Since 2013, when Profoto pioneered the TTL battery-powered monolight, the company has been regularly rolling out a new product or product enhancement, to the gratification of professionals and serious enthusiasts alike. While the creation of the B2's reduced form factor and OCF system might have given us a clue to what might be coming, the introduction of the A1 AirTTL Studio Light for Canon and Nikon is not only a surprise, but truly a game changer.
The A1 was created both for the professional looking for versatility, light weight, and top-flight performance features, and the ambitious non-professional who appreciates fine lighting quality but doesn't want to hack through a hyper-tech maze to get it. In short, it's both simple and complex, and the choice between them is all yours.
At first glance, the A1 looks like a sleek, matte-black on-camera flash, prompting the question, “why are they calling it a Studio Light?” which it can be, but there's much more here than meets the eye. The first hint is its round 2.75" tilting, rotating head, which is instrumental in providing the natural-looking light with soft gradual falloff that has prompted more than one user to call the quality of light “beautiful.” The head has an auto-zoom function that accommodates lenses from 32 to 105mm, and it can also handle focal lengths from 14 to 24mm using the included Wide Lens. If you prefer, you can turn the auto zoom off and make the adjustments manually.
The A1 is a good-looking flash, but in case you think its looks are superficial, its top-flight performance features will dispel that notion. Significantly faster that most flash units in its class, the A1 recycles in 0.05 to 1.2 seconds and has action-stopping flash durations from 1/8,000 to 1/20,000 second. In the realm of speed, the flash also supports HSS (High Speed Sync), allowing you to shoot at shutter speeds as short as 1/8000 second—instead of 1/250 second, to blur a distracting background using a wide aperture while controlling strong ambient light behind your subject. There's even a modeling light with brightness that can be user-adjusted or set to proportional to preview how the light is falling on your subject. Your settings are indicated on the highly readable white-on-black LCD screen. If the A1's features are starting to sound like those on a monolight, you're on the right track.
Power is provided by a lithium-ion battery that will give you 350 full-power flashes and thousands of partial-power flashes without fading as it's depleted. It can be powered up again by its 100-240 VAC charger in about 80 minutes.
Now about that “Studio Flash” moniker. If the A1 seems like a great on-camera flash, you'll find that's it's a superlative off-camera light. It has a built-in AirTTL receiver that can be triggered at distances up to 1,000' by one of the Air Remote controllers. It's the Air Remote TTL, however, that allows you to explore and control the A1's full capabilities. It allows wireless assignment of channels and groups, as well as TTL and power level. In fact, the A1 has a switch that allows you to set your main light to TTL, switch to manual operation to adjust manual units in other groups to ratio their output, then switch back to TTL and return to the original TTL setting that was stored for you. The A1 also has +/-3 stops of exposure compensation that can be modified from the remote for your specific needs.
The A1 ships with a Dome Diffuser that offers 180-degree coverage and soft omnidirectional light, the Wide Lens mentioned previously, battery, charger, flash stand, micro-USB cable for updates, Bounce Card, and a bag with shoulder strap. A Gel Kit with 3 CTO and I fluorescent filter and a Soft Bounce Diffuserare available separately.
Flexible and easy to use, I think it's safe to say that the A1 is a remarkable addition to Profoto's roster. Is it an on-camera or an off-camera studio light? The fact is that it's both, and the choice of how to use it is yours. Share your thoughts in the Comments section, below.
