Ok so most of my nerdiness goes into cameras not torches but I was surfing around deal extreme the other day looking for something better than my petzl myo5 (its ok but I want MOAR!) and i dunno, there's too many options on here.

Can someone simplify this a bit for me.

What's the main difference between a P7, Cree, SSC etc.

Basically what I want is this

A good torch for light painting (something with little to NO hot spot would be cool but cal always diffuse if I have to like I've done with my super torch) and hey if it can give me different colors too then I'm not complaining

Another one with good throw to light the length of a tunnel, drain, whatever.

Doesn't need to be a billion Lumen. I'm not trying to light up the moon or anything so maybe just a million would be sweet.

Help a brother out

Cheers

I'll try to do a bit of a brain dump, and if anyone wants to correct, or add, feel free! Now's a good time to be buying stuff, though, with our dollar so strong against the US.

LEDs

Okay so first, the LED emitters. Mostly, these are going to be made by Cree, and they'll usually say something like Q5, R2, R4, and R5. Those are listed in order of increasing brightness. These things will put out two or three hundred lumens, depending on the battery type and such.

Now, those above are single emitters, but there are two main quad emitters around, too, the P7, made by SSC, and the MC-E, made by Cree. Basically, all the big torch brands waited for Cree's MC-E, rather than using the P7, so it's probably safe to say if you want one, go for the MC-E. Lights that use these are noticeably brighter than the single-emitter ones above, at about six or seven hundred lumens.


Reflectors

Torches with good throw have big heads, as the reflector needs to be larger to focus more of the beam. This is especially true of the MCE-E and P7 - because the emitter itself is larger, a much larger reflector is required to give it any kind of throw. I don't think there are any cheap MC-E lights with decent throw, as they keep the head size relatively small.


Batteries

The high-powered lights mostly run on LiIon rechargeables, which come in all sorts of sizes, but most usually '18650' (which are inside laptop battery packs) and 16340 (CR123A sized). If you go down this path, get 'protected' batteries with onboard electronics to protect against over-discharging and such. You'll obviously need a charger, too.

So, almost all MC-E lights will require LiIon batteries, except for the Fenix TK40 and TK45, which take eight AA batteries! There are plenty of single-emitter torches that will run on regular AAs, though. They tend to be slightly dimmer than the LiIon torches with the same emitters, but not so much that you'd really notice when you're actually using them.


Torches I use - MC-E

So, these days I seem to be taking two types of torches out with me. Firstly, either a Fenix TK30 or Solarforce Masterpiece, which are big MC-E lights. They have big heads and throw pretty well - I have a decicated thrower which I just don't use because the MC-E lights throw so effectively.

Those run about $100 and $150 respectively, and have about the same output. Now, those both use 18650 LiIon batteries, but the Fenix TK40 uses AA and has the same output. The TK45 is similar, but slightly brighter, but only throws about two-thirds as far.

Here's a picture of the Fenix TK30 - it's not pocketable, but still smaller than a D-cell mag.




Torches I use - Regular pocket torches

But anyway, those are probably overkill for a lot of things, and I really don't use it that much for light painting. What I use more readily are the Fenix LD20/PD30 and 4Sevens Quark torches. The Quarks are very similar to the Fenixes, but have some particular advantages, which I'll get to soon.

So, anyway, these lights are all about the same size. The length varies according to battery type, but the heads are consistent. The Quarks are 0.2mm wider than the Fenixes. This means the Quarks will take the Fenix accessories, and it's the accessories that make these particularly useful torches for light painting. That, and they fit easily into a pocket.

Fenix make this flip-down diffuser, which is quite handy for smoothing out the beam:



They also make the beloved dildo diffuser! These are great.




So, you jam those things on the end of the torch, depending on what you want to do with the lighting. They're cheap, depending on where you get them from. I found a place in Australia that sold them for $2.50 and $3.50, respectively! They charged for shipping, though... Anyway, here are some shots of what the diffusers do:








Quark vs Fenix

So, the Quarks and the Fenixes are pretty similar. Here's why I like the Quarks, though:

- Quarks are available in cool white, neutral, and warm output.
- Quarks have two different user interface options - one similar to the Fenix, where you click through modes, and 'tactical' where you program the levels.
- Quarks have a 0.2 lumen moonlight mode, for happy trespassing.
- We get a 10% discount from the manufacturer, 4Sevens.com, using the code UER10

In each case, you can choose whether you want 1xAA, 2xAA, 1xCR123, or 2xCR123 models. 2xAA is probably most sensible, but 2xCR123 is slightly brighter.

So, the nice thing about having different LED tints available, is that you can contrast them in your lighting. The shot below has two dildo-equipped Quarks, one cool and one warm, one on each side of the tunnel.



The other good thing about these lights is that Fenix make a headband that will hold one or two:




Suggestions, then?

So, all that ramble aside, here's what I'd get (remember that UER10 code!):

Quark AA² Tactical, R5 Edition

and if you're keen, maybe this as well - the same thing in warm tone. Note that the warm tone is dimmer than the cool, due to efficiency differences.

WARM WHITE Quark AA² Tactical

Also, diffusers:

Flip-down diffuser
Dildo diffuser

Note that I've selected the tactical interface for those, not the regular one. It might be worth reading up on the difference, but for UE and light painting purposes, the tactical is a winner - no accidental switching to strobe or whatever

Well, I hope that helps!

I'm really fucking happy with my Fenix TK-40, I'm not a huge torch nerd but it ticks all the boxes for me. Settings from faint glow to surface of the sun, tough, water proof, long battery life. Also roughly the same diameter of a Mag Lite so it fits my holsters/car mounts.

30 sec, f/5.7, 200 ISO, second highest brightness.

Posted by Sledgy Ok so most of my nerdiness goes into cameras not torches but I was surfing around deal extreme the other day looking for something better than my petzl myo5 (its ok but I want MOAR!) and i dunno, there's too many options on here. Can someone simplify this a bit for me. What's the main difference between a P7, Cree, SSC etc. Basically what I want is this A good torch for light painting (something with little to NO hot spot would be cool but cal always diffuse if I have to like I've done with my super torch) and hey if it can give me different colors too then I'm not complaining Another one with good throw to light the length of a tunnel, drain, whatever. Doesn't need to be a billion Lumen. I'm not trying to light up the moon or anything so maybe just a million would be sweet. Help a brother out Cheers

A P7 is a large type of LED made by Seoul (SSC). Cree makes the brightest-for-the-power LEDs in the world, but it's an edge of a few %, little difference to a camera and almost none to the eye.

A torch with no hotspot won't throw down a tunnel. To manage both fill and throw, you'll probably want one of two options: Throwy with a diffuser, OR a 'flood to throw' flashlight. But the flood to throw ones tend to waste at least 30% of the output of the LED, and the lens-moving gear can be sketchy.

If you're new to LEDs, you probably won't know how to get what you want. Take lumen ratings with a grain of salt. Since you're using a camera, output pattern is probably more key than output. Most cheap lights flatly lie, while others report output under perfect conditions. One thing to remember about LEDs is their spectral output. Mostly blue and yellow, but it looks white to your eyes. LEDs that are "Neutral white" or "Warm white" have more red and green photons, but using a red gel on any white LED will probably disappoint you.

Most of the stuff on my photostream is lightpainted with big-ass spotlights, fire, or my favorite LED flashlight, the 4sevens Quark AA^2. You might not want to jump up to the $50 level, so I'll give you a rundown of options at various prices.

I hate the 3xAAA holders, because:
It's 8 contact points to fail.
The batteries can rub against the body, chafing the wrapper off and shorting the batteries.
AAAs suck.

$5, not worth owning really. Check your hardware stores, they have the 9-LED ones that aren't too awful, but I've got my reasons to hate them. Tell me if you are after non-AA/AAA lights, Lithiums open more options but you'll want a charger and batteries (about $25 to start).

$10-$20:
$15 Energizer Hard Case, I liked the bigger version that was indestructible. The polymer feels cheap but it lasts, although it's also bulky.
Coast 'flood to throw' flashlight, $20. I'm not a fan of these, but they're fun to lightpaint with.

$20-$30
Coast red/white light. Not bad, not great. I use mine as a loaner light.

$25 Romisen Neutral-white 2xAA light, I hear good things about it. Shoot for this over the previous ones.

$30-40
4sevens Quark MiNi. About 90 lumens, use the coupon code UER10 for 10% off. I like mine a lot, it's not much bigger than the AA battery.

$40-50
Lots of options. Aside from Coast/LEDLenser, most of 'em are decent for the money. Quark, Fenix, Streamlite, etc.
You could go lithium here. Search International Trading Company on eBay.
HERE is an example that expires in 5 days of what you can get for $45. The 18650 gives longer runtime, and it'll work when you get it. Might need a bit of tuning up. Things like "R2" will have a more concentrated flood. Don't abuse the battery or you'll have to replace it (and maybe other stuff).

At this price point there are too many flashlights for me to say what's good or not. You start getting into all-around models, or specialized output patterns, that make it hard to tell you what to get without knowing what you want.

FINE, SHOW ME UP.

At least I hit the low end of the prices.

Posted by ExplorerLoki I'm really fucking happy with my Fenix TK-40, I'm not a huge torch nerd but it ticks all the boxes for me. Settings from faint glow to surface of the sun, tough, water proof, long battery life. Also roughly the same diameter of a Mag Lite so it fits my holsters/car mounts. 30 sec, f/5.7, 200 ISO, second highest brightness. http://lh5.ggpht.c.../s800/IMG_9005.jpg

Damn, you can get a TK40 off ebay at the moment for $125, with free shipping. It's not so long ago they were double that.

Posted by Sledgy A good torch for light painting (something with little to NO hot spot would be cool but cal always diffuse if I have to like I've done with my super torch) and hey if it can give me different colors too then I'm not complaining

I completely ignored this, and there is of course a light that fits the bill exactly, the Quark RGB. It's by far my favourite light painting torch, even just in white mode, ignoring the colours. It has no hotspot, but still casts a crisp shadow, unless you diffuse it - it has the same head diameter as the other Quarks. This is actually another MC-E light, but instead of four white squares, it has white, red, green, and blue.

The downsides:

- It takes two CR123A batteries, so either you'll need to order a bunch of them cheap online, or get some AW brand rechargeables (don't buy cheapies, they don't fit in the Quarks or Fenixes).
- The modes can be annoying - no tactical option here.
- It's US$99 (though the UER10 discount applies). Online store is here.
- It has no throw at all. Just flood.

The upsides:

- The beam is fantastic for painting - smooth and no hotspot.
- The colours are fun and very bright.
- You can order a cool white or neutral white.
- The size is nice. 2xCR123 lights fit nicely in the hand.
- It has no throw at all. Just flood.

Here's a thread about it... http://www.uer.ca/...d=1&threadid=76056




The colours are very pure, which can actually be a problem for the camera sometimes - I tend to mix it with some white painting, too. However, this purity of colour means it's easy to shift the colours around in post.

Holy whack dog.

Im gunna take a moment and actually read all of that.

Wasnt expecting such lengthy replies.

Cheers!

The Quark RGB seems like it could be a go-er.

Is the difference in price that the slightly more expensive one is body+head??

Posted by Sledgy The Quark RGB seems like it could be a go-er. Is the difference in price that the slightly more expensive one is body+head??

Yeah, if you've already got a 2x123 Quark, you can just buy the RGB head.

There's still the question of neutral vs cool - I have the neutral, and love it, but each to their own, I guess

Posted by metawaffle I completely ignored this, and there is of course a light that fits the bill exactly, the Quark RGB. It's by far my favourite light painting torch, even just in white mode, ignoring the colours. It has no hotspot, but still casts a crisp shadow, unless you diffuse it - it has the same head diameter as the other Quarks. This is actually another MC-E light, but instead of four white squares, it has white, red, green, and blue. The downsides: - It takes two CR123A batteries, so either you'll need to order a bunch of them cheap online, or get some AW brand rechargeables (don't buy cheapies, they don't fit in the Quarks or Fenixes). - The modes can be annoying - no tactical option here. - It's US$99 (though the UER10 discount applies). Online store is here. - It has no throw at all. Just flood. The upsides: - The beam is fantastic for painting - smooth and no hotspot. - The colours are fun and very bright. - You can order a cool white or neutral white. - The size is nice. 2xCR123 lights fit nicely in the hand. - It has no throw at all. Just flood.

Sledgy, for context, this is the coloured torch I had with me the other day (although attached to an 18650 body).

Posted by cryogenic Sledgy, for context, this is the coloured torch I had with me the other day (although attached to an 18650 body).

Oh, how does it perform on 18650?

Im not too fussed on cool/neutral/warm as you can easily adjust that in post if you must.

Personally I like warmer lights but there's still plenty of times where I swap to a cool light as it just looks better.

Cryogenic put me on to this one that he uses.

http://www.dealext...tails.dx/sku.19767

I've mucked around with it before and it doesn't seem too bad. Especially for the price

Im quickly realising that torches, like cameras, are very easy to get carried away with lol

The cheapie DX lights are certainly bright, but they never last - all of mine broke eventually...

You're right, though, getting carried away is easy

Posted by Sledgy Im not too fussed on cool/neutral/warm as you can easily adjust that in post if you must. Personally I like warmer lights but there's still plenty of times where I swap to a cool light as it just looks better. Cryogenic put me on to this one that he uses. http://www.dealext...tails.dx/sku.19767 I've mucked around with it before and it doesn't seem too bad. Especially for the price Im quickly realising that torches, like cameras, are very easy to get carried away with lol

I'm using this light too and for the price versus brightness it's a pretty decent light. The first one I had for about a year and I never had any problems with it up until it was stolen. The replacement I got had a slightly different tint to it....slightly warmer and a little bit of green and it is somewhat dodgy. Sometimes the modes don't work and I get only one intensity of light for both the hi and low settings then I hit it against a wall and it fixes itself. There must be something lose inside. Anyway my point is DX has some great deals but the quality of the lights is always a gamble.

Posted by metawaffle Oh, how does it perform on 18650?

Unfortunately, I don't really have a basis for comparison, but I've found it to be awesome!

Never had any problems with battery life (including long 4hr+ draining expos) & tis a lovely light for photography.

I actually thought I'd lost it about a month ago - dropped it somewhere in Fortress and only realised when I got out of the drain. Fast forward two weeks and I'm out with a few of the guys and one of them is showing us all this new torch he's got - I mentioned that I used to have one but I'd lost it in Fortress a few weeks earlier & he just laughed and handed it over. Apparently he found it sitting in the water - took it home & cleaned it and worked good as new! Sturdy little torch, this one!

Posted by cryogenic Unfortunately, I don't really have a basis for comparison, but I've found it to be awesome! Never had any problems with battery life (including long 4hr+ draining expos) & tis a lovely light for photography. I actually thought I'd lost it about a month ago - dropped it somewhere in Fortress and only realised when I got out of the drain. Fast forward two weeks and I'm out with a few of the guys and one of them is showing us all this new torch he's got - I mentioned that I used to have one but I'd lost it in Fortress a few weeks earlier & he just laughed and handed it over. Apparently he found it sitting in the water - took it home & cleaned it and worked good as new! Sturdy little torch, this one!

Awesome! I thought mine had broken a few weeks ago, and was not at all happy. Thankfully, it turned out to be something silly, and all was well