Cheap ebay westcott apollo...? Anyone used this...?

THE-BIG-MAN-SAYS

THE-BIG-MAN-SAYS

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Stevie
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Hi Stevie, My advice would be to wait and buy a Wescott. I bought one of the cheaper ebay variants although mine was about £40 and the light from it wasn't great and it only lasted a few up & downs.

They are expensive, but they also have a much deeper lip which offers more lighting options, you can go back to them if it fails as they fully support their product.
 
Hi Ed... think thattl be the plan... was going to buy from Bdh when 11 m in NY... but only £5 dearer here:
http://www.creativevideo.co.uk/index.php?t=product/westcott_2202

Hows life... bought anything new... I just bought a medium Wacom tablet...love it...and the laptop has now got a monitor...big difference...{refurb Dell 22" IPS}...you still lovin the Blads...?

STEVIER
 
THE-BIG-MAN-SAYS said:
Hi Ed... think thattl be the plan... was going to buy from Bdh when 11 m in NY... but only £5 dearer here:
http://www.creativevideo.co.uk/index.php?t=product/westcott_2202

Hows life... bought anything new... I just bought a medium Wacom tablet...love it...and the laptop has now got a monitor...big difference...{refurb Dell 22" IPS}...you still lovin the Blads...?

STEVIER
Click to expand...

Ha, well if by new you mean to me? Lots,

Fuji GX680 Mk2 with 125mm lens a few weeks ago, since then, 50mm, 65mm, 100mm, 180mm, 250mm, 4x 120 6x8 backs, 120 6x7 back (for 1$), Poloroid Back, Andle Finder, A Fuji GX680 Mk3, short bag bellows, long bag bellows, An adapter to enable me to connect my MF Digital Back to the Cameras, and a load of other accessories to fit. :lol:

If you mean Brand New, b****r all!


Haven't touched my H1 since buying the Fujis
 
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Had a look on the the net...phew that a big b****r...looks like your doin some serious shooting there Ed...so youll be shooting film and digital and polaroid...limitless options...what is it mainly for shooting...studio/landscape...?

STEVIER
 
Bit of portraiture, bit of landscape, it started off as the tilt/shift adapter for the Hasselblad was £5000, so I bought the Mk2 GX680 with a lens and back for well under £400, since then I've bought the other kit, but most of the lenses have been under £200 each (except for the 50mm) the 250mm came with the Mk3 and a Back and Poloroid back for less than £400 and the other odd bits have been very reasonable too, the downside has been the customs charges as they have been more than £400 alone. I doubt the whole lot has cost more than £2000.

When I put some film through it and then developed it in Caffenol I was blown away, the quality is streets ahead of anything else. the 6x8cm negs are just gorgeous and the caffenol Cl is very forgiving and gives a long tonal range. I am just waiting to get the right subject for some nice portraits.

Couple of landscapes on my flickr from the GX680s
 
Need to catch a look at that Ed...sounds like you done some good wheelin & dealin...good job mate...

Possibility I may get down your neck of the woods with work for a night or two in the next year or so...if so it would be good to meet for a chat or photo meet...if it ever happens that is...work directives change so often just now...

STEVIER
 
westcott apollos are fragile and known to break easy.. ive got a clone of the westcott apollo orb.. its good quality and no issues with it. The umbrella shaft is even solid, where as the westcott is hollow and so can become crushed..
 
blinkerz said:
westcott apollos are fragile and known to break easy.. ive got a clone of the westcott apollo orb.. its good quality and no issues with it. The umbrella shaft is even solid, where as the westcott is hollow and so can become crushed..
Click to expand...

The only thing that breaks (actually it tends just to stretch if the Apollo falls over ) is the wire that locks the spokes in place, takes about 2 minutes to replace.....
 
I have the IShoot apollo orb clone (or rather the lookalike, as the ebay version came out first, not the westcott) and it is fine, perfectly acceptable quality, as long as you can work around the tilt issue. Mine even has a grid.

Got it here about 6 months ago, if not more.

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/180718142893?ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1438.l2649

Still going strong.

I even like the 'beauty light' like light when I run it off an eli quadra buried deep in the box but without the diffuser in place. Sometimes run it with a grid in this fashion too.

And...

http://www.flickr.com/groups/strobist/discuss/72157629076791371/
 
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One of my friends Apollo was badly deformed after being blown over (I think this is the 2nd he has wrecked), and at £100 each they are quite expensive to replace.

I bought a Phottix version which is half the price. It doesn't have such a deep recess for feathering the light, but does have a grid which is really quick to attach and remove.

http://www.phottixstore.com/store/studio-accessories/phottix-easy-up-60x90cm-umbrella-softbox.html

Another of my friends did a short video comparison of the Westcott and Phottix versions. This was the square Phottix, and before it was issued with a grid.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=slt2rh5fyP8&feature=youtube_gdata_player
 
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