Speedlights are great for being able to light your subject on location. You get a portable, battery operated solution that with the right modifiers can be a great asset. The only problem is that the name brand speedlights by Nikon and Canon cost hundreds of dollars. This makes it hard to justify buying two or three of them. My main speedlight is a Nikon SB910 and it’s currently going for $546.95 at B&H. That price point puts them in the range of studio strobes.
At the end of the day you need a good light that works with the functions of your camera such as TTL, and doesn’t eat through batteries faster than normal or fail during your shoot. I had a chance to try out the Aperlite YH-500N during a portrait/fashion shoot that I did recently.
I used it with my Westcott Rapid Box 26″ Octa modifier as well as my Pocket Wizard triggers. I hadn’t had any time with it before the shoot. I took it out of the box and put my rechargeable AA batteries in it. Mounted it and started shooting. I was impressed with the output and recycle rate was also decent (3 seconds), but not super. The controls are very easy to use and the illuminated LCD is very easy to read. Actually had I spent a few minutes with it before the shoot I would have found out that it has partial support for Nikon’s Wireless remote mode. This takes it up a notch because I have the ability to trigger the Aperlite from the pop-up flash on my Nikon D810.
See it in action here
The bottom line
Chances are your Nikon or Canon branded speedlight is built better and may last longer, but here’s the kicker… the Aperlite is only $59.99! At that price you can buy 4 of them for less than the cost of the name brand basic speedlights.
Even if the Aperlite failed after a year’s use I could replace it every year for 9 years before hitting the cost of one SB-910.
It also makes my Westcott Rapid Box Duo 32″ Duo (which holds 2 speedlights) much more viable. I haven’t had any issues with it thus far and I’d definitely be much more willing to risk it in less than ideal conditions than I would my SB-910. If I had to do a shoot in the water or rain you better believe I’d reach for my Aperlite first. If you’re looking for a low cost speedlight, this is it.
You can get the Aperlite YH-500N for Nikon here.
You can get the Aperlite YH-500C for Canon here.
You can get the Westcott Rapid Box 26″ Octa here.
You can get the Westcott Rapid Box Duo 32″ here.
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Looks interesting. I’ve been quite happy with the similar looking Yongnuo YN-560 family, along with their inexpensive RF remotes. The flashes are slightly more expensive and aren’t TTL compatible, but the remotes are way cheaper than pocket wizards. The newer models support remote control of power and zoom, using either a Mk IV flash as a commander, or the $45 YN-560TX, which is like an RF version of the Nikon SU-800.
The $70 Mk IV flash supports groups. The Mk III, which also lists for $70, but lacks the commander function and appears to be available for less, possibly on close-out.
Both of these flashes incorporate the RF transceiver, there is also an older Mk II, which is $60, but requires a separate RF-603 transceiver which is about $30 for a pair, and doesn’t support remote zoo/power, or group selection. I started with a Mk II and the RF-603, and added a Mk III and YN-560TX when they came out.
The result is a poor mans version of the Nikon CLS, minus TTL, but with RF rather than IR wireless, so better range and no need for line of sight.
The YH-700N, also looks excellent value, at only £10 more.