Elinchrom ELB 400 - Powerful and portable strobes for lighting outdoor adventure and action sports photography
July 2023 update - Elinchrom’s ELB 400 and ELB 1200 models are now discontinued. The current closest replacement is the ELB 500.
Multi-sports athlete Joanne Thom looking over to Ben Lawers from Meall nan Tarmachan above Loch Tay in Scotland. I made use of a strobe light to highlight the branding on her sponsor’s clothing (Compressport).
I initially taught myself how to use light in outdoor photography using my friend Dan Bailey’s ‘Going Fast with Light’ e-book. Dan's simple and straightforward explanations made it easy for me to pick up the basics of flash, learn to light subjects using manual mode (which I found I much preferred to TTL) and I’ve been practicing ever since.
Like presumably most photographers, I started off small with flash, purchasing a Nikon SB-910 speedlight and a simple light modifier. Over time, I added a Sekonic L-308S light meter, some additional light modifiers and invested in Pocketwizard’s Flex system so I could trigger my lights remotely. Throughout, specifically because I was shooting action outdoors, I was always somewhat frustrated about the power of my speedlights. With a maximum output of c.100 watt seconds, speedlights are not very bright, relatively speaking, and, unless I was shooting at dawn or dusk, if was difficult, if not impossible for me to freeze motion effectively when I was photographing athletes outdoors. Even when I could, there was other limitations, such as aperture size or the number of lights that I had to use to get an approach to work.
The key to me upgrading my lighting system was US photographer Michael Clark’s excellent e-book ‘Location Lighting for the Outdoor Photographer’. Packed with a massive amount of information on speedlights and strobes, specifically as to how each applies to outdoor and adventure sports photography, Michael’s knowledge, and his willingness to share what he’s learnt (both in his books and on his blog), helped me to navigate my way through the myriad of lighting options available to the outdoor photographer. It helped me to make a choice I was comfortable with, and one which gave me confidence - given I was spending a great deal of money - that it will enable me to achieve as much as I plan to with my photography.
What I like about Elinchrom ELB 400 strobes
Ability to freeze motion - The ELB 400 comes with a choice of three Quadra flash heads (Pro, Action and Hi-Sync). Aided by information Michael Clark published online about which Elinchrom head to buy, I purchased with confidence both Hi-Sync (HS) heads, which enable me to shoot at shutter speeds above 1/200s (and use my shutter speed to freeze motion) and Action heads, which I use for shutter speeds below 1/200s (where it’s the flash that’s freezing any motion).
Power - An ELB 400 strobe is rated at 424 watt seconds, which offers an equivalent in power of roughly four Nikon SB-910 speedlights. (As an aside, I initially thought I would value the power to weight ratio but each ELB 400 pack weighs 2.1kg, including battery and built-in EL-Skyport radio frequency receiver, the heads weigh c.280g each and a Transmitter Pro plus batteries c.170g. If I compare this to a SB-910 speedlight, including a Pocketwizard Flex TT5, which altogether weighs roughly 585g including batteries, there’s no real weight savings until I add in accessories for the speedlights, e.g. wireless transceivers, a quad bracket or multiple light stands. The strobe is however more cost effective (I need a Pocketwizard TT5 for each speedlight) and it’s much quicker to set up. It also only takes 90 minutes for a full charge.
Modelling light - Coming from a speedlight background, having the ability to fire a bright modelling light to see how the light will fall on my subject (and to aid focusing in low light) is massively beneficial. I’ll use this functionality often - when it’s not too bright outside as to be inefficient - but it does use up the battery quicker.
Weatherproofness - Although the manual says not to expose the ELB 400 pack or head to moisture, I’ve had the kit outdoors in pretty miserable weather and it’s coped admirably.
Lighting modifiers - I own a Rotalux 70cm Octabox plus the 26cm Performance Reflector, and two 18cm reflectors with grids.
Adaptability - Typically, when I’m using more than one light in my photography, I’m looking for at least one strobe to be brighter, or less bright, than the others. The ELB 400 provides me with the ability to plug two heads into one pack, with an automatic lighting ratio of 2:1 between port A and B, which saves me time. (I can also daisy-chain cables together, giving me a three-light solution (or four) from just two Elinchrom packs).
Repairability - The flash tubes are user replaceable.
What I’d like to see improved
A single head rather than different heads being required for different purposes - Elinchrom’s newer ELB 500 models packs their HS technology into a single head (simplifying the unit in use and helping photographers to save weight). There’s also the cost aspect. If I wanted to use three strobes and have the functionality of both the HS and Action technology on port A, I’d need to purchase or hire six Quadra flash heads.
The ability to rename a strobe - When I connect to them using a Skyport Transmitter Pro, they’re both labelled ELB 400. It would be useful to label one, e.g. ELB-1 and the other ELB-2 or similar, to prevent me from having to double-check which one is which.
The modelling light being adjustable - I’d like to be able to dim the light to match the power output I’m planning to use (this is possible in other Elinchrom models)
Newer models being backwards compatible (as regards to heads) - Elinchrom has discontinued the ELB 400 model as of January 2020. Their newer pack, the ELB 500, isn't backwards compatible and, when my ELB 400 strobes reach the end of their lifespan, and if I upgraded to the ELB 500, I’ll need to replace all my heads.
Alternatives
Profoto B1 and B2 - I’ve not used Profoto lights but they’re used extensively in the fashion and commercial portrait industry. Michael Clark wrote a blog post comparing Profoto's B1 and B2 strobes to Elinchrom’s ELB 400 model.
Elinchrom ELB 1200 - I’ll rent the ELB 1200 for work if required as it's superb. (It’s heavier but, as the name suggests, it’s three times as powerful as the ELB 400).