods is alot easier to carry around in my bag

[@marklaurendet1861]

Looks interesting but as you say the arms look a bit springy. If you could add the unit to your hot shoe it could add a bit of counter levered load to the hot shoe possibly causing it to come loose depending on the camera. Some video people have problems when they overload their hot shoe

[@d.g.l.photography89]

The arms do give a bit with time in their springness,

[@cynthiamiller1]

There are accessories available which allow the Adaptalux system to be mounted on the hotshot or a tripod. Not only is there a hot shoe trigger but there are 'dumb' hotshot GoPro accesses as well which are fully compatible with the Pod Mini.

[@nicksavage4763]

MACRO Infrared and FLIR Should be interesting

[@jameswiggle]

I have this. I got mine on april 2023...so I think I have the latest pod 3.0? It is decent imo but def not worth so much...geez.

[@leolundgren3989]

Precis upptäckt din kanal. Fantastiskt inspirerande! Och kul med lite svensk representation på fotosidan av KZbin. :)

[@terrygoodfellow1876]

Micael. That was a fair review but I think you were generous. I have a long experience working with this kit and have moved towards alternative lighting for my macro work. The arms retain their annoying tendency to move to being uncoiled. The LEDs are not bright. The App has crashed so many times for me that the reset procedure which involves taking the pod apart has now made the screw holes slack. I've had to glue my tripod boss back into the pod. I think this part of the design is very poor. It should be at the opposite end of the pod to retain balance. So why do I use it. One reason only .... Ultra Violet Induced Visible Fluorescence photography. You'll need a fully darkened room. You'll need a stable tripod. A gorillapod is not stable enough. Exposure times exceed 30 seconds. You'll need to post-process your images. You'll need a lot of patience. But the results are fascinating.

[@Adaptalux]

Hi Terry, all of the concerns you talk about here have been vastly improved since you backed the kickstarter for the mk1 pod 8 years ago. Even the arms have been changed to be stiffer since micael recieved his. The introduction of boost mode makes the lights much brighter and reduces the long exposure times for uv significantly and we added a reset button for when it is needed. The app has had many updates too. The only thing that hasn't changed is the location of the tripod thread because if it were at the other end of the pod, the rear would protrude backwards from the hotshoe and prevent you looking through the viewfinder of the camera.

[@DavidBrown-if8vn]

While I can understand it's applications, a market place listing for the set at $400 made me suspicious.

[@thestatpow5]

At the price they're selling at? no thank you ahah. Maybe if I ever see it for like 100$ on amazon for a kit. Otherwise miss me with this lousy overpriced product.

[@jaydiddigi5774]

Wasted $400 on this cheaply made lousy quality product though the idea is good! I wrote to the founder but got a discouraging reply.

[@chriswray5010]

i bought the mk1 its all in the loft in a bag , the case broke , the button fell off, i dare not sell it on ebay as i will get negative feedback even if i sold it for £10 , have you seen the 3d printed stabilser for £55 🤑

[@Adaptalux]

A lot has changed in the last few years since the original Pods were on offer 7 years ago. We regularly listen to feedback from our customers and from this we continuously make improvements to our product range. We are sorry you did not have a positive experience.

[@jaydiddigi5774]

But isn’t the pod still that cheap plasticky material? You could have used light magnesium, carbon fiber or some other light weight material. I don’t know why people are still buying your products, may be they are one time buyers like myself.

[@MybitofHistory]

Yeah - I'm a one-time buyer (3 years ago), but only because my system hasn't yet let me down - when it does, then I'll be going back to Adaptalux for the latest system, but that's my experience.@@jaydiddigi5774

[@thomaspedersen4912]

Good idea but build quality poor from my experience with it. Especially considering the price.

[@Adaptalux]

Hi Thomas, you have a second hand original Pod 1, which was made 8 years ago. A lot has changed in that time and the Pod 3.0 was completely re-designed from scratch 18 months ago, with many improvements. We recommended to you to consider a Pod 3.0, which we are sure you would be very happy with and it would also work with the original Lighting Arms you already have.

[@thomaspedersen4912]

hi adaptalux didn't get notified of your response. it is not second hand I was given it new in an unopened box from my friend that won it in a competition. I originally contacted you as it would not connect to the app and you told me it was to old and that I should spend £150 + on a control pod 3 - I thought ok it might be old but that was a bit harsh from "customer service" - anyway I thought I will try in out a few times to see how it works and after 3 goes I have given up. I have lost 3 magnets out of the control pod - they get stuck inside the lighting arms and are a pain to get back out - I have tried to glue magnets back into control pod with poor results (partly because I did glue 2 in the wrong way round and they now don't work as magnets push apart) I took it into the woods once as that is usage case. there I lost a diffuser of the end of the lighting arm as the metal ring on the end fell off and got stuck to the diffuser. so I am sure that if you do reply to this comment you will suggest I spend more money with you but I have no confidence in your durability or support for your products. it may work ok in the studio for photographing action figures as you promote but in the woods not so sure. - it could be a great product if build quality and support was improved and price reduced.@@Adaptalux

[@Adaptalux]

@@thomaspedersen4912 Hello, again we reiterate, you are using an 8 year old mk 1 product, the pod you have was designed and built by one person, as part of the initial kickstarter that created our company. We have grown and improved our products considerably since then and still offer 1 year warranties on all of our products just as we did for your pod when it was new. This review concerns the new Pod 3.0, not the original mk1 pods. The magnet issue you mention was a rare fault in some original units, and was easily solved via warranty repair. Since the Pod 2.0, we made a design change which made it impossible for this issue to re-occur, and we have not seen any incidents with regards to magnets in the last 5 years. We have many customers using our products outside and in the woods with very pleasing results, the issues you have experienced are not typical, especially of the current porduct lineup. In conclusion, build quality has been improved 10 fold since the original batch of pods, and product support would be much better for you if you had purchased directly from us and contacted us while the version of your pod was still in production. There's not much we can do to fix out of production products many years after the warranty has expired.

[@jameswiggle]

@@thomaspedersen4912 kinda lame that they told you to buy the new upgrade..the least they can do is give a discount since you were a previous customer. I also agree that this is more for studio...photographing insects outdoor with this is a pain