The best photographic lighting slave will help you achieve the highest quality of photos possible. A photographic lighting slave is a tool used to help light up a subject in a photograph. It is used in place of or in addition to a flash. Some of the renowned brands are Canon, Nikon, Sony, and Fujifilm. They offer different types of photographic lighting slaves in the market.
Choosing the right photographic lighting slave is difficult as there are many factors to consider. The type of camera you use, the features of the photographic lighting slave, and the price are all important factors. To make it easier to find the exact photographic lighting slave you’re looking for, we rounded up the best photographic lighting slaves on Amazon, according to thousands of customer reviews.
Check out our favorite photographic lighting slaves in the list below, and keep reading for our buying guide.
Our Editor’s Best Photographic Lighting Slaves Reviews
- 【300Ws High Power Outdoor Strobe Flash】 With a 300Ws max flash output, adjustable flash power between 1/64 and 1/1, and a stable 5600K (±200K) color temperature, this NEEWER Q300 outdoor flash ensures natural and balanced lighting effects (flash tube sold separately). Also equipped with a 13W 3050K modeling lamp and an impressive illuminance of up to 5010lux at 0.5m, perfect for portraits, product photography, and other outdoor professional photography
- 【Smartly Protected High Capacity Lithium Battery】 Upgraded with multiple battery protection mechanisms like overheating and overvoltage, this 10.8V 7800mAh lithium battery ensures intelligent safeguarding for 1000 full power flashes with 0.4~2.5s fast recycling time, and can be fully charged in just 5 hours via the included charger (US plug). The low battery alert provides timely reminders to avoid unexpected power drain
- 【Manual/Multi/S1/S2/Quick Modes】 Fully supports Manual, Multi (Stroboscopic), and Optical Triggering (S1/S2), and does not support TTL and HSS modes (with sync speed no more than 1/200s when used with Q Compact trigger). Multi mode controls the stroboscopic rate up to 20 times (20 Hz). In Quick mode, you can adjust the flash duration from 1/1000s to 1/10000s across 10 levels. The high definition display with clear buttons allows for easy and efficient adjustment
- 【Built in 2.4G Wireless Q System】 As a Slave flash in 5 wireless control groups (A/B/C/D/E), 32 channels, controlled by a Master flash like NEEWER Z1 Z2 Z760, compatible with QPRO transmitters (not included). Use the Q COMPACT single contact trigger or sync cable for other Q system flashes in 16 channels and a 98'/30m range. Compatible with Canon Nikon Panasonic Olympus Pentax Fujifilm and Sony with Mi Hot Shoe cameras. Not compatible with Canon EOS Rebel SL3/250D T7/1500D 2000D T100/3000D 4000D
- 【Standard Bowens Mount & Adjustable Handle】 Features a standard Bowens mount that easily attaches to softboxes, umbrellas, reflectors, and other light modifiers, and comes with a standard reflector and an umbrella hole to expand your photography rig. The adjustable handle can be either mounted on a light stand and allows for 180°rotation, or simply handheld for the convenience of outdoor shooting
- 【Illuminate Your Creativity】 Torjim softbox lighting kit is made of high-quality PET fabric and a foldable nylon cover, which has high reflectivity, softer and even light, and a wider range of illumination. The inner baffle of silver particles built into the lampshade makes the light cast evenly, which maximizes the soft light ability and eliminates shadows.
- 【Energy Efficient Bulbs】Softbox photography lighting kit is equipped with 85W energy saving bulb, 3000-7500K daylight CFL lighting bulb, which can save up to 80% energy, the bulb not only can work in low temperature environment, but also the bulb life is beyond your imagination. While saving electricity, it also provides constant and even light, providing a good photographic environment.
- 【Sturdy and Reliable】 This studio softbox is equipped with a tripods with independent locking knobs, made of high quality aluminum alloy, and the sturdy locking system ensures that your items are not affected by any wobble during use. Experiments have proved that the tripod can easily resist scratches from hard objects, providing excellent safety, reliability and sufficient stability for your lighting softbox.
- 【Flexibility at Your Fingertips】This Torjim softbox comes with a 210° rotatable head that can adjust the angle according to your needs. It is suitable for photography art, meeting different needs such as photography lighting, live broadcast, video fill light, etc. It can easily create perfect lighting effects for indoor shooting and make photos more attractive.
- 【What Will You Get】Our package contains everything you need: 2 X Softbox, 1 X Remote, 2 X LED Bulb, 2 X 62in Tripod Stand and 2 X Soft Diffuser.
- The D-120 AC Slave is Small and light, suitable for shooting small objects advertising and portrait art photos, children's photography, fashion photography, identification photo,etc.
- It expands your capabilities without sync cables. It is an excellent complement to the Master AC Slave
- Color temperature 5500K±200K and wide illumination angle, and work well if it is used together with umbrellas and umbrella reflectors
- E27 Bulb Holder can be Mounted on any standard photo studio light stands, also can be added a umbrella reflector bowen and so on
- Screw into E27 standard household Lamp Socket
- The D-120 AC Slave is suitable for shooting small objects advertising and portrait art photos, children's photography, fashion photography, identification photo,etc.
- It expands your capabilities without sync cables. It is an excellent complement to the Master AC Slave
- Color temperature 5500K±200K and wide illumination angle, and work well if it is used together with umbrellas and umbrella reflectors
- E27 Bulb Holder can be Mounted on any standard photo studio light stands, also can be added a umbrella reflector bowen and so on
- The extra long cords help you move them freely to position it for best lighting effects.
- (2) x 45W Energy Saving Daylight CFL Continuous Light Bulb: 5500K/Max Energy Saving up to 80%. (2) x Single Head Photo Lighting Lamp Holder E26, E27 Standard Screw Base
- 2 x 33"/84cm White Translucent Umbrella can soften, broaden and diffuse the light output of any tungsten or studio flash source
- 2 x 33"/84cm Black Reflector Umbrella,reflects all light sources while maximizing light spread
- (2) x 86'' Photography Light Stand, height adjustable (Min 33'' – Max 86'').
- The Professional Umbrella Lighting kit is perfect for advertising products, photo-art, photo-Portrait,industrial, scientific and technical photography, ROHS and CE Certificate.
- MULTIPLE USES: Ideal for professional photographers and videographers alike! Go from still images to video with beautiful lighting.
- Self-important US Sign lighting, LED ring light, unique light design, soft light, accurate color temperature, color display white, to achieve beautiful skin, and instantly make the picture becomes clear.
- Professional portrait photography fill light, shooting still life, video dedicated.
- Widely applied to outdoor photo light, filling light indoors, portrait, fashion, wedding art, advertisement photography, shooting video, etc.
- Product Includes: LED Photography Fill Light x2, Retractable Light Stand x2, Dimming Adapter x2, Carrying Bag x1 (All the accessories can be put into the carrying bag for easy storage and carrying.
- Optical Slave | Guide Number: 80
- Works as Master or Slave | Standard Household Screw-in Base
- 2.0 Second Recycling | Includes 15' 3.5 mm Sync Cord
- Whats In The Box: Sync Cord (15'), Limited 1-Year Warranty
- 【Sturdy】Made of premium aluminum alloy which makes structure more stable, durable, portable and lightweight
- 【Extendable】Convenient to adjust the height. Height is adjustable from 2.5 ft - 7ft. Max load capacity 11 lbs
- 【Solid Locking】Its solid locking capabilities are super simple and easy to use and ensure the safety of your lighting equipment when in use
- 【Easy-carrying】The legs can also fold in and have a knob to lock them in place. Carry bag is good for storing and travelling
- 【Multiple Use】1/4 inch threaded screw tip used for photo shooting, mounting strobe lights, umbrellas, softboxes and other photographic equipment; Both for studio and on-site use. 【Note: When use heavy-duty photographic equipment such as softboxes, strobe lights, you may need to match the sandbag to increase its stability】
Best Photographic Lighting Slaves Buying Guide
Before choosing the best photographic lighting slaves you should consider following options:
1. Wattage: The first thing to look for is wattage. This refers to the brightness which the flash can generate. The higher the wattage, the brighter the flash.
A higher wattage helps in freezing the action with a proper exposure even from a distance. If you are looking for a flash for your DSLR, then you should get one with a wattage of 600W to 2000W.
2. Flash Duration: The flash duration is the time for which the light is generated after the trigger is pressed. A shorter duration is preferable since it freezes the action better.
A longer flash duration is better for lighting up large areas. In this case, the flash is fired for a longer duration and then re-fired for a short duration.
3. Flash modes: The flash modes indicate the number of times the flash can be triggered per second. For example, if the flash can be triggered at 3fps, then it is suitable for photographing moving subjects.
For a studio setup, a flash with a 1 or 2fps mode is ideal.
4. Sync Speed: This is the fastest shutter speed at which the device can sync with the camera. If you are photographing moving subjects with an open aperture and a long shutter speed, then the camera will be out of focus.
The sync speed indicates the shortest shutter speed at which the camera can be focused. A higher sync speed ensures that the image is in focus.
5. Recycling Time: Recycling Time refers to the time taken for the flash to charge for the next shot after every shot is fired. If the recycling time is faster, then the flash is ready for the next shot faster.
A faster recycling time is preferable as it reduces the downtime between shots.
6. Power Output: Power output is indicated in terms of peak and balanced flash. Peak flash refers to the maximum power that the flash can generate for a short duration.
Balanced flash refers to the average power that the flash can generate for a long time. Balanced flash is suitable for taking photographs whereas the peak flash is suitable for freezing the action.
7. Battery Life: The battery life of the flash is important to consider. This indicates the number of shots that the flash can take on a single charge of the battery.
A longer battery life ensures that you can shoot for a long time without having to charge the flash.
8. Battery Capacity: Battery capacity refers to the amount of charge that the battery can hold. The higher the capacity, the longer the flash can be used without charging.
9. Recycling Time: Recycling Time refers to the time taken for the flash to charge for the next shot after every shot is fired. If the recycling time is faster, then the flash is ready for the next shot faster.
A faster recycling time is preferable as it reduces the downtime between shots.
10. Battery Indicator: A battery indicator indicates whether the battery is low or not. This will help you to plan your shoot accordingly.
What else you should know about photographic lighting slaves
1. What are the best photographic lighting slaves?
There are many different types of photographic lighting slaves, and the best type for a particular photographer will depend on their specific needs and preferences. Some of the most popular types of slaves include wireless slaves, infrared slaves, and optical slaves.
2. What are the benefits of using photographic lighting slaves?
There are many benefits of using photographic lighting slaves, including the ability to create more complex lighting setups, to control multiple lights with one trigger, and to sync light output with the camera’s shutter.
3. How do you use photographic lighting slaves to get the best results?
The best results are achieved by using photographic lighting slaves in conjunction with a light meter. By taking a light meter reading, you can determine the correct exposure for your subject. This will ensure that your subject is properly exposed, and that the background is correctly exposed as well.
4. What are the different types of photographic lighting slaves?
There are three different types of photographic lighting slaves: optical, infrared, and radio.
5. What are some tips for using photographic lighting slaves?
-Use a light meter to determine the proper exposure for the scene.
-Set the camera to manual mode and set the shutter speed and aperture accordingly.
-Use a flash with a built-in slave trigger or an external slave trigger.
-Position the slave flash units around the subject, taking into account the direction of the light and the distance of the subject from the camera.
-Test the lighting setup before taking the actual photo.
Conclusion
On the market, there are numerous best photographic lighting slaves. Hopefully, the list of the top ten best photographic lighting slaves will save you time researching and deciding on the best one for you.