Godox Getting in the Retro Game with the New Lux Junior & Senior Flashes

Molly Kate replied:

Comment posted: 19/07/2022

I am also super excited! That sounds like a match made in film heaven :)

Terry B replied:

Comment posted: 19/07/2022

The heat's getting to me. Don't know how "Senior" became "Pro" in my reply.

Don Goodman-Wilson replied:

Comment posted: 19/07/2022

I'm guessing it's over-cautious. My Godox X2T-F trigger, although designed specifically for Fuji digital cameras, works just fine with all of my analog cameras with hotshoes (all Pentax). (Although my Godox XPro-F trigger does not…). So I'm extremely confident that these units would work just fine as well.

Sroyon replied:

Comment posted: 19/07/2022

The power is not as low as it might seem... Guide Number for flashes with zoom capability is generally reported at the longest focal length, so it sounds more impressive. For example GN for the Nikon SB800 is 56, but that’s at 105mm; at 28mm, it drops to 32. The Senior on the other hand has a fixed focal length of 28mm, so a GN of 14 is not bad, especially considering the fact that with the mini beauty dish, the effective size of the light source is bigger than what you'd get with an unmodified SB800. To get an equivalent light source size on the SB800, if you use something like a Magsphere, that cuts about two stops of light, so you are down to GN 16 which is about the same as the Lux Senior. Out of interest, what auto features did you have in mind which would be good for beginners? The Manual mode, as far as I can tell from the photo, is quite simple – on the dial you just line up the ISO and subject distance, then read off what flash power to use for a given aperture. I used a similar dial on my dad's Rollei E15 flash in the 90s when I was just a kid, so I don't think it will be hard for a beginner :)

Terry B replied:

Comment posted: 19/07/2022

Hi, Sroyon. Firstly, these Godox units are not zoom flash units as the reflectors are fixed, so is the GN. I own a "proper" zoom unit from Metz, although it has been quite a while since I last used it. I don't agree with you when you assert that manufacturers generally reported the GN for zoom units as being at the tele setting as this makes it look more impressive. In my experience, there will be a base GN quoted, usually with the 50mm focal length, and then the GN for the zoom range covered by the unit, and with add-on wide angle diffusers if these are available. This is the case with my Mecablitz 40MZ 3i. The 40 in its name refers to its GN 100/21 for the 50mm setting, but the user manual then tables its power at various zoom settings which, in this case, range from 20mm to 105mm, with corresponding GN's of 22 to 50. Note that Metz didn't follow your contention with giving the model number a 50 rating. In this respect they followed standard practice for fixed reflector units. Out of interest, at the 20mm setting the GN is 22, and at 28mm it is 31. Admittedly, it is unfair putting these very basic Godox units up against a sophisticated Metz unit. As for more automation, I was thinking about selectable apertures, but particularly using them with more modern digital cameras which can take advantage of higher ISO settings and still give very good noise figures with the low GN of the Godox units. As for manually setting the flash with these Godox units whilst it is relatively a simple process, in practice and it isn't ideal, unless the subject is stationary and prepared to wait. I used to do a fair amount of flash photography and my first auto unit, the Vivitar 283 was a revelation. I could select any one of four apertures giving control over DoF, but more importantly the metering took into account the surroundings, such as the reflections off walls and ceilings and which very much depended upon the size of the rooms. I feel this is where beginners could soon well be disappointed when they find images coming out underexposed.

Sroyon replied:

Comment posted: 19/07/2022

Hi Terry, thanks for explaining. I realise that these Lux flashes have fixed focal length (see my comment: "The Senior on the other hand has a fixed focal length..."). What I'm saying is, if we want to compare basic flash power, we should compare like for like, i.e. at the same focal length. And at 28mm, I would argue that the Lux Senior's performance (GN 14) is not exactly woeful compared to your Metz (GN 31); the Lux Senior has just under half the reach of the Metz, while being significantly smaller and cheaper than your Metz or its modern-day equivalent. Though "woeful" is subjective, so we can agree to disagree on this one :) Props to Metz for reporting GN at 50mm. I've used various modern flashes (Nikon, Canon, Godox...) with zoom capability, and generally (I did say "generally" in my earlier comment) found that GN was reported at the longest focal length. But I haven't done a full survey, and anyway that's besides the point. We both agree that the Lux Senior is a fixed 28mm flash. Secondly, my hunch is that most people will want to use this flash at shorter distances, in darker environments. I mentioned my dad's old Rollei flash; I still use it with my film cameras at house parties, inside karaoke bars, etc., and as fill flash in daylight outdoors. If I want to "kill the ambient" or "overpower the sun", I don't use the Rollei, I use bigger, more modern flashes. Going by the Lux Senior's GN, at f4, you can illuminate subjects upto 3.5 metres. And that's for ISO 100. With HP5, for example, you are good till 14 metres at f4, 28 metres at f2. Thirdly and relatedly, for the use case I described, i.e. portraits at relatively low ambient light levels, I would actually prefer the Lux Senior to a conventional speedlight like the Metz. In theory, that is, I haven't used the Lux (hopefully Godox will send us a review copy). Because the mini beauty dish – again, in theory – will make the light look softer than what emerges from an unmodified speedlight. The Vivitar 283 used auto thyristor technology. It was a clever innovation for its day, but one of the reasons why it became obsolete is because you can't use light modifiers or bounce flash; you need a direct line of sight between the flash unit and the subject. We are gaining some automation, but at the cost of all our photos looking like the typical 80s snapshots. This, for me, would be a deal-breaker. Also the Lux units apparently have sync ports which means they are capable of off-camera flash (and can also be used with very old cameras with coldshoes). Personally, instead of thyristor assistance, I'd much rather have ability to fire the flash off-camera, and to bounce and modify the light. Admittedly a beginner may not want to do all that. But one day they might be tempted to try more advanced lighting techniques, and then they can. In fact it looks like the Lux Senior ships with a PC cord. I think that's cool. The technology which replaced thyristors is TTL. Now traditional TTL is not compatible with digital, at least not reliably so. Because it measures light reflected off the film plane, and digital sensors reflect light differently. Modern TTL technologies (e.g. E-TTL and i-TTL) use a pre-flash, but these are brand-specific. Which is why you have a Metz Mecablitz for Nikon, one for Canon, and so forth. All of that to say, as far as I know, there's currently no simple way to allow for flash automation that is cross-compatible with multiple brands of cameras both digital and film, and which also supports bouncing and modifying the light. So I think Godox did the smart thing in keeping this simple. Just like with manual cameras, simple designs may have more of a learning curve, but they are surprisingly versatile :)

Terry B replied:

Comment posted: 19/07/2022

Hi, Sroyon. Thanks for your interesting comments, a lot I have differing views on, mainly becuse I used the gear extensively. I was indeed surprised to learn that in your experience with Canon and Nikon presented their unit's GN for the zoom setting. This is somewhat disingenuous, but as long as they made this clear and somewhere in the spec they made it clear and quoted the standard practice for 100/21, I suppose they could get away with it. But for the unwary, it could come as a shock. Using a dish reflector can be advantageous compared to some electronic units that use clear protective plastic in front of the tube, but the advantage is lost with units, such as my Metz, that adopt a diffuser for this very reason. In referring to the Metz as "conventional" I confess I don't know what you mean, it is far from conventional, as you would have no doubt discovered if you'd experience of one. Its features and capability put it firmly in the advanced category. And its use of the SCA Module system means it isn't limited to one camera brand. Your reference to the Vivitar 283, also leads me to believe that either you've never used one or you are not aware of its full capabilities as a system. "but one of the reasons why it became obsolete is because you can’t use light modifiers or bounce flash; you need a direct line of sight between the flash unit and the subject. We are gaining some automation, but at the cost of all our photos looking like the typical 80s snapshots. This, for me, would be a deal-breaker." I would suggest that you check out the accessories Vivitar supplied for it. Not only does it have a bounce capability (how could you not know this, if you've used one?) but using the Remote Sensor cord it can be fired off the camera, using bounce if one wishes, or into a brolly. This means one can even use additional units fired from slaves, and with these units fitted with Vari-Power modules in place of the normal sensor, studio lighting effects are just as easy as with bulky strobes. Using my Gossen flash meter, I could get nigh on perfect exposure. Incidentally, I did later acquire a 285 which gained a zoom function. And by using the PC sync cord supplied, the 283/5 can be used with cold shoes as the sync cable deactivates the hot shoe. Although this feature is not unique to Vivitar. CAVEAT for modern day usage: I can not wholeheartedly recommend a 283/5 and for most I'd suggest that they steer clear, unless they can be sure of the trigger voltage safe limit for their film camera. What also makes choosing one is that over their production cycle the trigger voltage did change but I know of now way, short of measuring it, to know what it is for a particular unit. As for TTL flash, I agree that as a film era unit the Metz is unlikely to work with a modern digital camera, but I say this as I don't know a) if the trigger voltage is safe, or b) if Metz provide an appropriate SCA adapter. But as for working with range of film cameras, the SCA module system certainly allows for a single unit to be used with different camera brands. The big plus for me is that the Metz could be used with the sophisticated flash capability, including TTL, of my Leica R7, and by simply swapping the SCA module for a plain hotshoe with every other camera I had at that time.

Molly Kate replied:

Comment posted: 01/12/2022

This is a news article only to announce the product! But Sroyon has written wonderful articles testing these flashes here! https://www.35mmc.com/14/11/2022/godox-lux-senior-and-lux-junior-flashes-in-depth-review-and-comparison-by-sroyon/ and here! https://www.35mmc.com/29/08/2022/godox-lux-senior-flash-street-portraits-and-first-impressions-by-sroyon/ Cheers Cameron :)