Avantek Panshot LT-C01 Selfie Stick Review

Avantek PanShot LT-C01 Selfie Stick

The official specs:

Supports GoPro Hero 4, 3+, 3, 2, and 1 Cameras, digital cameras, and camcorders weighing up to 2.2lb (1.0 kg), or cell phones 2.0-3.1in (5-8 cm) wide

270-degree adjustable phone holder allows a variety of shooting angles from selfies to above-crowd shots.

Aluminum construction featuring simple twisting locking mechanism can extend to up to 38 in (97 cm) and retract to 9 inch (23 cm)

1/4" Screw Mount at the bottom of the stick can be mounted on a tripod stand.

Multi-use Head and Multi-angle Shooting

The stick is fully compatible with most smartphones, including Android and Apple. You can also use this selfie stick with a GoPro camera, a digital camera or camcorder. Thanks to its adjustable head, you can set your cell phone in 270 degrees to gain the best angle and help you get whatever shot you need. You may need to download ¡°Camera360¡± from the App store if the built-in software on your phone does not support the stick.

Plug-and-play, no battery, no Bluetooth pairing. Simply plug in the 3.5mm audio cable and press the shutter for pictures.

The anti-skid grip plus innovative locking mechanism make the stick more stable to protect your valuable devices from dropping while shooting. In addition, the textured silicon pad on the phone holder will not scratch your cell phone, it will secure it tightly on the selfie stick.

Package Contents

1 x PanShot LT-C01 Cable Control Selfie Stick 1 x Wrist Strap 1 x Carry Bag 1 x User Manual

Here are my thoughts:

As a semi-professional photographer, I have to admit that I wouldn’t normally be seen dead with a selfie stick. The whole ‘Selfie’ craze makes me a little nauseous. On the other hand, I’m a strong believer in ‘the best camera is the one you have with you’ and I use my iPhone all the time as a camera when out and about. I also like to be creative.
I accepted this Panshot selfie stick LT-C01 for review purposes, but never expected to use it again.
I have to say I’ve actually had great fun using it with my daughter and am pleased to be able to keep it!

From the outset, this feels like a quality, well-made product.
The test of any good product is if you can use it straight away without having to read an instruction manual, and this stick was so easy to set up and use.
I tested with an iPhone 5. I simply plugged the curled coil into the headphone socket and pressed the shutter button on the handle – it worked flawlessly for me without any additional phone setup or app installation. The clamping mechanism that holds the phone didn’t make me nervous at all and any reservations about holding a very expensive phone 97cm over my head soon faded. I didn’t even have to take my phone out of its protective cover.

I had to hunt around a little for the shutter button on first use, although it is raised. It may benefit from a silk screen light paint job to make the button a little more obvious.

I also found it hard to keep the camera/phone steady when taking the picture with the stick fully extended, so would recommend the use of your phones’ built in timer if it has one – 3 seconds was ideal. My daughter and I had great fun using it with the phone in video mode too, and it would be excellent for capturing images in hard to get at positions such as over the heads of a crowd.
As a product, I really can’t fault it in any way – it’s well designed, robust, stylish, lightweight and compact, and actually, it’s really good fun!

The Panshot LT-C01 Selfie Stick is available at Amazon and is currently reduced to £12.99 with free delivery.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/PanShot-LT-C01-Compact-Control-Android/dp/B00WU2VY2O/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1433605880&sr=8-1&keywords=panshot+selfie+stick

Aperlite YH-500C Guide number 58 (ISO100 - 105mm) A lot of bang for your buck

 I first came across Aperlite via a Facebook Advertisement and was interested enough to click through to find out more, having grown weary of paying premium prices for brand names that have let me down on numerous occasions.

I received the Aperlite YH-500C from Avantek after winning a competition on their Facebook page and decided to put it to work.
The YH-500C (C for Canon - make sure you order the Nikon version if you are on that side of the fence) arrived in an impressive looking box, with a carrying pouch and instruction manual.There was also a hot-shoe stand, with metal thread.






I own Canon 580EXII and 430 EXII Speedlites, but I will be using the 580EXII as a reference point.

First impressions were favourable - dimensions and weight are very similar to the 580EXII.
It feels robust, the green illuminating screen size is similar and the buttons are impressive, although the Mode and Zoom buttons are a little too close to the screen bevel.




The hot shoe is of similar build, but uses a locking wheel as opposed to the Canon Quick Lock lever. This isn't a deal breaker though, and it does the job.



Two impressive features for the price are an external power pack socket and a PC port.
The rotating flash head doesn't have a lock button, but to be honest, it doesn't need it. The head rotates in solid clicks and after a little use, I now prefer it to having to press the Canon's lock button. The head rotates forward 90 degrees, right 90 degrees, left 180 degrees (to face backwards).








The YH-500C takes 4 x AA alkaline or NIMH batteries, under a slide and open battery compartment cover. I did find this cover a little difficult to close at first, and was scared of breaking it.TOP TIP: Read the manual first!

The flash head has a pull-out diffuser panel to increase the wide angle throw and a pull-out white bounce card. I found it difficult to get a finger/nail under the diffuser to fold it away and had to lift it by its sides - not a deal breaker.

Powering the unit up, the zoom motor can be heard - it isn't quite as pleasing a sound as the motor used on the Canon, but considering the cost difference, that is irrelevant - again, it does the job.

I could find my way around all of the settings without the instruction manual, apart from how to turn on rear curtain sync (hold down the Mode button for two seconds to toggle on and off)
This was a big plus over the Canon at first use.



I fired off a test fire using the Pilot button (you can also use the LED indicator/button as on the Canon - this is not documented in the manual), and recharge time was approximately 3 seconds at manual full power. This is the real clincher for this flash - Canons' flagship 580EXII has a recharge time of 7 seconds. I set them up, side by side and measured them. I have missed moments because of this when lighting large rooms at full power using the Canon. It has built in overheat protection, so you won't be able to fry it.
I expect NIMH batteries will perform even better.






The 500C supports TTL, with exposure adjustments from -3 to +3 in 1/3 increments,
Manual mode, adjustable from 1/128 to 1/1 with 3 steps of fine adjustment between steps of 1/128 - 1/64 - 1/32 - 1/16 - 1/8 - 1/4 - 1/2.

Stroboflash mode, with brightness adjustments from 1/128 and 1/1 and timing adjustment range of 1 - 90.


S1/S2 Slave modes.
S1 is for manual setting and S2 for TTL with no preflash.


This was the saving grace for this unit as I rarely use on-camera flash.
The 500C can't be triggered by wireless triggers, but can work as an optical slave. You can use a master capable flash as a controller on your camera and trigger this unit in slave mode, but you need line of sight between the master and slave and within 20 - 30 Metres indoors, 10 - 15 Metres outdoors.

An important note here: in manual and TTL modes, the power saver kicks in after approximately one minute. If set to Slave mode, the power saver is disabled, so you don't need to worry about dashing over to light stands to wake the unit up manually. In manual and TTL mode, the manual states you can press any button to wake up the unit. I found that only the Pilot and LED buttons achieved wake-up. Another plus point is that the unit remembers the last settings, even if completely powered down.

The YH-500C uses a up/down/left/right type circular button with a Set button in the centre. All adjustments are carried out in one step click increments - holding down the buttons doesn't advance the settings automatically. There are Mode and Zoom buttons and a Pilot button.
The button labels are embossed into the buttons themselves, which is impossible to see under dark conditions, unlike the Canon which has the labels silk screened in silver above the buttons. There are only a couple of buttons to memorise though, so this wasn't a problem.
The screen illuminates briefly in green when making adjustments, making the settings easy to view.

In use, I found the TTL accuracy as accurate as the Canon 580EX, with sometimes better exposed images at various differences from the subject. I sacrificed a new set of alkaline batteries and fired off just short of 100 flashes at full power using the test button. I normally work at much lower exposure levels, so expect real life use to be much greater. The manual states up to 1500 at low settings.

Summary:
Pros:
Price
Solid build
Intuitive menu
Fast recharge time
PC port
External Power Pack socket
Accurate TTL metering

Cons:
No high speed sync
No wireless radio trigger support
Optical Slave only
Fiddly battery compartment door (when closing)
Wide angle diffuser fiddly to retract

If you are looking for a feature rich on-camera flash, this is a no-brainer. It looks like, feels like and performs like (sometimes out-performs) the much more expensive Canon units. If you are looking for an off-camera radio triggered setup, look out for the soon to be launched and excellently priced YH-700C, which supports 4 radio channels and high speed sync.

Will I use this flash?
For on camera work, definitely yes, and occasionally as an optical slave.5
You can buy the YH-500C on Amazon here:Aperlite YH-500C Professional Flash Flashlight for Canon Digital SLR Camera [Supports TTL, Wireless S1 & S2 Modes]