If not, I just checked and you can still get one with a set of lens adapter rings for less than $40 bucks
. It's a deal. I now have two.....
. It's a deal. I now have two.....
I bought one when I first saw them on Amazon for around $35. I didn't know what I'd do with it at the time but I thought, at that price, it was too good to pass up. In the interim I've used it for lots of different lighting applications. I used it above to add a bit of fill light to Noellia's face on a cold winter day.
I've used it as a work light on location. I've used it as a direct fill on two video projects and I keep looking for clever ways to press it into service.
The batteries for the unit are in the housing on top of the hot shoe. It takes two double "A's" and they last for hours. You have the option of turning on all 48 of the LEDs or turning on one side or the other. The unit comes with an A/C adapter and a set of filter ring adapters for most common lenses up to 62mm. It's small, light and cheap. The white light is as good, colorwise, as that which I get from my bigger panels and, for the size and stingy battery use, it belts out a good amount of light.
When I shoot commercially in dark places I sometimes use one of the ringlights on the front of the lens to use as a focusing aid for my manual focus primes. It also adds sparkle to people's eyes and stops their pupils down a bit so you see more of their irises. It's a more natural look. I'm amazed at how good and how cheap these things are. That makes them one of my favorite devices in the LED space.
I also use it as a reading light. But that's a whole other topic. Get one at this link.