Neil van Niekerk Puts Profoto High-Speed Sync to the Test | Profoto (IE)

Neil van Niekerk Puts Profoto High-Speed Sync to the Test

06 February, 2015

Written by: Rebecca Ahremark

Photographer Neil van Niekerk wanted to shoot with super-shallow depth-of-field. But he also wanted to shoot with flash. So he decided to update his trusted B1 Off-Camera Flash with the new High-Speed Sync upgrade and take it for a spin. Here are the results.

 

High-Speed Sync (HSS) is the technical term for syncing flash with shutter speeds shorter than the so-called x-sync, typically 1/250 of a second. With the free Profoto HSS upgrade installed in your B1 Off-Camera Flash, you can shoot at shutter speeds of up to 1/8000 of a second. Which is crazy fast, we might add.

Having the option to shoot this fast even with a flash as powerful as the B1 gives you unparalleled control of the ambient light. For example, you may shoot with a large aperture in super bright conditions and get a shallow depth and a deep blue sky. Which is exactly what photographer Neil van Niekerk did.

 

“The photo above was taken at 1/2000 @ f/1.4 @ 100 ISO,” writes Neil on his blog. “I wanted that super-shallow depth-of-field, and I wanted the light to be more flattering than you’d get from a bare speedlight. In this case, I used a Profoto Softbox RFi 1×3′ with the Profoto B1. (I kept both baffles on the softbox.)”

 

After trying it for a while and wrapping up the shoot, Neil reached a conclusion:

“Even with these few limitations and things you’d have to adjust for, the Profoto B1 500 W/s AirTTL flash has now been improved to the point where it truly is an exceptional on-location light.”

Thanks for the kind words, Neil. Happy to hear you like it!

Click here to visit Neils’ blog and read the rest of the review.

Click here to download the Profoto HSS upgrade for the B1

Written by: Rebecca Ahremark