Godox Lux Senior Retro Camera Flash (Pink)

This is a Godox Lux Senior Retro Camera Flash. If they had included Fun in its name it wouldn't need a review. I use it mounted alongside a full-size camera with a wide-normal pancake lens and people react with a smile. Battery life is OK, charges with any 5V USB, controls are definitely retro, results are pleasing.

Just received my Lux Senior. Cool looking unit, and my lightmeter agrees with the markings on its exposure wheel. However I think buyers should be aware that the sync connection on the strobe is NOT a standard 3.5mm. I have about 10 such cables here, most of them Pocket Wizard brand, and none of them will fit in the Lux Senior's port, only the supplied cable will. This is disappointing for many reasons : the supplied cable isn't very long, and will limit which settings I'm able to use on my lastolite bracket - no easy way to connect a pocket wizard to the lux senior - gotta take special care of the supplied cable and make sure I always have it when using that strobe - and when it eventually fails as all sync cables do I don't know how I'll be able to get a replacement. If you plan on using the LS on a hot shoe, this is a 4 or 5 star strobe. But if you're planning to use PC sync on older cameras, that non-standard cable is gonna be a serious nuisance.

I did not have high expectations for this flash partly because of its low price and partly because of its design (which I feared might be form over function). How wrong I was. It is very pleasant to use, creates good light and, best of all, has a fast refresh rate (when not on full power). I've used it on manual only and am extremely pleased with the results.

Anyone who has been watching Godox over the past several years knows of the significant improvement in the design, fit and finish of their products. For example, the Lux Senior, a kind of mini-colander with a hotshoe, comes in a box worthy of a Leica. To my mind, this tells you something about the path Godox is on. But is the Lux but a toy or a flash worthy of serious consideration? It's no secret that people who inhabit the real world, rather than the photo studio, have a distinct aversion to other people sporting lethal looking cameras with lenses that resemble the business end of a howitzer. It doesn't encourage a rapport with them, and often kills any kind of momentary social bonding. That's where a Lux Senior can help. Which is to say that, when I approach people on the street with it mounted on my Ricoh GR or Fuji X-100F, often they suddenly want their picture taken. A small and unintimidating (and cute) package can do wonders for their enthusiastic co-operation. Think people with dogs. I've been testing mine for a few weeks now, so I can tell you about my experience with it. First, the Lux renders a much softer light than my fresnel-lensed flashes.. With a Guide Number of only 14, it produces less sharp shadows when subjects are close to a wall etc, and tends to let the background stay darker when they aren't. And the fact that it has a low guide number means it's easier to control that amount of light in the background. This can be a real problem shooting inside, because my other flashes tend to over-light a room, even when I reduce the flash output to say, 1/128 power. You only have 1-stop increments to play with, by the way, In addition, the Lux re-charges very quickly, which on the street can be a catastrophe as you wait for the green ready light to appear for a next shot. Note that it has an onboard lithium battery, but it's only 1700 mA hours - less than a single AA battery. It charges directly via a USB-C cable, so no separate charger to bring along. As for the flash power calculation dial on the body, it's much simpler to operate than the badly written manual would suggest. All you need to do is move one of the two concentric dials so that ISO and subject distance are lined up and then read the suggested flash power appropriate for an aperture you want. Dead simple. All-in-all, the Lux Senior is a nicely made, useful flash for street/outdoor shooters. It's small and discrete, cleverly designed, has an extremely fast recharge time between shots (i.e. green READY light appears), doesn't make an interior background look faintly thermonuclear, and generally gives pretty good results. The centre of the light is slightly brighter than its outer light circle, but this is acceptable. Just what I wanted.

I received mine and promptly shot a wedding in an fairly compact space with film and digital. I also used my trusty Vivitar 283. I found the senior was a little less harsh and worked well enough with my wider focal lengths. I switched over to using it as a fill later in the evening and having a manual control dial on the back was easy to deal with quickly. I maybe only used a quarter of the battery, provided I was around the 1/32nd mark for most of 200 shots on my xpro-2, so not much power needed. Can't say the same for the xpro. In my case the auto meter seemed pretty accurate, but I'd add a half stop if I was using print film just as a precaution since it comes off as softer. Might just be me though. And the looks. I mean...just look at it. It's right at home on my Ricohflex, Rolleiflex, or a lomo Diana. Folds up to a tiny pocketable block, built-in slave capabilities, came with a PC cord, I'm pretty happy with it. If you love bouncing flash, or need to light a larger space probably not for you, but close up wide lens group shots or as a dialable manual fill seems to be great.

Disclaimer: I'm a Godox fanboy for my professional work anyway. I got this flash for my personal X-T20 travel camera because I was placing more importance on form than function. I wanted that retro look that would turn heads when I pulled it out, but still gave me control over my flash so I could soften harsh shadows when needed. The look is 100% perfect for my little retro setup! Looks great! And it's surprisingly functional for something that, at first glance, seems super gimmicky! The Auto setting worked seamlessly with my X-T20, and I can the amount of fill I want with the manual dial on the back. I think that the lowest manual setting is too bright for what I want it to be but I have to think that, of all the possible problems to have, having too much power is a welcome one.