List Price: $2,904.00
Sale Price: $2,195.00
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After much research I decided to pull the trigger and pick up this Profoto Studio Kit. The case is perfectly sized to carry around and all of the gear is set safely in cut out foam. The two umbrellas that come with the kit are of decent quality, but for this price tag you'd hope that they gave a convertible umbrella that can be used as a shoot through. Not the case. The 2 strobes are 500w/s and provide extremely quick recycle time, consistent power and very fine tuning with 1/10th step changes. The convenience of having the controls on your camera are the icing on the cake. The only other gripe I have with the kit is the light stands. For the premium price, the stands although light, don't seem to be that sturdy considering you are mounting a decently weighted strobe onto it. I wouldn't be comfortable raising the height without any sandbags as it feels quite top heavy. used outdoors, a softbox would make the perfect sail to catch some wind and topple the whole stand. The good thing about the stands are that they air cushioned so they won't make your strobe crash to the floor when you undo the knobs to lower them.
Another thing I've noticed, unlike traditional strobes, the Profotos have their bulbs flushed. Their reasoning is the angle of projection is optimal at this configuration, but I found with larger softboxes that it actually created hot spots compared to other strobes with the bulb styling. It's not too apparent, but can be seen as a pro in that if there was the rare occasion the unit was to be dropped or knocked, it is less likely to break anything.
Overall, an excellent product for serious hobbyists or professionals alike. If you're starting up and don't want to take the plunge with the price point, I would suggest looking at other brands like alien bees, white lightning etc. Just bear in mind with Profoto you are going to pay a premium but you do get good quality equipment. Also, any accessories will have that premium price tag attached. In closing the 4/5 rating lost a star due to the price point and quality of the stands and umbrella not being a shoot through.
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These are the lights you want if you're a serious ameture or professional. Before buying these lights, I've debated on the more affordable "entry-level" lights, but kept reading about their fluctuating light quality; Sure it's easy to fix in Photoshop, but as a photographer, I don't want to worry about light quality every other shot, especially when I'm shooting a wedding or have models in the studio. Anyways, I'm so glad I bit the bullet and bought this kit. These lights are SUPERB!!! The quality of light is very consistent, recycle times are FAST, flash durations are short, and setup is quite easy. I would definitely recommend this to a friend!I've taken these lights on location and am VERY impressed (bring a nice extension cord--12 guage or better). The kit bag makes it easy to carry everything around and setting up takes less than 10 minutes.
Buy the "Air" models as they have the built-in radio slaves. This makes it easy to wirelessly "pop" the flash from the transmitter. I don't think the transmitter is as bad as some people describe it. It fits securely on the camera and pops the flashes everytime I hit the shutter.
On the other hand, there's one thing I really dislike about this kit, the light stands. With a flash this nice, I've no clue why Profoto uses stands this cheap. Yes, it holds the flash and the kit umbrella just fine; but adding a softbox, octobox, or anything of size, may cause these stands to tip over. I've replaced the kit stands with the Impact Air-Cushioned Heavy Duty Light Stand Black, 9.5' (2.9m). It holds my flash and 5-foot octobox securely.
Pros:
-Consistent light
-Great power
-Fast flash regen times
-Simple setup
-Carrying bag
-Built-in radio slaves and transmitter
-Being able to adjust the flash settings on the transmitter
-1/10 power adjustment
Cons:
-PRICEY
-Stands could be more heavy-duty. I can't believe Profoto put their names on these stands.
-For the money, the umbrellas could be larger
Best Deals for Profoto 901053 D1 Studio Kit 500/500 Air Black
I received this kit on a Friday and by Saturday I was a bit disappointed int the included stands. I mounted a light on the include stand to test all out, and bam, the light fell hitting the concrete and damaged the unit. I was upset, but as I looked the stand and the spring loaded locking knob were the culprit. If purchasing this unit, buy you a heavy duty stand for support. The 3 hours that I did get to play with them were awesome. The color was consistent and the air remote never misfired. I have an Molar Demi 22" BD that I am going to use with this setup.Honest reviews on Profoto 901053 D1 Studio Kit 500/500 Air Black
I purchased my Profoto D1 500/500 air kit from Amazon, the package arrive in a short time and in perfect condition. What could I say that hasn't been said! These are exceptional and easy to use, along with the air remote I have complete control of power output. The air remote even works with my older light system. The umbrellas are nice, but I do plan to upgrade to some of the light modifiers offered by Profoto. I highly recommend the D1 air, if you have the money. I'm saving up for another kit, that's how good this light system is. Thanks.Find helpful customer reviews and review ratings for Profoto 901053 D1 Studio Kit 500/500 Air Black
These are fantastic lights when they work. For us, that was probably all of three light photo-shoots.I bought them as a gift for my fiance (a professional photographer) in January 2012. Immediately had to return them because one of the heads was broken. The return was relatively simple, but it was still disappointing and frustrating to buy a nice product and have it immediately broken out of the box. Now 7 months later on the replaced set, ANOTHER HEAD IS BROKEN! And this is with very minimal use during that entire period (most shoots were outdoors away from a power source, and we don't have a portable battery just yet). Worse, we found out it was broken when we went to shoot a wedding party last night.
For the price, I expected so much more such as a product that doesn't fail TWICE, even. Very Disappointed! And we can't return it through Amazon anymore. We have to go through Profoto's warranty process. Honestly, I just want to send them back and get a full refund.
