The ElektroLumens DeCree XPG shots are in post #31 (along with the HD and G5 shots for comparison).
My 4Sevens Maelstrom G5 finally arrived from one of the great CPFMarketplace vendors today and this evening, I had a chance to take a couple of shots of the two "against" each other.
Now, before anyone simply skips down to the photos, I must say that first off, there are NO really long distance shots here - yet. I pretty much live in Suburbia, so tons of ambient light and very close neighbors. As such, the photos that I was able to take this evening were from my back porch and between my house and my neighbors. It will be a while before I can get to the country to be able to take some really dark and long distance shots.
Anyway, as I've been waiting for someone to take some shots with these two lights, I finally decided to simply pull the trigger and purchase the G5. There are plenty of reviews of this light (as well as the Hound Dog) located elsewhere, so I'm not really going to get into the dynamics of each light. (The Search function is your friend!)
I am, however, going to offer up a couple of photos that compare the two together as well as a couple of things individually. And just for a little info about the pictures, I took them with my Pentax K10D with the camera set on full Manual. I tried the best that I could to take the "dualing" photos with the same settings - which I will write down before each group so you will know how I was shooting without having to go dig up the exif data...
And btw, just for the sake of full disclosure, I paid for both lights myself and I use the MD4 with the Malkoff Hound Dog head (though a couple of the photos have the HD head on an MD3) and ran both lights on primary batteries (SF's in the Malkoff and 4Sevens own batteries in the G5).
First, the two lights together...
And just the heads:
To compare the size of the two heads looking at the LED (and notice the orange peel reflector on the HD, while the G5 has the smooth reflector):
Of course, the top side - or where the head attaches to the body:
For some reason, I couldn't get my head wrapped around all the reviews that talked about the different size "knobs" in the G5 head that allowed it to have so many seperate levels, yet not have a loose head. The top of the body is super thick:
...to allow for the different "connection" levels that, btw, are moveable - meaning each of the three progressively longer "knobs" move back into or out of the head as the light is loosened or tightened:
And together lying down (with the MD3 tube on the HD):
Outside. In all the following photos, the Malkoff HD is first, followed by the 4Sevens Maelstrom G5. The picture data for these is as follows: 4 seconds, F3.5, ISO 100, AWB, and an 18mm focal length.
My shed is almost 25 yards away from where I am taking the photo from:
I was trying to get some type of distance shot, so I pointed the lights at this transformer that is behind the houses behind my house (did that make sense??). Same exif info with the HD first and the G5 second:
Inbetween my house and my neighbor's (really to show that there is plenty of spill with these lights for those that my think these lights are only throwers):
Finally, in the bedroom with Sophie (these were taken at 1/4 second, F3.5, ISO 100, AWB, and an 18mm focal length). First, with the fan/lamp turned on and then off with the HD and lastly, the G5:
Soooo....
My favorite out of the two? Without considering the low's and multiple outputs and other miscellaneous stuff, and all things being equal (ie, both lights on high using an XP-G R5 LED), I would have to say that neither is better than the other.
Only when all the other stuff is added in can one really say that one is "better" than the other and then that simply comes down to personal preference.
IMO, both of these lights are awesome and now that I have them, I have no qualms about spending the money on either one. :twothumbs One is easier to get than the other, but the other is surely worth the wait if you certainly have a brand and "made in location" preference.
Hopefully, not too long from now, I will be able to make it out to the country and get some distance shots. I am also in possession of a Jetbeam M1X that I may throw into the distance mix. Somebody else took photos of the M1X and the HD together and the HD surely held it's own. I wouldn't bet against the G5 to hold it's own either.
Thanks for looking.
My 4Sevens Maelstrom G5 finally arrived from one of the great CPFMarketplace vendors today and this evening, I had a chance to take a couple of shots of the two "against" each other.
Now, before anyone simply skips down to the photos, I must say that first off, there are NO really long distance shots here - yet. I pretty much live in Suburbia, so tons of ambient light and very close neighbors. As such, the photos that I was able to take this evening were from my back porch and between my house and my neighbors. It will be a while before I can get to the country to be able to take some really dark and long distance shots.
Anyway, as I've been waiting for someone to take some shots with these two lights, I finally decided to simply pull the trigger and purchase the G5. There are plenty of reviews of this light (as well as the Hound Dog) located elsewhere, so I'm not really going to get into the dynamics of each light. (The Search function is your friend!)
I am, however, going to offer up a couple of photos that compare the two together as well as a couple of things individually. And just for a little info about the pictures, I took them with my Pentax K10D with the camera set on full Manual. I tried the best that I could to take the "dualing" photos with the same settings - which I will write down before each group so you will know how I was shooting without having to go dig up the exif data...
And btw, just for the sake of full disclosure, I paid for both lights myself and I use the MD4 with the Malkoff Hound Dog head (though a couple of the photos have the HD head on an MD3) and ran both lights on primary batteries (SF's in the Malkoff and 4Sevens own batteries in the G5).
First, the two lights together...
And just the heads:
To compare the size of the two heads looking at the LED (and notice the orange peel reflector on the HD, while the G5 has the smooth reflector):
Of course, the top side - or where the head attaches to the body:
For some reason, I couldn't get my head wrapped around all the reviews that talked about the different size "knobs" in the G5 head that allowed it to have so many seperate levels, yet not have a loose head. The top of the body is super thick:
...to allow for the different "connection" levels that, btw, are moveable - meaning each of the three progressively longer "knobs" move back into or out of the head as the light is loosened or tightened:
And together lying down (with the MD3 tube on the HD):
Outside. In all the following photos, the Malkoff HD is first, followed by the 4Sevens Maelstrom G5. The picture data for these is as follows: 4 seconds, F3.5, ISO 100, AWB, and an 18mm focal length.
My shed is almost 25 yards away from where I am taking the photo from:
I was trying to get some type of distance shot, so I pointed the lights at this transformer that is behind the houses behind my house (did that make sense??). Same exif info with the HD first and the G5 second:
Inbetween my house and my neighbor's (really to show that there is plenty of spill with these lights for those that my think these lights are only throwers):
Finally, in the bedroom with Sophie (these were taken at 1/4 second, F3.5, ISO 100, AWB, and an 18mm focal length). First, with the fan/lamp turned on and then off with the HD and lastly, the G5:
Soooo....
My favorite out of the two? Without considering the low's and multiple outputs and other miscellaneous stuff, and all things being equal (ie, both lights on high using an XP-G R5 LED), I would have to say that neither is better than the other.
Only when all the other stuff is added in can one really say that one is "better" than the other and then that simply comes down to personal preference.
IMO, both of these lights are awesome and now that I have them, I have no qualms about spending the money on either one. :twothumbs One is easier to get than the other, but the other is surely worth the wait if you certainly have a brand and "made in location" preference.
Hopefully, not too long from now, I will be able to make it out to the country and get some distance shots. I am also in possession of a Jetbeam M1X that I may throw into the distance mix. Somebody else took photos of the M1X and the HD together and the HD surely held it's own. I wouldn't bet against the G5 to hold it's own either.
Thanks for looking.
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