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Gear – Elinchrom Ranger Quadra lighting
When I first saw the new battery-powered Elinchrom Ranger Quadra pack and head, I thought it was a waste. All that money for a pack and head system that only delivers 400 WS of power. I wanted something bigger.
Now that I have been dragging hundreds of pounds of lighting gear to weddings (my battery alone weights 25 lbs), I am beginning to rethink my choices. I really do think the Elinchrom Quadra could be perfect a wedding photographer, especially one that does not have a full-time assistant. Imagine being a wedding photographer in the middle of a hot August. Even in Cleveland, you have to think about the summer and gear weight.
Here is a video from Scott Kelby with a basic run through of the features:
(video credit: Scott Kelby)
[UPDATE - About two days after writing the post below, I bought a Quadra two-head setup. I have to say that I love it. However, it also means a complete move away from Alien Bees. Being a wedding photographer, I could not resist the light weight, but power system. Next will be an Elinchrom Ranger RX AS two-head system for more power.]
If you have any experience with the Quadra as a wedding photographer, definitely let me know.
See y'all soon,
Hunter
Do you have any problems using it in the summer during sunlight etc(with only 400ws)? Also what modifier do you recommend? Cheers
Rubar – nope, no problems using it during the summer in the sun. However, with 400 watt-seconds, it does not have enough power to “beat the sun”. If you need to beat the sun, you will need something much more powerful, like the Elinchrom Ranger RX. However, the Quadra was never meant to have that much power. For what it is designed for, the Quadra is a perfect solution.
Concerning recommended modifiers, the right modify depends on the look you desire. There is no one solution for all looks. Personally, I use everything from hard to soft light in my photos, so I use a mix of modifiers. If you just want one to start with, consider an 53″ Elinchrom Midi-Octa. It gives great soft light.
Okey thanks alot! I think Ranger RX is kinda out of the option because of the weight. I am going to be hiking alot..
So it won’t have the power to beat the sun, but will it work ok as a fill-light on those situations?
The Quadra with one head would be perfect for using in remote locations. The battery life is pretty long and it has great power. It won’t completely over power the sun, but it will give you some great fill. Given what you have planned, I would recommend this system. You could also consider a Hensel system with a lithium battery. They are even lighter, but are much more expensive.
So this is going to sound like a stupid question. I just purchased the Quadra “A” system. I thought I would be able to shoot high speed sync and freeze action at shutter speeds of 1/1000 or even higher. Seems I can only shoot up to 1/250 with my 5D II and 1D MkIV. I read somewhere some very confusing explanation for this but may be too much for me. Is there an easy way to explain how to shoot at high shutter speeds while using the quadra A head.
Thank you.
Greg
Greg,
I’m sorry to hear that you didn’t get quite what you wanted, but you are correct, the initial assumption was mistaken. Elinchrom’s A-series of heads are for action and have a shorter flash duration. They freeze action, like sports, but producing an extremely short pulse of light, but that doesn’t change your cameras sync speed.
To simplify the process, think about it as shutter opens, light flashes, shutter closes. If you shorten your shutter beyond the maximum sync speed, then the shutter will become a slit that travels across the film plane instead of fully open. When the flash does fire, the shutter will be blocking part of the film plane. To really see this in effect, try a shot with the shutter at 1/500th of a second. You will see just how small the moving slit really is.
Unfortunately, there is no way to change the maximum sync speed of the camera. But you can adjust the aperture, ISO or even add a neutral density filter. The other choice is to switch cameras. You could use a camera with an electronic shutter (i.e. Canon G10) or a leaf shutter (Hasselblad, some Mamiya and others).
Hope this helps.