The Z-Flash Experience (Mostly for non-strobists like me.)

I'm quite excited to have found the Z-Flash. I love what it gives the photographer: continuous predictable light. I don't know why I haven't thought of this before - even after reading Jose Villa's beautiful book where he mentions his use of continuous light. Continuous light is really delish - I can see what I'm going to capture even before I press the shutter button.

What's more, this model offers both continuous light and sync light - or flash. Doesn't it sound real good? I thought it did. So I went and got one for me.

It did not disappoint. I love it. Unlike the Nissin di866 which I invested in and rarely used, the Z-Flash actually has me excited.

I tried its baby brother, the Z96 (which only offered continuous light) in covering the student council elections last week. So I knew what its continuous light feature was going to give me. I knew of its yummy consistency and temperature. I knew of its light and how it lightened-up the shades just as much as you wanted it - not more or less.

Now I was going to try for this new flash feature. Will it work well? As good as the di866 perhaps?

Let me show you.

I've done comparisons on how continuous light affects my images in 25%, 50% and 100% capacity. I used the dimmer as my gauge. Then, I synced it up with my Canon 5D MkII and used it in flash mode.

Here's how the comparison went with the naked LED. I think the highlights are overblown. I also think the flash isn't so powerful - not like the di866 - but not so bad.

If you're wondering how to sync it, there's really nothing to it: you just plug in one end of the provided cable to your Z-Flash and the other to your camera. It won't take in any settings. It'll do its own thing with no help from you.

Here's how the white diffuser affects it.

I think the flash behaved a little better here but I'm not satisfied. I think that's saying a lot because I'm not even much of a strobist here.

Please note that all factors are the same throughout. Same aperture, shutter speed, lens, location. Images are only minutes apart from each other so window light quality is as consistent as possible.

Variables include the amount of light from Z-Flash and the gel over it.

Here's how its warming gel affects the light.

You can even see how warm the light is on the background!

You can also stack the gel filters on top of each other. Here's white diffuser + warming gel.

I like this the most. Especially how flash worked well with it. The image looks brighter but not harshly so - and its not grossly overblown.

The Z-Flash itself is worth its price and more. It costs about US$ 100 where I'm at. It's not the Z-Flash which I think is ill-priced - it's the battery that you need to purchase for it. Unlike its younger brother which takes AA batteries (Helloooooo Eneloop!) or a Sony Video Cam battery, this one only takes the Sony VideoCam battery - which it is not packaged with. So you buy the Z-Flash + Sony Re-chargeable Battery.

But wait! You need to re-charge it, right? Then… you guessed it!… you need to purchase your charger on top of it all. So you buy the Z-Flash + Sony Re-chargeable Battery + Sony Battery Re-charger. Why not bundle it up? Or, better yet, why not design a battery for the Z-Flash? Or at least choose batteries that the flash sync cable is compatible with? (Only Canon or Nikon. If you're a Sony user, you need to get a cable adaptor.) As much as I'm in love with my nifty little toy, this part of its design just bugs the hell out of me. It feels illogical and ironic. (Maybe it was meant to be a political statement? Maybe not. Maybe they just seriously overlooked it.)

Ok. So you're sitting there and trying to make up your mind. Do I get one or not? Here's a simple answer:

You want continuous light, you don't need flash… go and get its younger brother the Z96. Don't worry about cash. This little toy is worth more than its price - and it's not very expensive at all!

You want continuous light, you have to have flash - or at least want to have the option of using flash - you have about US$ 200 for a budget. Get the Z-Flash. Worth it. I promise.

You're a strobist. What are you doing here? Get yourself your Nissin or Canon or Nikon. This isn't strong enough for the likes of you! ;)

The box I got it in says its only available in Indonesia where I'm based. If you want one, here's where I got mine. I love their service. They do COD. But… maybe only within Jakarta. ;) I'm a MitraKamera fan. :)

The Z96 and others like it (ONLY continuous light, no flash option) is available in quite a few places - in different numbers of LED lights, too. Here's a shop which sells it in the Philippines.

I'm not getting anything for this - not from Z-Flash, not from any of the stores - I just like my new toy. I also know there's not much online about it - so here's my contribution to the information pool. I hope it helps.

Into ChinaTown (Jakarta)

As we entered Chinatown, we were greeted by an old blind man tucked at the edge, seemingly oblivious to everything but the stick he held fervently in his hand. He is our "greeter" as we enter into a very visually rich little pocket of life within Jakarta City. How ironic and almost surreal.

On we went into a world which teased and satisfied our senses with its bright arresting colors, its thick taste, its smells alternating between heavy and light. China Town Jakarta lured us into its lair with its interesting textures and array of visual candy.

A myriad of candies and snacks.

The characters who peopled the mini-world were varied and thick with promise and interesting-ness.

I thought a factory painted those Chinese characters on pretty ginseng boxes.  Now I know better.

The means of transportation were inventive.

It even offered rides to dreamland.

And the food it offered? With them you can fill a banquet table with exquisite tastes, comfort food, and unique fare.

I always wondered how these tasted. (Succulent and mildly sweet.  Very refreshing.)



Yes, these are frogs.  Alive and skinned.












Roasted rice cakes.



Roasted coconut rice cakes.  Yummy.






A noodle stand with loads of pork dishes - a rarity in Indonesia but not in ChinaTown.

I spent a morning there with a group of spectators on a trip organized by Melbourne and Maria. They sent an email before we embarked on our trip, telling us not to dress so tourist-y. If I knew better then, I would have replied that it was impossible. There was no way we could hide that we were merely visitors in the deeply sensual world of ChinaTown, Jakarta.

More images in Personal Projects | ChinaTown (Jakarta).


The ChinaTown PhotoWalk is organized by Melbourne and Maria of Melbourne the Photographer, Jakarta Selatan. Melbourne is a very helpful and informative instructor and Maria is such a charmingly sweet lady! Huge thanks to this sweet pair for being our guides into this little world!  Please visit their site if you'd like to view Indonesia through your lens.

Do you carry happiness?

My husband came home with a sweet-looking bag yesterday. Guess what it had...

Helllooooooooooo Lulu!

I've fallen in love with this little pink creation!

I first met hellolulu on a trip to a computer hub in Jakarta. I fell in love with the colors and the make of their bags. Luscious is a word that comes to mind when I think about them.

Very unlike my (equally loved) National Geographic bag or my (also equally loved) LoopyLens Bag, this one screamed for-the-female-photographer-but-not-too-girly! Ok, ok, maybe it breathed in between the words, which would defeat the purpose of screaming, but you get the idea. I loved it. Like butterflies-in-my-tummy love.

It's so pretty! I have the Emmerson one in black with sweet pink compartments. Looking at it just makes my day.

hellolulu website boasts these features for the Emmerson:

Fits large DSLR cameras

Fully padded interior compartment with soft inner lining

Interior zipped pocket to store battery or memory card

Exterior zipped pocket for added storage

Removable padded dividers which can be adjusted to accommodate camera, lens and accessories

Adjustable padded shoulder strap and carrying handle

What they didn't say was that it also had two small exterior pockets for little knick-knacks like your business cards and keys; a large exterior velcro-sealed pocket for a little notebook, maybe some pens; and a padded inner top (which doubles as a bag id) to protect your camera and lenses. 

Sweet-looking and smart, too! Exactly what smart ladies look for!

It also looks small. I mean, it doesn't look like it can hold much. Which, ofcourse translates to, it's not a size eyesore nor does it attract unwarranted attention. But, boy, does it hold all I need for a portrait shoot!

That little bag is like a magic box that just lets you fill it up and fill it up some more.

Here's what I pack into it:

Canon 5D MkII

Canon EF 24-70 f/2.8

Canon EF 85 f/1.8

Canon EF 50 f/1.4

Nissin Di866

Batteries for 5D and flash

Mini Reflectors

Lenspen and Cleaning Cloth

Cables

Business Card Holder

Pens and Notepad

All that in a 31 x 21 x 16 cm (w x h x d) cozy pack of goodness! With room to spare, too.

As you can see I've packed my stuff into it and am happily migrating to this beauty as my everyday treasure chest. My NatGeo, LoopyLens and Acme will have to go into storage for bigger or much smaller shoots!

If you'd like to get yourself a sweet bag like this, you can visit the hellolulu store at hellolulu.com.

They have shops in Indonesia; flagship store at Plaza Indonesia EX 4th floor. View their hellolulu indonesia site for other shop listings: www.hellolulu.co.id. You can also order bags through their website. Happy sweet shopping!

For you, FB citizens, here are their FB sites:

hellolulu Indonesia

https://www.facebook.com/pages/Hellolulu-Indonesia

hellolulu Living Solutions

https://www.facebook.com/hellolulu.hk

(And, no, I'm not getting paid for this. :) I just thought it would be nice to share what I know about how to carry happiness.)

Talking about pink…

I'm very happy to announce that I am part of Images for a Cure.

Images for a Cure supports The Breast Cancer Research by encouraging photographers to donate their earnings from their special photo sessions to the research society, through IFAC's FirstGiving page. The photo sessions coincides with Breast Cancer Awareness Month (October). I have volunteered a special portrait photo weekend for this cause. I am inviting mothers, wives, daughters, BFFs, sisters to avail of the special charity portrait sessions.

If you're interested to contribute to this cause and have a fabulous portrait session at the same time, drop me a note so we can have a chat about it.

(I'll be posting more details about this event next week, so watch out for the next announcement!)