I’ve been using Lume Cubes for many years. I loved the small square that punches out a massive amount of light. It was convenient, lightweight and was a major part of my wedding videography setup. 

Now, years on and with a new avenue of photography (toys), I’m finding myself using them more and more. The size and power output are pretty spot-on for my toy photography needs. So when I was offered the opportunity to get my hands on one and play around with it, I jumped at it.

The review

So now onto my review, I am using the Game of Thrones dragon, Viserion, from Macfarlane Toys.

Macfarlane Toys Game of Thrones Dragon

Here, I’m going to try the low light capacity and utilize the Lume-X app to integrate all three cubes together.

Previous shots with the first generation Lume Cube

All these shots were made using Lume Cubes

Some updates and new features

Here are a few key points I’ve picked up on the new Lume Cube 2.0:

  1. They have made the charging light a lot more apparent. It is no longer the red “Predator target” lines that are barely visible under the buttons. It also shows when connected to your smartphone via Bluetooth (with the Lume-X app), and it’s a light sensor to trigger the flash and work as a slave with other flashes and light sources.
  2. The color temperature of the light is warmer, and is around 5500-5700K, which is closer to daylight. The previous lights were a bit cooler in color. 
  3. The angle of the light beam is slighter broader at 80 degrees, as opposed to 60 degrees.
  4. The 2.0 light has a low light mode. In the previous light, the lowest power was 10%, but now you can go below that and go from 1%–10%, which is great for long exposures. (After playing around, I discovered that the generation-1 cube can be adjusted below 10%, but only if you’re using the updated Lume-X app.)
  5. They have redesigned the charging area. The original casing had a flathead screw. Now it has a rubber seal which is easier to open and close, and you don’t need a coin to open it.
  6. The newly updated Lume-X app is pretty sweet. You can sync your smartphone camera to fire the flashes. And you can control and change the power and setting via the app as well.

All in all, Lume Cubes are great lights and I think are a must for any toy photographer.

Gibbo

AKA @harri.hawk