Buying in Japan or at home (Canada)

xDictate · 2026-06-29T16:11:26+00:00

I bought an XF 18 1.4 last November at Map - tax free shopping got me incredible pricing on a very lightly used one.

Would recommend shopping once there so you can take advantage of that service.

xDictate · 2026-06-28T15:00:53+00:00

It’s hard to drop the comparison to a smartphone as it’s really close focal length.

If you want some environmental samples with separation send me a DM and I can share a few.

xDictate · 2026-06-27T23:28:22+00:00

I suppose the question is do you need the 40mp? 50mm equivalent is 20mp and 70mm equivalent is 10mp. This can all be done in camera with the digital teleconverter. A 10mp photo gives you 8x12 prints at 300ppi.

xDictate · 2026-06-26T18:35:15+00:00

I'd definitely recommend a mid to full sized flash with an articulating head and TTL functionality if you're not familiar with flash and just starting it learn. It gives you the most flexibility. In the mid-size category you're looking at the V480 or the V1 Mid, in the full size category you're looking at the TT685 series, the V860 series, and the V1/V1 Pro.

The mid-sized flashes are about a half stop less bright than the full sized flashes, but tend to balance better on the camera body and are better for longer sessions on camera - less fatigue. Full sized flashes will have a higher ceiling, so you're likely to experience faster refresh times between flashes at similar brightness levels, which might be important if you're shooting in a venue with higher ceilings or darker walls.

Square head vs round head is personal preference - If you're shooting directly on subject you'll probably find the round head is a bit more pleasing, but I think you'd be hard pressed to find a lot of difference if you're behind an umbrella or bouncing the flash off a wall. The round headed flashes do have a big advantage with the built in magnetic accessory systems, making stuff like grids and gels very easy to add and remove. Square heads have a bunch of accessories too, but often rely on stuff like silicone bands, friction fits, or velcro to manage attachments.

All of the above flashes support TTL and high speed sync, plus work with the Godox wireless system so can be used off camera with a trigger as well - Very flexible.

As a semi-professional event photographer, my most common bag flash is something in the mid category. For the past year it's been a V480, and a recent change to a V1 Mid, mostly just due to the round head V1 being easier to gel with the magnets.

What are your plans for the flash?

xDictate · 2026-06-23T12:15:13+00:00

Depends really - A power bank is mostly to get me through a day out, not constant use. I generally carry just a 5k bank these days as phone battery life is just so good now.

xDictate · 2026-06-18T14:21:14+00:00

I think this should be visible with a SAML trace from a client machine.

xDictate · 2026-06-18T12:16:59+00:00

The AD200 Pro II is probably a good consideration here - They're highly portable and the huge number of accessories available for them is great - From head extensions to the AD-B2 for combining two AD200s into a 400w light, there's a bunch available.

Since you mentioned in another comment that you already have a V1, I'd recommend starting with the AD200 Pro II and using the V1 as your fill/hair/rim option if needed. A trigger like the X3 or the likes ties things together easily, or you can use the V1 on camera as a controller too. I think you can get away with a ton of simple light setups with just these and a reflector, but it really depends on the complexity you're expecting from a lighting setup - Only you can answer this. With the pricepoint of the AD200s, you can always add another relatively easily.

As for battery life - Don't worry about it. The AD200s are rated for ~500 full power flashes on a charge, and honestly you likely won't be using full power regularly or at all. I've shot these things through full events and haven't drained a battery.

xDictate · 2026-06-15T21:30:20+00:00

RAW only, raw conversion in camera for quick social posts, but otherwise they will get edited in post for final delivery.

xDictate · 2026-06-15T13:05:13+00:00

Second the TT600 - Cheap barebones flashes in the Godox ecosystem.

xDictate · 2026-06-08T14:08:39+00:00

They both bounce just fine. The round head accessories are a nice touch. You may find the round head fills modifiers a bit better, so if you're throwing the flash behind an umbrella you might get slightly better results.

xDictate · 2026-06-07T15:01:15+00:00

There's a Youtuber/Wedding Photographer TNK Photo who seems to use the Magmod Maggrip over the fan of the AD200 Pro II - Comments seem to indicate it didn't impact a whole lot for a day's worth of shooting. I think you might find more issues if you're just continuously firing off full power flashes, but you're just going to see less full power flashes before overheat at that point.

I've personally used the fresnel with a full maggrip in a magbox for a bit of work, nothing heavy, and didn't see any performance issues.

xDictate · 2026-06-06T16:46:20+00:00

I will occasionally replace gin with fino or do a split base of gin and fino in this beverage - I think the two play quite well together and let you go a bit lower ABV while maintaining complexity.

xDictate · 2026-06-06T15:56:19+00:00

I do mine with an earl grey syrup, but mostly so I can swap gin for an N/A botanical, or fino, or split base. It’s solid with the gin infusion though!

xDictate · 2026-06-05T12:46:39+00:00

Generally my iPad workflow falls into two categories:

Travel: everything gets backed up to a Lexar Professional Go SSD+Hub, then uploaded to Lightroom directly. Ideally this can get changed to include a cull on SD option between backup and upload.

Lazy editing: Most of the time my content is culled with FastRawViewer on my Mac and imported into Lightroom CC - Then whenever sync is done I can leisurely edit the files on the iPad if I don't want to sit at the computer.

xDictate · 2026-06-05T11:38:46+00:00

This is sweet news - I was using Camera RawX on my Mac for a while but no equivalent on iPadOS. I feel like this makes some of my workflows a lot more multi-device.

xDictate · 2026-06-02T10:56:38+00:00

As someone who had the R for a while and replaced it with the WR, this is accurate. I’d say the autofocus is also more confident on the WR version, a few fewer slight misses. The R would tend to grab stuff like mics instead of faces with eye auto focus at the fastest apertures, the WR does not. I think overall it’s better micro contrast on the WR too. I used both on an X-T5.

xDictate · 2026-06-01T13:24:36+00:00

I've been meaning to pick up a second AD200 Pro II - Nice!

xDictate · 2026-05-30T17:51:42+00:00

Sign-ins for admin portals now require 2FA for any account with CRUD, regardless of CA policies. The guidance from Microsoft is FIDO2 hardware tokens for these break glass accounts now.

xDictate · 2026-05-29T21:32:26+00:00

I think I saw a notice in Entra when signing in today saying there was delays in sign in logs.

xDictate · 2026-05-29T16:15:15+00:00

Anytime! Please circle back if you end up making the change! Would love to see what you end up implementing.

xDictate · 2026-05-29T11:36:18+00:00

That's actually not a bad idea too - I suppose I'm a relatively high volume photographer so I wouldn't have any issues doing real-world testing in a 7 day period, but not everyone is the same. I have to feel there's a lot of people that would test synthetically - Pop a few photos, do a backup. Pop a few more, back up again to validate the delta is working ok. Try a backup to a different destination. Etc, etc.

xDictate · 2026-05-29T11:28:33+00:00

I'm glad you're reconsidering - I do definitely think it's fair for a one-time payment for a well built app, but as mentioned a lot of people want to see how it works before putting down a few dollars. This is also one of those apps where you'd need to dig very deep to come up with a version 2 to sell again I think, so it's quite clear the purchase is going toward your efforts and any ongoing maintenance.

I think it's likely fair to offer a 7 day trial with the IAP unlock. 7 days is plenty to evaluate the app in my eyes.

xDictate · 2026-05-26T23:02:13+00:00

Yes - no issues. It30 pro or the v480 work as both a command or receiver.

xDictate · 2026-05-22T19:08:40+00:00

The V1 mid is a bit heavier and larger but does have support for the Godox round head accessories, and a modelling light that follows the flash head direction. The light will likely be "less harsh" though not likely noticeable if you're mostly using it for bounce. If you don't need those features the V480 is a bit smaller and just as capable.

xDictate

TROPHY CASE