Rotolight Anova PRO 2
In a studio test, Jamie Harrison reviews Rotolight’s second offering in its Anova range of continuous LED lighting units: the Anova PRO 2 Bi- Colour Standard 50°
A studio test of Rotolight’s LED lighting units
The past few years have seen a rise in the quantity and quality of LED lights. Originally appealing to DSLR video users for their flicker-free lighting ability, LED lights have gradually become more acceptable to stills shooters as their power output has increased, particularly if shooting with continual lighting. LEDs are now beginning to challenge the use of high-powered HMI lighting rigs, such as Arri for video or stills, or strobe for stills photography. Rotolight has leapt to the fore of the market recently with its range of dual-purpose lights that are able to output the continual lighting beloved of videographers and an increasing number of photographers, with the added advantage of flash.
Features
The Anova PRO 2 is the second unit from Rotolight aimed at the professional market. There’s a choice of four models: a 50° standard beam model and a wide 110° beam version, each available as bi- colour or single- colour models. Each model sports a professionally hefty price tag of £1,549.
With a guide number of 36, the unit may not even offer the flash output of a low-powered studio flash, but it has High Speed Sync (HSS) flash usually reserved for high- end professional lights, such as those from Profoto. This allows a shutter speed of up to 1/8,000sec, which is especially useful when shooting fast-moving objects or working in bright sunlight, when you need to maintain a fast shutter speed to match the ambient light. Another advantage is the absence of recycling time, so you can shoot continuous frames as fast as your camera can take them. What’s more, there’s an option to increase the flash output by 250% over the standard nominal rate.
The camera syncs to the light either using a traditional sync cable with 3.5mm jack, or more conveniently with the included Elinchrom Skyport transmitter. This provides wireless operation as well as HSS control for up to 10 lights in four groups, and you can adjust settings as you shoot. We tested the bi- colour version, which allows you to adjust the colour temperature between 3150K and 6300K. The single- colour model offers a standard daylight 5400K output. For location shooters, this means you can easily match the Anova’s modelling and flash output to that of the ambient light without the need for extra filters. The unit comes with a filter pack, including two diffusers: one peach and one magenta.
Rotolight claims the Anova PRO 2 is 70% brighter than the previous model, offering continuous flicker-free output of 10,700 lux. This provides enough light for photographers and film makers to work in various situations, providing either fill light or a main light. Multiple lights can be used to further increase the output, which is especially useful for larger sets, broadcasting or in photographic studios.
Film makers are also catered for with a range of special effects such as burst and pulse options, which include features like replicating fire glows or police lights. In addition, a series of lamps can be daisy chained and pulsed as moving lights. The number of effects available is certainly impressive.
At nearly 50cm in diameter and 3.3kg in weight, the Anova PRO 2 is much