Elinchrom, Lencarta and Bowens

dubcat

dubcat

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Amir
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Hi, I often see enthusiast level photographers comparing Lencarta and Elinchrom d-lite IT range. I have read the threads etc. However, I seldom see Bowens Gemini being thrown in to the mix. Why is that? How do they compare to the aforementioned makes? Keen to hear your thoughts.
Amir
 
dubcat said:
Hi, I often see enthusiast level photographers comparing Lencarta and Elinchrom d-lite IT range. I have read the threads etc. However, I seldom see Bowens Gemini being thrown in to the mix. Why is that? How do they compare to the aforementioned makes? Keen to hear your thoughts.
Amir
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Possibly down to the markets they are trying to sell into. Bowens may well be selling into the pro segment of the market where build quality, system expansion and support are more of a priority. This comes at a cost.

The other two are possibly aiming at the enthusiant/prosumer segment of the market and design their marketing literature appropriately. More bling on the part of Elinchrom with their d-lite products and emphasis on lower cost with Lencarta.

Regards
 
Finste said:
Possibly down to the markets they are trying to sell into. Bowens may well be selling into the pro segment of the market where build quality, system expansion and support are more of a priority. This comes at a cost.

The other two are possibly aiming at the enthusiant/prosumer segment of the market and design their marketing literature appropriately. More bling on the part of Elinchrom with their d-lite products and emphasis on lower cost with Lencarta.

Regards
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Interesting view of the field. I would hazard a guess, and say that any customers of Lencarta would site your points attributed to Bowens as their reason for choosing Lencarta.

I know I would, but that's just me :naughty:
 
Personally I think Bowens have managed to position themselves pretty much like Ford: a solid, sensible choice for "corporate" use. Nothing they have is that exciting but it sits there and does the job. As people used to say about IBM "nobody got fired for buying Bowens".

Then you have Elinchrom with a long history of well made, technically advanced products. Recently they have been hitting the cheaper end of the market while still delivering some interesting options such as skyports, deep octas and 0.1 stop adjustments. Maybe this makes them like Honda (really, I don't know that much about cars...).

Lencarta you could possibly compare to Daewoo (um, are they still going?). Nicely made, decent features and a surprisingly low price backed up by good support.

Maybe other people can jump in and compare other lights to cars. Perhaps those notorious eBay lights are the Trabants of the lighting world.

But if you're the default choice you don't need to try very hard or shout very loud.
 
How about Skoda?
Very similar performance to VW and Audi but without the fancy badge and fancy price tag...
And like Skoda, sometimes demand outstrips supply and you have to take your place in the waiting list:)
 
Blythman said:
Unfortunate analogy. I had a new Daewoo. Never again :shake:
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Yes analogies are always problematical but I do feel the point is well made, but perhaps Daewoo should have been one of the more current manufacturers?

When I was looking for some replacement lights I created my requirements tick list and then compared what was available (or soon to be available) on the market -but didn't consider price initially. The only ones that met nearly all my requirements cost circa £1k per head, so at this point it was time to review the tick list and the results were (in order); Multiblitz Profilux, Elinchrom BRXi, Bowens GeminiR, Elinchrom D-Lite, Lencarta Elite

Well look at that, they 'almost' follow the downward pricing structure of the lights themselves and it has to be said that some of the options on my tick list probably wouldn't even be considered as important to others...Also if I was starting from scratch the list would probably not have Multiblitz in top place.

Paul
 
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I use Lencarta gear in a pro setting and am delighted with products, performance
and service. The prices are also excellent.

Garry is always just a phone call away if any advice needed.

Paul
 
Paul thanks - i am not doubting the quality of lencarta or elinchrom. I was just wondering why bowens entry level set, the gemini, does not come up in threads.. still don't really get it after reading the above...
 
The use of Daewoo as an analogy in this case could be a contentious one, they were extremely poor products built using out of date automotive technology after the original manufacturer had moved on. ( early models were just astras and cavaliers in a new dress). The skoda/ vw thing is equally skewed by people expecting vw quality for skoda price and the adage of getting what you pay for rings as true now as it ever has.

I say this as someone with over 2 decades in the auto trade :D
 
Yea, you all read the bit where I said I know little about cars, right?

But when I wanted to replace my Octavia I looked at everything else on the market and then bought another Octavia.

Maybe Lencarta is the Skoda of the light world. Without the bad jokes and disreputable past, obvs.
 
I have a Skoda as well as Lencarta products .. must be in the genes!
 
dubcat said:
Hi, I often see enthusiast level photographers comparing Lencarta and Elinchrom d-lite IT range. I have read the threads etc. However, I seldom see Bowens Gemini being thrown in to the mix. Why is that? How do they compare to the aforementioned makes? Keen to hear your thoughts.
Amir
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I think the real reason that you dont see much about the Gemini range is that they are seldom pushed or targetted at entry level studio photographers, a second issue is that the whole range of momoblocks is called Gemini and therefore confusion ensues. Having used bowens for about 17 years (and I still use those same heads all the time) there is definitely no issue with build or quality.

For just a little more than what I paid for my original Bowens 2 light setup I could now buy Lencartas "The ultimate 4 head ElitePro mains powered Kit" and therefore I would find it difficult to justify purchasing Bowens on financial grounds.

As a further example I managed to purchase 2 brand new Wafer 75s at less than half price about 10 years ago (they are great and have been put up and taken down hundreds of times without issue) and went to purchase some grids for them last week, but at £275 each I shall probably be buying new softboxes from Lencarta with grids for less.

What I really like about Lencarta is that it has the same mount as Bowens meaning I can mix and match accessories. Buying a system with Bowens S mount (such as Lencarta) is possibly the most sensible choice to make and everything else follows on from there.

Mike
 
I use Elinchrom, I figure if they are good enough for Scott Kelby to use, they'll be fine for me :D mind you I expect he doesn't use their budget gear :lol:
To be honest it was the price that I could get them for at the time that attracted me.
 
Having tried cheaper alternatives and then Lencarta ones I would say that the quality of their lights is very good. I have a Safari setup with a ring light and 2 lamps plus a pair of ElitePros and a Smart Flash. I've had no issues with any of them.

I did look at the Bowens when looking at the Lencartas but got more for my money with the Lencarta.
 
I think sometimes its 'opporunity' as well. I was looking for a set of studio lights and probably would have gone for Lencarta but a set of Bowens 750 pros came up s/h at a good price. They are absolutely fab!
 
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