Photographer Frank Fischer had the exclusive opportunity to photograph the new RolleiSoluna II-60 to test before launch. He was traveling with it in Venice and reports on his experiences with the permanent light.
Frank Fischer tests the Soluna II-60 Flexible photography with continuous lightt
Our photo trips to Venice have been around for many years. We still remember very well that a few years ago we felt like the first to show up there with a portable flash system.
Today, mobile flash systems, such as the Freeze-s series from Rollei on the shore of the lagoon quite normal and every evening Venetian mask wearers and the photographers meet on San Giorgio Maggiore in front of the church of the same name to take flashes from there against the sunset. In the past few years we have taken mask photos there and also at other places in Venice with the modeling light of the Rollei Freeze in the fading light.t.
The Flashes have always had a great performance, but sometimes it is continuous light solution good to still with available light more open blind to be able to take pictures and to be able to shoot one or the other picture more flexibly and, above all, at the same time.
In February 2020 we were with a tour group at the carnival in the lagoon city. Once again one of the focal points was mask photography and there came the new one Rollei Soluna II-60 just right! The new battery-operated Rollei permanent light offers ample performance from 60W LED and insane endurance. In addition, the lamp is wonderfully adjustable and thus also enables super flexible use.
In Venice we have both the freeze and that in the evening and in the morning Soluna II-60 had in use. The freeze whenever you had to flash against strong background light and thatSoluna II-60, whenever the sun had not yet risen or set. It is very practical that the light shaper from Rollei fit both systems, thanks to the identical Bowens S-Type bayonet .
We have with that Soluna II-60 both directly illuminates the mask wearer and generates light in the environment.
The shoots
In the arcades around St. Mark's Square, lamps with very small lights hang from the ceilings. To this beautiful imbokeh To make them visible, we are happy to let the mask wearers step out onto St. Mark's Square at the end of one of the corridors. There the mask is then rather in the dark. To compensate for the difference in brightness between the foreground and lights in the aisle, theSoluna II-60 ideal. We have thelamp accordingly placed in front of it.
We had that one nightSoluna II-60 taken to Burano at the blue hour. Here we had planned a shoot with two masks. The aim was to combine the natural lights of the street lighting with the light of the continuous light to combine. The colorful houses of Burano should form the backdrop. On one of the corners of the house we found the ideal lighting for the pair of masks, only the house in the background was much too dark and the blue color didn't look particularly good. So we have thatSoluna II-60 to the illumination of the background used.
When leaving the location, our gaze fell on an archway. There was sufficient light in front of the archway, but it was a little lacking light fringe around the mask wearers. It quickly became clear to us that light had to come from behind. So we have thatSoluna II-60 placed in the aisle and the mask wearers placed in front of the archway. ThatSoluna II-60 in this case creates wonderful light in the corridor and also provides a fluoroscopy the feathers.
But that also works during the daySoluna II-60 a great figure. Now with full power. In order to have as much light as possible, we have one instead of a softbox normal reflector used. In a dark arcade of a monastery we shone with the steady light Mask wearer and model.
Conclusion on the Soluna II-60
That Soluna II-60 is perfect for the portrait photographer who likes to go with him even without a power outlet steady light is working. Thanks to two battery slots for the compatible Batteries Sony NP-F990, NP-F550 andNP-F750 is given an insane perseverance. Many photographers already use these batteries with other lights and can therefore continue to use the existing batteries. The control range is great and thanks to the universal Bowens bayonet and the compact design is always a cool one continuous light solution included.