Everyone knows you can’t make pictures without at least some light. And smart photographers know that if you control the light, you can make pictures others can’t. That’s why I’ve always been a big fan of off-camera flash, got into light painting and recently started doing low level lighting for my night shots. Now I’m taking even more control of that night lighting, with Lume Cubes.

If you’ve never heard of them, Lume Cubes are small LED lights with variable power control. That in itself isn’t unique, since lots of lights have adjustable power. Where Lume Cubes excel is in their ability to control intensity via a smartphone app, and the accessories that let you both shape, direct and change the color of the light. For photographers like myself who enjoy creating images at night, this is a game changer.

This is the Lume Cube Professional Lighting Kit. It comes with two lights, two domes, two snoots, two barndoors, some grids and a bunch of gels and diffusers to further control the light.

I just got Lume Cube’s “Professional Lighting Kit,” and took it with me on an outing earlier this week to the Flint Hills of Kansas. Scouting for a good location to do a night shot, I found a small lake with a beautiful tree on the far side, close enough to the shoreline to show a good reflection. Returning that night, I used the two Lume Cubes in the kit to back and side-light the tree, and the smartphone app to adjust the power to a dim glow, at about 5%. Using just the button on the light, I would have been limited to 10% increments. With the app, though, I can set the lights anywhere between 1% and 100%. Lower than 10% was necessary because I wanted the illumination to match the stars in brightness, otherwise the tree would have been overexposed. And, in addition to adjusting the power, I used the included gels, a barndoor and a dome to further control the color and spread of the light.

I always try to scout my night shoots before dark so I can plan where I’ll stand and where I’ll place the lights. That makes the shoot go much easier, and means less stumbling around in unfamiliar terrain in the dark.

Here’s that same scene at night with the Lume Cubes turned off. Exposure was thirty-seconds at f/2.8 and 2000 ISO, Nikon Z6 camera and Nikkor 24-70mm f/2.8 lens.

This is the final photo. I’m using one Lume Cube with a dome on the ground directly behind the tree, and a second to the right with a barndoor to keep the light on just the upper part of the tree. The light on the right also has two warming gels on it. From my camera position I was too far away for Bluetooth to reach the lights, but could adjust them standing off to the left side. Their power levels were set at 5%, which meant until your eyes adjusted to the dark, you couldn’t even tell they were there. Exposure still thirty-seconds at f/2.8 and 2000 ISO, Nikon Z6 camera and Nikkor 24-70mm f/2.8 lens.

The free Lume-X app lets you change brightness, as well as control other options, right from your smart device. And it can handle as many Lume Cubes as you have.

This kit will change how I do lighting at night for my landscape work. The accessories are great, but by far the best feature is the power control via the app. Being able to adjust the power while standing back from the lights,and observe the change is fantastic. And I don’t have to pick up the lights to adjust that power, which means once I have them properly positioned I don’t risk changing that by moving them. To say I like what they offer is an understatement. I love what they offer. That’s why I already have a second set on the way to me. With four of these lights and their accessories, I’ll be able to do much more with my night photography, faster, better and more easily. That’s a win, win, win.

(NOTE: LumeCube now offers any of my students a 15% discount off their regular prices. Just use LUMEREED15 when ordering)

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