Product Review: Alien Bees ABR800 Ringflash

Features

The ABR800 is a new twist on a great product as it is based on the very popular Alien Bees AB800 monolight. This unit, like it's traditional cousin, produces 320 actual watt-seconds and 800 effective watt-seconds and is fully compatible with the rest of the Alien Bees system (not including light modifiers). This includes the ability to remotely control the ABR800 with any of the optional wired or wireless Alien Bees remote control units. It can also be taken on location outdoors with the optional Alien Bees Vagabond portable power system.

The Alien Bees ringflash stands out among monolights for several reasons. First, ringflash is unique in the quality of light it produces. It is well known in the fashion and beauty photography industry for creating smooth skin and a trademark shadow which outlines the subject when the background is near. Most ringflash products are based on the pack and head lighting system and therefore require a power pack which is independent of the flash unit. The ABR800 is a stand alone device which contains it's own power supply, eliminating the need for a separate power pack.

Secondly, the ABR800 is lighter than most other ringflash products on the market. This has obvious benefits for the photographer who uses a ringflash by hand holding it.

Thirdly, the ABR800 goes beyond the standard for ringflash by adding the ability to use modifiers to create more traditional lighting effects. This makes the ABR800 a viable alternative to even a traditional monolight when building a lighting system for the studio. Replacing a standard monolight in your setup with an ABR800 gives the photographer more options for lighting combinations in their sessions. As more modifiers and accessories are developed, the ABR800 with become more useful to the photographer wanting to keep his or her options open.

Finally, the ABR800 stands out because of it's low street price, costing hundreds less than the other units on the market. This puts the option of using a ringflash within reach for many photographers who otherwise would not have that option. With Alien Bees 60 day unconditional guarantee, it will be a hard opportunity to pass up.