FIX LIGHT LED1000DX Tested?

Hi,

I've tested alot of focus lights and even though some are better than others, a few days ago I tested the Fisheye FIX LIGHT HG20DX and WOW!!! Anything I had even seen or tested were just pathetic in comparisment. Extrememly wide, extremely smooth and extremely bright. Luckily there is a dim setting as I think it will be too bright from time to time. Yes, it is expensive.

But, as you maybe already know there is a new kid on the block, the Fisheye FIX LED1000DX. It's supposed to be twice as bright (geez!), use LED instead of the expensive halogen bulb (that you have to change way too often), consume less power (!!) and then have all the other features of the HG20DX. Yes, it is even more expensive.

This all sounds good (except the price ;-)), "but what I really want to know is... are you gonna go my..." oh sorry got carried away in a Lenny song ;-), no what really know is if LED1000DX really delivers. I'm sure it's really bright, but is it really as wide as the HG20DX?

What makes me a little sceptic is that Fisheye claim that it's 85 degress wide. Hmm I guess it depends on how you measure, but one of my focus lights is claimed to be 75 degress wide and that focus light is no where near (not even in the same universe) as wide as the HG20DX.

Problem is also that Fisheye doesn't present any number on how wide the HG20DX is...

Also, is anyone actually shipping the LED1000DX?

Anyone knows more and is willing to share?

/Peter

IMO a focus light doesn't need to be so wide. Wider than necessary lights waste power. The older FIX LED light could stand to be a bit wider but it worked.

I'm using the BigBlue LED light and it's rated for 500 lumens, or half what the LED1000DX is. It's so bright that it very substantially effects exposure at f/11 on the D300. I'm going to ask Ryan for the strobe sensor version. 1000 lumens is more than needed. I would definitely take it over the HG20DX though.

With the ability to control the brightness, you can use less power anyway. Peter, if you're diving in cold water, as I do, all the more power the better. The focus light can also become your dive light. (take a back up, of course). I would like to hear about the LED 1000DX performs, too, and what sort of battery set up it has. Having been plagued by battery and charger issues with the HG20DX, I would welcome a new power system, but I have a feeling it's the same. I'm sure the burn time will be longer though with the LED setup, which would be a blessing; I can only get one dive out of the HG20DX when it's dark.

Cheers,

Marli

IMO a focus light doesn't need to be so wide. Wider than necessary lights waste power. The older FIX LED light could stand to be a bit wider but it worked.

 

I'm using the BigBlue LED light and it's rated for 500 lumens, or half what the LED1000DX is. It's so bright that it very substantially effects exposure at f/11 on the D300. I'm going to ask Ryan for the strobe sensor version. 1000 lumens is more than needed. I would definitely take it over the HG20DX though.

Thanks for the info on the BigLue LED.

I have come to the conclusion that I spend too much of my time adjusting the positions of my focus light(s). It takes too much effort time and energy. And, my current focus light is pretty bright and wide, but again nothing like the HG20DX. I guess it depends of the condition and it depends on the variety of the shots during a single dive on how wide and strong you would like your focus light to be. I dive in dark condition with bad vision. I do alot of both extreme macro, macro and a little further away. I constantly adjust the focus light(s). I even have two focus lights to lesser the need to adjust them. I still long for something like the HG20DX. ;-)

But, when I dive in tropical conditions, I never even bring the focus light. No need (except for night dives, but anything works in tropical conditions)!

/Peter

With the ability to control the brightness, you can use less power anyway. Peter, if you're diving in cold water, as I do, all the more power the better. The focus light can also become your dive light. (take a back up, of course). I would like to hear about the LED 1000DX performs, too, and what sort of battery set up it has. Having been plagued by battery and charger issues with the HG20DX, I would welcome a new power system, but I have a feeling it's the same. I'm sure the burn time will be longer though with the LED setup, which would be a blessing; I can only get one dive out of the HG20DX when it's dark.

 

Cheers,

Marli

Marli,

The strong power is of course only a great thing as, like you say, it's adjustable.

I think the conditions have to be very clear though to use it as a dive light as I presume you will only see a white wall of particles otherwise (due to the wide beam).

Now, has anyone ever tested the 1000DX??

Perhaps it's just a myth... ;-))

/Peter

Marli,

 

The strong power is of course only a great thing as, like you say, it's adjustable.

I think the conditions have to be very clear though to use it as a dive light as I presume you will only see a white wall of particles otherwise (due to the wide beam).

 

Now, has anyone ever tested the 1000DX??

Perhaps it's just a myth... ;-))

 

 

/Peter

Reef certainly has it on the website at $600 so I am guessing Ryan can tell us about it.

Bill

The new FIX LED is even brighter and has variable power that the BigBlue lacks, but it has a custom battery and marginal burn time (though with LED the low power settings should make burn time much better). I'm sure it's a great light but you have to decide if you want the custom Lithium packs and chargers. In my mind, LED should allow us to get away from such batteries.

The achilles heal of the BigBlue light is the lack of true variable output. It has high and low settings only. It does take AA batteries, though, and has a great switch and bulletproof construction.

Peter Rowlands tested them in the last issue of UWP, I think. I was meant to bring them on my trip here to Lembeh to do a test, but I forgot to ask him if I could borrow them.

Alex

Peter Rowlands tested them in the last issue of UWP, I think. I was meant to bring them on my trip here to Lembeh to do a test, but I forgot to ask him if I could borrow them.

 

Alex

Alex,

Yep, Peter "tested" it in uwpmag 46, but there wasn't any reference to the HG20DX. Peter compared it with the Kowalski Xenon HID. As far as I can tell, Peter finds the LED1000 less wide ("At full output this light is as bright as my Kowalski Xenon HID light but with slightly less coverage"). Peter also writes that the LED1000 is only 80 degrees wide. I have no idea how wide the beam of the Kowalski Xenon HID light is, but I doubt anything is wider than the HG20DX... So, all of this makes me only even more sceptic that the beam of the LED1000 is not as wide as the HG20DX. It's a pity you never tested it...

/Peter

Just for information, I did a test shot with my D300 housed, Sigma 150mm, Hoya +3, fairly near minimum focus with just the BigBlue light and no strobes. Focus is 4.5" from the port (in air). ISO 200, f/16, 1/60. This is a shot of an earbud on a shot glass and is a 1/10 reduction of the full frame:

This was converted via flat tone curve and a custom, neutral profile with +0 exposure adjustment. Highlights just clip after white balance and the green channel is clipped in the RAW data. If I used f/22 and 1/250, the BigBlue light would be less than 3 stops below saturation! This is with batteries that aren't fully charged, too. The BigBlue light is 500 lumens, not 1000 like the big FIX light. You can see that, on an ISO 200 DX camera, these LED lights have output surprisingly close to the required strobe light. That's why I question this nuclear arms race for more focus light power. In a pinch, I could shoot macro with just this focus light.

Just for information, I did a test shot with my D300 housed, Sigma 150mm, Hoya +3, fairly near minimum focus with just the BigBlue light and no strobes. Focus is 4.5" from the port (in air). ISO 200, f/16, 1/60. This is a shot of an earbud on a shot glass and is a 1/10 reduction of the full frame:

 

 

This was converted via flat tone curve and a custom, neutral profile with +0 exposure adjustment. Highlights just clip after white balance and the green channel is clipped in the RAW data. If I used f/22 and 1/250, the BigBlue light would be less than 3 stops below saturation! This is with batteries that aren't fully charged, too. The BigBlue light is 500 lumens, not 1000 like the big FIX light. You can see that, on an ISO 200 DX camera, these LED lights have output surprisingly close to the required strobe light. That's why I question this nuclear arms race for more focus light power. In a pinch, I could shoot macro with just this focus light.

Craig,

Interesting and thanks for sharing.

It would be more interesting if the test was performed uw and preferably in green silty water which is where I do most of my dives. ;-) As you know, water filters out the light alot...

I can't see anything wrong in having as much light output as possible though as long as it's dimable (which it is on the LED1000).

Peter Rowland actually did test using the LED1000 as strobe replacement on a few macro shots in uwpmag #46. It's hard to say on the images, but he claims that it worked OK. Notable though is that he beefed up the ISO to 800 (which of course worked nicely on his D3...). So, judging from that, it seems as if the LED1000 would need even more power (when used as a strobe replacement), not less! ;-)

But, hasn't anyone seen it yet and is able to compare the wideness of the beam with the HG20DX??

/Peter

Interesting and thanks for sharing.

It would be more interesting if the test was performed uw and preferably in green silty water which is where I do most of my dives. ;-) As you know, water filters out the light alot...

I agree, but the total light path was only about 10"/25cm.

I can't see anything wrong in having as much light output as possible though as long as it's dimable (which it is on the LED1000).

Yes, that's true but more output means a larger light or a custom battery with shorter burn times. In the FIX case it's the latter. Yes, dimming helps fix the burn times but you still have a custom battery and charger instead of AAs. There's always a cost to more power and it's the cost that's the downside. I always considered the FIX halogen light the best once you were underwater. It was out of the water where I liked it less than the older LED version.

Peter Rowland actually did test using the LED1000 as strobe replacement on a few macro shots in uwpmag #46. It's hard to say on the images, but he claims that it worked OK. Notable though is that he beefed up the ISO to 800 (which of course worked nicely on his D3...). So, judging from that, it seems as if the LED1000 would need even more power (when used as a strobe replacement), not less! ;-)

I haven't seen those images, but the D3 requires an extra 1+ stop of light (over the D300) and if you want dark backgrounds you need faster shutter speeds. Yes, you would want even more light as a strobe replacement, but that's not the point! The point is that the focus light, when putting out this much power, will have a noticable effect on your images even when you are using strobes. That's an unintended consequence that people may not be aware of and may not want. White balance for my BigBlue light is not the same as it is for strobes, so if I am doing creative lighting effects the focus light will be washing out my shadows and adding uncorrectable color casts.

BTW, I wouldn't assume the FIX 1000 is brighter than the BigBlue without testing. It puts out twice the rated light but it may be considerably wider. Also, I'm not stating a preference for one light over the other since I've never seen the new FIX light. I'm simply throwing out some arguments for why another light might be preferred. More power and more beam width are better up to a point, then other factors become more important IMO.

I agree, but the total light path was only about 10"/25cm.

 

Yes, that's true but more output means a larger light or a custom battery with shorter burn times. In the FIX case it's the latter. Yes, dimming helps fix the burn times but you still have a custom battery and charger instead of AAs. There's always a cost to more power and it's the cost that's the downside. I always considered the FIX halogen light the best once you were underwater. It was out of the water where I liked it less than the older LED version.

I see your points and I would also be happy to get a FIX 1000 LED for the same price as the HG20DX. But with standard AA batteries and the same brightness as the HG20DX (for a focus light I'm sure that's enough).

But, that model doesn't exist...

As the 1000LED is said to be twice as bright I guess it's just to like the situation. I really dislike halogen bulbs so getting a HG20DX is out of the question.

What I like mostly about the HG20DX is that its beam is so extremely wide. I would hate to pay more money just to find out that the LED1000 doesn't deliver that extraordinary wide and smooth beam (strong or not).

I doubt I will really have much use of the extra power of the 1000LED, but it could be fun to experiment to use it as a strobe replacement. Not sure if the wide beam is a good or bad thing at that point though...

I haven't seen those images, but the D3 requires an extra 1+ stop of light (over the D300)

Why?

Don't they both have ISO base at 200?

and if you want dark backgrounds you need faster shutter speeds. Yes, you would want even more light as a strobe replacement, but that's not the point! The point is that the focus light, when putting out this much power, will have a noticable effect on your images even when you are using strobes. That's an unintended consequence that people may not be aware of and may not want. White balance for my BigBlue light is not the same as it is for strobes, so if I am doing creative lighting effects the focus light will be washing out my shadows and adding uncorrectable color casts.

True, and something one has to be careful about. Just using full power on such a strong light can be really bad for your shots.

Personally I haven't had the need for stronger focus lights than what I've been using and they haven't showed up on any pictures (except for when I was using a halogen Ikelite Mini C with fisheye diffusor, that ruins my wide angle shots, but when I switched to LED lights I can't even spot them on wide angle shots). My problem has always been that I have to move the focus light constantly. Even thought the spot has been fairly wide (and perfectly smooth), it has never been close to what the HG20DX delivers.

BTW, I wouldn't assume the FIX 1000 is brighter than the BigBlue without testing. It puts out twice the rated light but it may be considerably wider. Also, I'm not stating a preference for one light over the other since I've never seen the new FIX light. I'm simply throwing out some arguments for why another light might be preferred. More power and more beam width are better up to a point, then other factors become more important IMO.

Sure!

But to me a really wide beam, LED, pretty strong and dimable are the most needed features (but far from all wanted ;-)). As far as I know, there are no alternatives...

/Peter

FX has twice the surface area as DX and requires about one stop smaller f-stop for equivalent depth of field.

Yes the halogen FIX light is gloriously wide. I position my focus light even with my front port glass as close to the port as possible. This minimizes the parallax issue and reduces the need for an extra wide light. You still need a wide light but not 85 degrees.

I would not consider a halogen light at this point.

I haven't measured the beam angle of LED1000DX, but estimate it is close to its claimed 85 degrees.

Fisheye has also announced a new LED500DX in the same body, but with 4 LED. I don't have final USD pricing, but this is intended to be a more economical AA powered counterpart to LED1000DX that is still well suited as a modeling light for still photographers.

Now that's an interesting alternative

Yes that sounds very good, hope it comes at a good price point:)

Why does the focus lights not all have an auto off feature when the strobes fire. Naturally it would be best if such function can be switch on/off by the user;)

I dove this past weekend with someone using a housed Nikon D90 and the Fixlight LED1000DX, in our dark, cold waters, and in not so fine visibility (20 feet max). He is extremely pleased with the light. They have addressed the annoying cap issue (it comes off easily), it is powerful enough to use at 1/2 power, allowing for longer burn times, and therefore making a battery change on a 2 dive day unnecessary (the battery meter showed 1/2 leftafter two - 60 minute dives). The part that I was not so keen on is the lack of a different battery system: it is the same as the HG20DX, with the new style charger (that I have had some ugly issues with). Although expensive, he felt that the brightness, burn time, and not having to replace expensive bulbs was worth the extra cost. Not technical, but experiential

Cheers,

Marli

It'll be great if Ryan can post a picture of the beam, taken at the same condition as the other ligths especially the HG20DX. I'd choose one from the 3: 20DX, LED 1000 and LED 500, need to see the brightness, color temp, coverage and smoothness of the beams, as compared to that of the 20DX.

It'll be great if Ryan can post a picture of the beam, taken at the same condition as the other ligths especially the HG20DX. I'd choose one from the 3: 20DX, LED 1000 and LED 500, need to see the brightness, color temp, coverage and smoothness of the beams, as compared to that of the 20DX.

The lights are shipping on about May 1. We've finished shooting all of the current focus / video lights that are currently available, and will publish a revised comparison once we are able to evaluate LED500.