McGizmo for Photography

[pjandyho]

That's fine I'm not looking for an extremely bright light and don't really plan on using it for anything outdoors. It would mainly be used in restaurants that have low light and I will be pretty close to the food. Last week I went to something called a Foodspotting Eatup with a bunch of foodies and most of the people I was with took pics with their camera phones and were using light from their phones for taking pictures and I admit I took some pics that were lit by other people's phones because it was so dark in the place and it got me thinking I should really get a good small flashlight for that type of stuff rather than using crappy light from a cell phone.

Then I think the Mule high CRI would be perfect for you Paula. Much much better than relying on cell phone lights. Btw, I don't do food shots often and I do really like your food photos. Makes me hungry all of a sudden. Nice work!

 

[Chrisdm]

I'm a pro photographer also and I have recently enjoyed this method of "alternative lighting". I was photographing a wedding a few weeks ago when my partner & I were taking photos of the ring in a darkish environment. I happened to have a little Peak Eiger (with a Nichia 119) in my pocket, and ended up lighting a very nice ring shot with it! But the beam is too focused for anything much larger... And this is where the pure flood of the Mule comes into play. After that experience I got a proper Nichia Mule from Don, and although I've only had it for a week or so its beautiful, perfectly even light have the photo wheels in my head spinning. My Mule will definitely be in my pocket for most of my future assignments. I couldn't think of a better light for lighting a plate in a restaurant.

 

[gapey]

Dang you guys are really tempting me. I might just have to bite the bullet and get one of the titanium mules that is being offered. I'm sure it's well worth the price and they seem to really hold their value. Merry Christmas to me?

 

[gapey]

Beautiful photos - welcome to CPF. You'll find many McGizmo lovers here, me included. And my all time favorite light for photography is the Don's Nichia 119 mule. I've seen other lights with the Nichia, but somehow Don's stock has the best tint (or lack thereof) of any I've seen.

You can't go wrong!

run4jc, I saw your photos comparing the Sundrop and Mule. It looks like the Mule would be even better than the Sundrop for my application. Thanks for posting that, it was helpful.

 

[fyrstormer]

Thanks for the suggestions. I see there are Mule Hi CRI's available but they appear to be just as much as the Sundrop XR-U that is available. I would spend a couple hundred for a light but not sure about $400. If there isn't a good McGizmo flood light option for under 300 I may just go with the Zebralight. I gotta say the McGizmo's are pretty nice looking though.

A McGizmo will last longer than you will, and they're now available with 1/4" tripod mount-compatible pocket clips.

The Mule Hi-CRI is the best light for photography work. I have a Mule Hi-CRI plus one of every other (not ultra-rare) light that McGizmo has made, and the Mule is the one I always use for photography. If you make money with your photography, getting a Mule is a no-brainer; you will use it on a regular basis, and it doesn't cost nearly as much as a pro-grade DSLR camera.

An alternate option is to get a Haiku Hi-CRI instead, and put a SureFire-brand 1" white diffuser on it when you need flood lighting. That would help defray the cost a bit, since you could use the Haiku for walking at night, peering into dark corners, etc. The Haiku will be somewhat more focused than the Mule even with the Diffuser installed, more like a SunDrop without the bright ring around the edge of the beam. Just something to consider.

One last thought: last I checked, the the Zebralight Hi-CRI lights don't have as high a color-rendering index (which is rather important for capturing the exact appearance of food, otherwise it comes out looking...wrong, somehow), and their tint is much warmer too. McGizmo Hi-CRI emitters are pretty much the best you can get in a pre-built flashlight.

 

[pjandyho]

An alternate option is to get a Haiku Hi-CRI instead, and put a SureFire-brand 1" white diffuser on it when you need flood lighting. That would help defray the cost a bit, since you could use the Haiku for walking at night, peering into dark corners, etc. The Haiku will be somewhat more focused than the Mule even with the Diffuser installed, more like a SunDrop without the bright ring around the edge of the beam. Just something to consider.

Good suggestion! With a Surefire diffuser, the beam of the Haiku is quite nice too. There will still be a bit of a hot spot, but manageable.

 

[fyrstormer]

Good suggestion! With a Surefire diffuser, the beam of the Haiku is quite nice too. There will still be a bit of a hot spot, but manageable.

Not so much of a hotspot as a smooth gradient, in my opinion. Holding a diffused Haiku more than a few inches away from a white wall, the beam never gets too bright for my retinas to see that the brightness continues increasing all the way to the center of the beam. It's no Mule, which is about as perfectly uniform as any light source can be, but there's definitely not going to be any wash-out in the center of a photo.

The Haiku with a SureFire diffuser is my new recommendation for people who wish they could afford two Gizmos but can only afford one. If they intend to use it for photography, the Hi-CRI is a must, and if/when they can afford a second Gizmo, they can buy a Mule XP-G and swap the light engines between the two.

 

[gapey]

Thanks again everyone for your recommendations. The mule definitely got the most votes and is what I've decided to get. I sent an email to Don requesting one this morning and I just sent another email a bit ago to request the tripod clip. Thanks for that tip fyrstormer! It will come in handy for me. I look forward to getting it and sharing some photos I take of it and of some food lit with it. Maybe later on I'll get a different head for other uses.

 

[McGizmo]

Hi Gapey,
Your light will go out in tomorrow's mail. I think if you do carry this with you to restaurants you will find that you end up using it for other things besides illuminating the food for photos. Illuminating the menu in a dark restaurant is one likely example. You might find that it is real handy having your own light source readily available and I think the Mule is an excellent choice for most tasks, at hand.

 

[fyrstormer]

I look forward to getting it and sharing some photos I take of it and of some food lit with it.

Here are some I've taken of my own cooking, to give you an idea of the Mule's color rendering capabilities. Background lighting was a mix of standard nasty apartment fluorescent bulbs and Philips warm LED bulbs. The camera is just a Casio Exilim point 'n shoot, so it's kind of a wonder they came out as good as they did.

 

[kaichu dento]

For photography, I would guess that your best bet in the McGizmo realm would be a Mule with the Nichia 119 emitter. The Mule is a pure flood light, and the Nichia emitter is an LED with very good color rendition, which would probably be important in your line of work.

You beat me to it because that is the exact light I was going to suggest... at very least I'd suggest posting a WTB over there for a mule-type light with high CRI, or neutral emitter, and one of the best emitters you could end up with would be the Nichia 119.

+1 for McGizmo if within your budget you can also buy the Mule head only...

I think the Nichia high CRI LED's are well suited for your application and although they don't generate the flux of the other more high powered LED's being offered, the difference in output is typically 1 to 2 F-stops. I would guess a Mule or equivalent type light with no secondary optic would be best suited for illuminating a plate of food in a restaurant without disturbing other diners...

...my all time favorite light for photography is the Don's Nichia 119 mule. I've seen other lights with the Nichia, but somehow Don's stock has the best tint (or lack thereof) of any I've seen.

I love the Mule with Nichia 119 high CRI LED for photography (for fill light applications) ...

...you can see how nice the Nichia 119 is as far as neutrality goes.

Then I think the Mule high CRI would be perfect for you...

I got a proper Nichia Mule from Don, and although I've only had it for a week or so its beautiful, perfectly even light have the photo wheels in my head spinning. My Mule will definitely be in my pocket for most of my future assignments. I couldn't think of a better light for lighting a plate in a restaurant.

The Mule Hi-CRI is the best light for photography work.
If you make money with your photography, getting a Mule is a no-brainer; you will use it on a regular basis...

It's no Mule, which is about as perfectly uniform as any light source can be...
If they intend to use it for photography, the Hi-CRI is a must...

...I think the Mule is an excellent choice...

Thanks again everyone for your recommendations. The mule definitely got the most votes and is what I've decided to get. I sent an email to Don requesting one this morning and I just sent another email a bit ago to request the tripod clip.

Not at all a surprising conclusion to this enjoyable thread. I hope you post some pics, both of the light and ones where you've used it to light the shot.

 

[pjandyho]

Not so much of a hotspot as a smooth gradient, in my opinion. Holding a diffused Haiku more than a few inches away from a white wall, the beam never gets too bright for my retinas to see that the brightness continues increasing all the way to the center of the beam.

That's the way to put it! Pardon my inability to put it constructively.

 

[precisionworks]

Direct lighting from a Sundrop:

Why the unusual color? Wish I knew as the image is shown as it was taken, without Photoshop editing.

 

[Chrisdm]

Nice photos Barry! Fyi got the button yesterday, thank you.

 

[gapey]

Got my light last night. Very impressive. I was pleasantly surprised at how wide the beam is if you could even call it a beam. Could practically use it to light up a whole room in the dark. I will take some more pics of it but here's a quick one I took last night to show the size. My bf thought the light would be a lot longer but I knew they were pretty small. He seemed impressed. I also went to an annual SOG sale at their retail outlet in Lynnwood, WA and picked up a pocket knife posing here with the McGizmo.

 

[nbp]

Glad you like your Mule so far gapey. Let us know your impressions as you use it please.

Also post more pics, those are great! Even though I EDC a Mule, I never get tired of looking at them. They have a certain simple, industrial look to them, but for some reason I think they are one of the more beautiful lights ever made. Something about that bare emitter on a board behind a piece of glass, surrounding by machined titanium is so cool to me. Like looking into a portal into the flashlight, or something. I love the styling every time I see it. One of Don's masterpieces.

 

[pjandyho]

Hi Paula,

Welcome to the club! Surely this Mule would serve you well, and surely you will enjoy using it every time. Never ever regretted getting mine. I say that Don is one master craftman when it comes to his designs.

 

[kaichu dento]

Got my light last night. Very impressive. I was pleasantly surprised at how wide the beam is if you could even call it a beam. Could practically use it to light up a whole room in the dark. I will take some more pics of it but here's a quick one I took last night to show the size.

Nice shot of an instant classic and I can't wait to get mine too.
Now I'm wondering how long before you buy an hCRI Haiku to complement it for spotlighting...

 

[gapey]

Nice shot of an instant classic and I can't wait to get mine too.
Now I'm wondering how long before you buy an hCRI Haiku to complement it for spotlighting...

Haha don't tempt me. You can put a Haiku head on this right? Maybe sometime in the future I will get another head for it but I think I'm good for the time being.

I've already had a couple people email me and reply to my photo on Flickr asking me where I got it. So don't be too surprised if you get more photogs buying these.

I was also told my photo was the first thing that comes up when doing a google search on one of these.

 

[fyrstormer]

Haha don't tempt me. You can put a Haiku head on this right? Maybe sometime in the future I will get another head for it but I think I'm good for the time being.

I've already had a couple people email me and reply to my photo on Flickr asking me where I got it. So don't be too surprised if you get more photogs buying these.

I was also told my photo was the first thing that comes up when doing a google search on one of these.

Fifth link for me, not first, but hey, top ten ain't bad on Google.

Yes, the Haiku head will fit. The most direct replacement is a Haiku XP-G head, because the emitter is the same size, so the light engine can unscrew from the Mule and work in the Haiku XP-G head as well. That's the absolute minimum-cost approach, though it requires some care not to damage the emitter when transferring the light engine from one head to another. If you have the money, it would be most convenient to just buy a fully-assembled Haiku so you can use both at once, or keep each one in a different place -- the Mule in your camera bag, the Haiku on your pocket, or whatever works for you.