- © Brian Roy
This past week I was fortunate enough to try out the Profoto AcuteB 600r strobe pack with an AcuteB head. As the name implies, the 600r is a 600 watt second pack, the R designation meaning it has a built-in wireless transmitter, which is fully compatible with the industry standard Pocket Wizard technology (32 channels, 4 zones, more options than you’ll probably ever need). While both the pack and head are diminutive in size, they are a classic Profoto design, built like tanks. All in all, the total package is small enough to fit in a backpack, and rugged enough for you to not feel bad about it. Basically a guerilla photographer’s dream…almost.
Allow me to preface this critique by saying quite honestly I did not fully charge the pack before I took it out. When the pack was on, it was really on; quick recycle times, consistent output. But once I depleted the battery I found myself having to wait minutes before being able to start the pack up again and go for another burst of say…20 or so shots. Luckily the clients were friends of mine and our time was not restrained. After the Indoor shots, we had plans to do another set on top of their parking deck (In twenty degree weather in the middle of the night mind you), so I allowed the pack to charge for about an hour before we gave that a go, since, needless to say, I wanted to slim my time out in the cold down to as little as possible to get the shots we needed. The trick seemed to work and this was when I really felt the pack shined. I fired off at least 120 shots at about three-quarters power no problem, turning the pack off briefly in between models to set up various scenes and warm my hands up in the deck’s elevator lobby.
Now I know it’s only a 600 watt second pack, and any photographer worth his salt can make a single light set up look like a three or four light set, but I would have certainly liked the option to have a second head for this assignment. BUT, I must say, that one head is certainly no slouch, and Profoto heads are definitely my favorites to date. They’re solid, small, consistent, and the reflector system is genius. Honestly I don’t know why companies haven’t bitten off their idea a long time ago. It simplifies light management so much to be able to just slide the modifier/reflector along any point of the head instead of building a zoom function into the light itself making more things that could possibly break.
Overall my experience with the 600R was for the most part positive, however an AC connection would be a welcomes feature on future models. Hopefully Profoto will jump on the lithium bandwagon to make longer lasting battery packs, but until then, the 600 and 600R seem like fairly good deals to me particularly if you’re a student buying through Mac-On-Campus. I liked the 7-stop adjustability of the pack as well as its solid construction and the head’s simplicity and sturdiness.
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