I just got my new Baja A6, and I could not wait to get out and do some photographs with it. I’ve got a little “Sense and Sensibility” going on in the background. We’re gonna test this new strobe head out and see what it can do.
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The Baja A6 is Dynalite’s new studio strobe. As you know, I have and love the Baja B4’s and B6’s. I take them with me on location all the time. They’re battery powered, so they’re perfect for when I’m out where power is going to be an issue. However, I also do a lot of work where having a strobe plugged in would be an advantage. That’s where the Baja A6 comes in. This unit plugs in and is perfect for situations where you’re going to be using it for longer than the battery on the B4 or B6 will last. For instance school, team, or dance pictures, where you’ve just got that strobe firing over and over again. In those circumstances a light that you can plug in and not have to worry about the battery is going to be your best option.
Another advantage to having a strobe that plugs in is it s going to recycle much faster. You also get a fabulous modeling light. You can put up to a 650-watt modeling light in it, and comes with a 300-watt bulb. A modeling light just takes too much juice on the battery so it’s not on the Baja B4 and B6. It’s a definite advantage when you’re working in the studio to be able to turn on the modeling light and see what your strobes are doing. It’s very difficult to be able to make small adjustments when you don’t have a modeling light that at least gives you some idea of what the strobe is doing, so this is extremely valuable.
The Baja A6 comes with a Bowens mount 7-inch reflector. That also gives us the option to put grids in, which I love. I think grids are one of the greatest things that have ever been made when it comes to lighting. So on this strobe unit, they’re fabulous. And of course you can fit a speed ring on there as well.
So let’s take a look at the back of this unit and see the different modes that it’s got. It’s almost identical to the Baja B4 and B6. There’s just the normal strobe setting, High Speed Sync, Short Duration, Stroboscopic, and of course you can slave it.
There High Speed module that comes separately that you can plug into the back of the Baja A6. It does not come with the unit but it allows you to do High-Speed Sync, and also allows you to hook up to Dynalite’s radio control system so you can control the settings from the camera, which is fabulous. You don’t have to run back and forth, or wait for an assistant to get over there and so it.
The strobe has a large quarter-inch jack-out to be able to hook it up to PocketWizards or to run a cable back to the camera, same as the Baja B4’s and B6’s. Now you can still use this unit on location. You just use that XP800 that Dynalite makes. You can plug this in and use it on location. The real value of this head though is being able to take it into a situation where you can plug it into the wall and use AC current. If you’re shooting an event like a prom or something where you’re just gonna keep shooting all night long, that battery is not gonna keep up, it’s not the best solution. Where The Baja A6 you can plug this in and use it is a fabulous solution.
So I love both my Baja B4’s and B6’s and I’m loving these A6’s for those very reasons. If you’re doing table top or kinds of work on set, this is really the thing. You have a Monolight so you can see what you’re doing. You have the ability to shoot and not have to worry about regenerating the power. It just becomes a perfect studio unit. So let’s take this head and sprint through its paces and let’s use it on set.
On our couple we have the A6 up front. On it, we have a Photoflex small Octodome with a grid. That gives us a nice soft light on our talent here, which is fabulous. In the back, we’ve got a Baja A6 with a gel on it, it’s a Rosco Industrial Vapor gel and we have a grid on that A6 as well. We’re also using the Rosco V-Hazer, which gives us a nice atmosphere in the room. That light from behind is hitting the atmosphere and kind of painting a nice layer of a warmish greenish color, it gives a lot of depth to our photograph. In the background, we got Dynalite Pack and Head running that’s got a quarter straw on it to get a little light on our back drop, to bring us some separation.
So we have a total of three lights, but really four lights sources. The reality is we’ve got a key light upfront, we’ve got a rim light, we’ve got a background light, and the fourth light becomes that haze that’s in the room, that atmosphere, because it opens up all the shadows and creates a much different look. If you look at the image without the haze and with it, it’s a much different look. 
What a fabulous way to try out our new A6. We have that high modeling light so you can see exactly what your strobe is doing. It’s also really great to be able to plug it in. Your recycle time is fabulous. We plugged it in and were able to use it for hours here without any problem whatsoever. So that’s where it fits into that family. You have your battery-operated units to be out on location, you’ve got an AC-operated unit to be able to plug in the wall and to be able to use in the studio or if you’re doing event kinds of things where you need power for a long time. So this has all the options that your B4 and B6 have, and an AC-powered unit.
When you buy an A6, and I know you’re going to, use our affiliate link with B&H. You can pick one up there. It’s $549- a great price to get one of these units to get it into your arsenal strobes you need.
So keep those cameras rollin’, keep on clickin’.
-Jay P.
