Quick review on the Zylight Z90

Charles Papert · June 30th, 2008, 10:05 AM

Following up on the dimming issue, I visited with the Zylight guys at Cinegear and asked them about dimming;the Z90 is definitely not capable of dimming to 0% (fully off). They demonstrated this to me. Marshall, can you discuss this further?

James Hooey · July 3rd, 2008, 11:14 PM

I concur that the z90 does not dim to 0%....however I really like the unit.

I originally bought a Litepanels micro for event/wedding videography and was flabergasted by it's low light output. It's been suggested in some other threads that others are finding low output levels from the Micro as well and have had replacement units that are far brighter so mabey that was my issue in that particular respect.

After replacing the Micro with the Z90 I am far happier with the Zylight. Everything from the build which is very solid and professional to it's functional ability is top notch.

It can be a very bright light at full 100% and I could see wanting a diffuser to soften it both for the talent and for the lighting effect. Having said that even as a bare light it is quite even and not particularly harsh looking which is surprising given that it's an LED light. I'd even consider it to be a soft looking light if I had to describe it's output.

I don't know if I'd say that it gets so hot that it almost burnd s you. The longest continuous on time I tired was about 30 minutes and it was quite warm but not so hot that the fins would actually burn skin.

I've done some night footage with it in some odd circustances.....my other job is security in a Canadian National Park and I often carry my camera and light with me while I patrol the campgrounds. I have come across some interesting animals in the pitch black that I couldn't resist getting some footage if for nothing else other than to identify them. One that comes to mind is a long billed bird just the other night right in the middle of the road. Of course by the time I had my camera and light out it was moving into the treeline. At between 10 to 15 feet distance I was lighting it pretty well and got some usable footage. After it was 20 feet or beyond I found that the light was dropping off too much to be very useful.

The Zylight is a pricey piece of gear but I consider it to be a very versatile and valuable tool.

Marshall Levy · July 4th, 2008, 07:52 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Charles Papert

Following up on the dimming issue, I visited with the Zylight guys at Cinegear and asked them about dimming;the Z90 is definitely not capable of dimming to 0% (fully off). They demonstrated this to me. Marshall, can you discuss this further?

Yeah, perhaps I wrote that by mistake...I'll check my unit this weekend, but could have sworn it went to 0%....maybe I was thinking of another one. Regardless, it's a fantastic light and have three, and will be getting their wireless remote when it comes out in late summer.

Marius Boruch · July 9th, 2008, 09:08 PM

Could you please share with us your custom made battery (the size of 970!!! WOW)
would you post the picture of it. thanks in advance

Marshall Levy · July 10th, 2008, 08:47 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Marius Boruch

Could you please share with us your custom made battery (the size of 970!!! WOW)
would you post the picture of it. thanks in advance

I'd love to, but I'm in the process of having it developed for mainstream market. ETA is slated for dec/jan.

current specs - 12V / 50W / 3A
size - 3x2x1.5"
weight - 6 ounces
auto cutoff w/ power meter* (*tweaking this to make it more precise)

Jeroen Wolf · October 19th, 2008, 01:30 PM

I have a Z1 and am looking into the EX1/EX3. Own a Zylight 90 which I thought would fit on my Z1 but this light is designed for a larger, shoulderbased camera. This became even clearer when I discovered it was shipped with a powercable for drawing its power from a 'pro battery'. (obviously my fault for not doing proper research)
Even though I haven't been able to use the light on camera (it makes the camera very front-heavy, the hotshoe (w/Sony adapter) suddenly feels very flimsy and you won't be able to open/close the LCD because the light's rear-end blocks it, the investment has paid off. I have shot several commercial-type shorts and the light has proved invaluable. Quick, instant light on the floor(!) and every possible nook and crannie for lighting the talent's face- daylight or tungsten.
I own a tekkeon battery (never thought about also being to power the camera from this thing...) but haven't found out a neat arm/brace to attach it to the camera (or my Varizoom LSP shoulderbrace)

The EX1/3 won't have the problem with the LCD so using it as an on-camera light is an option again. Does anyone have a photo how it looks on these cameras and how they power it?

Jeroen

Marshall Levy · October 19th, 2008, 02:48 PM

I've been using my own batteries that I made / had developed. I know that doesn't help at all but there are other portable solutions that will power this light and are still small enough to attach to the camera. Many use the Tekkeon's, which work very well, but they are on the larger side.

Christopher Witz · October 19th, 2008, 03:25 PM

The zylight z90 has also been a great lighting tool for me.... I have discovered that a $40 energiser li-ion battery for lcd picture frames will power the z90 for about an hour... and the plug works in the zylight socket without alteration. ( hmm... just realized this batt might work for the pilot as well! )

Energizer | ER-PHOTO Universal Battery for Digital
Energizer | ER-PHOTO Universal Battery for Digital | ER-PHOTO

Jeroen Wolf · October 20th, 2008, 03:23 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Christopher Witz

The zylight z90 has also been a great lighting tool for me.... I have discovered that a $40 energiser li-ion battery for lcd picture frames will power the z90 for about an hour... and the plug works in the zylight socket without alteration. ( hmm... just realized this batt might work for the pilot as well! )

This thing is bigger than the Tekkeon?! What camera do you use? And how do you attach the battery to the camera?

Christopher Witz · October 20th, 2008, 07:21 AM

no...it's about the size of a pack of cigs..... but with one end rounded off... the specs on b&h are wrong about the size.
I use it on a ex1, z90 on the zylight optional shoe mount.

Jeroen Wolf · October 20th, 2008, 09:48 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Christopher Witz

no...it's about the size of a pack of cigs..... but with one end rounded off... the specs on b&h are wrong about the size.
I use it on a ex1, z90 on the zylight optional shoe mount.

Pretty crucial info for a battery- very unlike B&H to give the wrong specs... but now I understand why you opted for this battery.

I have the shoe ball mount, btw, but it doesn't fit on the Z1 hotshoe- real pain in the b*tt. Guess the EX has a different hotshoe, as yours fits fine apparently.

Still curious to know where you place/attach the battery...

Marshall Levy · October 21st, 2008, 07:44 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Christopher Witz

The zylight z90 has also been a great lighting tool for me.... I have discovered that a $40 energiser li-ion battery for lcd picture frames will power the z90 for about an hour... and the plug works in the zylight socket without alteration. ( hmm... just realized this batt might work for the pilot as well! )

Energizer | ER-PHOTO Universal Battery for Digital
Energizer | ER-PHOTO Universal Battery for Digital | ER-PHOTO

Wow, that's really great for it to last that long. May have to get one and try just for the heck of it. But my battery is smaller! :)

M. Paul El-Darwish · October 21st, 2008, 10:28 AM

Thanks for the review. My background in another domain compels me to ask:
Can you post a still image of the light shining on a blank white wall at Whatever you consider is interview distance (I use 8' as a benchmark). I'd be curious to know what the subject coverage in such a situation is like.
I see that it uses 7 LED emitters.Do you happen to know which emittters they are or can you post a macro shot of one?
As far as I can tell, the Lupine Betty 14 is the most powerful battery driven light (that's camcorder friendly)
Lupine Lighting Systems - Lightset - Betty 14
I'm someone will do more comparisons.

June 30th, 2008, 10:05 AM	#16
Charles Papert Wrangler Join Date: Jan 2002 Location: Los Angeles, CA Posts: 6,810	Following up on the dimming issue, I visited with the Zylight guys at Cinegear and asked them about dimming;the Z90 is definitely not capable of dimming to 0% (fully off). They demonstrated this to me. Marshall, can you discuss this further? __________________ Charles Papert www.charlespapert.com

July 3rd, 2008, 11:14 PM	#17
James Hooey Major Player Join Date: Feb 2007 Location: Bruce Pennisula, Canada Posts: 316	I concur that the z90 does not dim to 0%....however I really like the unit. I originally bought a Litepanels micro for event/wedding videography and was flabergasted by it's low light output. It's been suggested in some other threads that others are finding low output levels from the Micro as well and have had replacement units that are far brighter so mabey that was my issue in that particular respect. After replacing the Micro with the Z90 I am far happier with the Zylight. Everything from the build which is very solid and professional to it's functional ability is top notch. It can be a very bright light at full 100% and I could see wanting a diffuser to soften it both for the talent and for the lighting effect. Having said that even as a bare light it is quite even and not particularly harsh looking which is surprising given that it's an LED light. I'd even consider it to be a soft looking light if I had to describe it's output. I don't know if I'd say that it gets so hot that it almost burnd s you. The longest continuous on time I tired was about 30 minutes and it was quite warm but not so hot that the fins would actually burn skin. I've done some night footage with it in some odd circustances.....my other job is security in a Canadian National Park and I often carry my camera and light with me while I patrol the campgrounds. I have come across some interesting animals in the pitch black that I couldn't resist getting some footage if for nothing else other than to identify them. One that comes to mind is a long billed bird just the other night right in the middle of the road. Of course by the time I had my camera and light out it was moving into the treeline. At between 10 to 15 feet distance I was lighting it pretty well and got some usable footage. After it was 20 feet or beyond I found that the light was dropping off too much to be very useful. The Zylight is a pricey piece of gear but I consider it to be a very versatile and valuable tool. __________________ For Stock Footage http://www.revostock.com/ViewProfile.html?&ID=4811 My Website http://www.soundprostudios.com

July 9th, 2008, 09:08 PM	#19
Marius Boruch Major Player Join Date: Aug 2005 Posts: 421	Could you please share with us your custom made battery (the size of 970!!! WOW) would you post the picture of it. thanks in advance

October 19th, 2008, 01:30 PM	#21
Jeroen Wolf Major Player Join Date: Apr 2006 Location: Amsterdam Posts: 355	I have a Z1 and am looking into the EX1/EX3. Own a Zylight 90 which I thought would fit on my Z1 but this light is designed for a larger, shoulderbased camera. This became even clearer when I discovered it was shipped with a powercable for drawing its power from a 'pro battery'. (obviously my fault for not doing proper research) Even though I haven't been able to use the light on camera (it makes the camera very front-heavy, the hotshoe (w/Sony adapter) suddenly feels very flimsy and you won't be able to open/close the LCD because the light's rear-end blocks it, the investment has paid off. I have shot several commercial-type shorts and the light has proved invaluable. Quick, instant light on the floor(!) and every possible nook and crannie for lighting the talent's face- daylight or tungsten. I own a tekkeon battery (never thought about also being to power the camera from this thing...) but haven't found out a neat arm/brace to attach it to the camera (or my Varizoom LSP shoulderbrace) The EX1/3 won't have the problem with the LCD so using it as an on-camera light is an option again. Does anyone have a photo how it looks on these cameras and how they power it? Jeroen

October 19th, 2008, 02:48 PM	#22
Marshall Levy Major Player Join Date: Dec 2006 Location: Maryland Posts: 304	I've been using my own batteries that I made / had developed. I know that doesn't help at all but there are other portable solutions that will power this light and are still small enough to attach to the camera. Many use the Tekkeon's, which work very well, but they are on the larger side.

October 19th, 2008, 03:25 PM	#23
Christopher Witz Major Player Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: Louisville, KY Posts: 591	The zylight z90 has also been a great lighting tool for me.... I have discovered that a $40 energiser li-ion battery for lcd picture frames will power the z90 for about an hour... and the plug works in the zylight socket without alteration. ( hmm... just realized this batt might work for the pilot as well! ) Energizer \| ER-PHOTO Universal Battery for Digital Energizer \| ER-PHOTO Universal Battery for Digital \| ER-PHOTO

October 20th, 2008, 07:21 AM	#25
Christopher Witz Major Player Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: Louisville, KY Posts: 591	no...it's about the size of a pack of cigs..... but with one end rounded off... the specs on b&h are wrong about the size. I use it on a ex1, z90 on the zylight optional shoe mount.

October 21st, 2008, 10:28 AM	#28
M. Paul El-Darwish Regular Crew Join Date: Aug 2007 Location: Gaithersburg, MD Posts: 107	Thanks for the review. My background in another domain compels me to ask: Can you post a still image of the light shining on a blank white wall at Whatever you consider is interview distance (I use 8' as a benchmark). I'd be curious to know what the subject coverage in such a situation is like. I see that it uses 7 LED emitters.Do you happen to know which emittters they are or can you post a macro shot of one? As far as I can tell, the Lupine Betty 14 is the most powerful battery driven light (that's camcorder friendly) Lupine Lighting Systems - Lightset - Betty 14 I'm someone will do more comparisons.