Godox QT1200IIIM
The QT1200IIIM is an outstanding studio flash that can be used on-location if need be. The light does require AC power, but if you have a portable generator, it can light up an entire street. The flash works with the Godox X-series wireless trigger system which makes setup a breeze. It is compatible with Bowens mount light modifiers and has a remarkably fast recycling time. Although this light - and the others in its product group - was designed for capturing action shots, the QT1200IIIM has proven to be a fantastic portrait flash in low-light situations.
- DESIGN
- EASE OF USE
- PRICE
- BUILD QUALITY
- RECYCLE TIME
Powerful Godox studio flash that can bring the sun to you
Working with different types of photography lighting can get confusing at times because the same types of lights are called different names. For example, Speedlights, monolights, and strobes are all types of camera flashes. Flashes are different than continuous lighting, which is more commonly used for video rather than still photography. Flashes, or strobes, produce a quick burst of light to light up a scene.
I have used many different variations of flashes in my photography. Most of the time, I rely on my Speedlight (battery-powered flash that attaches to my camera) or my monolights (battery-powered, self-contained flashes that are more powerful than a standard Speedlight), but in some cases, I will turn to a Studio Flash, which is a mains-powered pack-and-head system.
These lights have incredibly fast recycle speeds, short flash durations, and color consistency. The pack-and-head studio flash is reliable and many photographers that invested in them are still using 20-year-old units with no problems. I have a couple of smaller studio flashes in my arsenal (400W & 600W), but when Godox announced the launch of the QT III series studio flashes, I couldn’t resist getting my hands on the 1200W version.
DETAILS
The Godox QT1200III is the next generation of the Quicker series lights. It has a better performing modeling light and HSS as well as a super-fast recycling time that gives photographers more efficiency with fast-paced productions. The QT III series lights have the ability to capture fast-moving subjects with full details and sharpness. This includes water splashing, powder floating, and more.
Another featured action of this light is its recycling time. The QT III series lights can fire 20 images per second with a recycle time of 0.01-0.9s. The QT III flashes have stable color temperature mode to protect your color accuracy and save time during post-production. The HSS mode allows the user to synchronize with shutter speeds up to 1/8000s.
The modeling light is powerful and environment-friendly. It embraces an energy-saving 40W LED that is adjustable between 0-100%. Because of this, it has a longer lifespan and it helps users preview how light and shadow will fall on a subject. The QT III flashes have on-board controls that provide users with the option to manually dial in their settings.
The lights are also compatible with the X-series triggers with their built-in 2.4G wireless system. Users can maintain full control over the light with the X1, X2, or XPRO trigger. The QT III series flashes are all compatible with Bowens-mount modifiers as well as Godox’s complete light shaper system.
Tech Specs
- 2.4G Wireless Control
- Stable Color Temperature Mode
- High-speed sync 1/8000s
- Modeling Light: 40W
- Recycling Time: 0.01-0.9s
- Flash Duration (t0.1): 1/29600s
- Model: QT12001lIM
- Flash Mode M/Multi/Hss (high-speed sync)
- Guide Number in 1/1 full power: 105 (m ISO 100 using highlight or standard reflector)
Flash Duration (to.1)
- High-Speed Flash (speed) Mode: 1/300s – 1/23400s
- Stable Color Temperature Mode: 1/300s – 1/6090s
Color Temperature
- Stable Color Temperature Mode: 5600‡200K
- High-Speed Flash (speed) Mode: 5400K~9500K
- High-Speed Sync Flash (speed) Mode: 4600K~5000K
Output Level
- M: 1/1~1256
- HSS: 1/1~1/32
- Multi: 1/4~1/256
- Multi Flash Yes (max. flash time:99; max. flash frequency: 30)
- Sync Mode High-speed sync (up to 1/8000s) first curtain sync second curtain sync
- Delay Flash 0.01~30s
- MASK Function
- Fan
- Beeper
- LED Modeling Lamp: 40w
- Brightness Adjustment Range of Modeling Lamp 1%~100%
- Receiver Model: sl/s2
- Display Flash Duration
- Display: High qualified LCD panel
Radio (2.4G) Transmission (× system)
- Wireless Function: Receiver unit, ON/OFF
- Controllable Receiver units: 16 groups: 0~9 ,A,B,C,D,E, F
- Transmission Range (approx.): 50m
- Channel: 32:1~32
- ID: 01-99
- Sync Triggering Mode: Built-in 2.4G wireless transmission
- Working Environment Temperature: -10°C~50°C
- Dimension: 550 x 176 x 143 mm
- Net Weight: 4.26kg
What’s in the Box
- Light Body
- Lamp Tube
- Glass Protection Cover
- Power Cord
- Light Cover
USER EXPERIENCE
Many of my clients request outdoor shoots this time of year and that usually means we have good natural light until late into the evening. With that in mind, I can usually get by using my Speedlight and maybe one of my moonlight flashes to control the lighting for outdoor photo sessions. That said, unique circumstances call for unique equipment to get the job done.
Recently, one of my close friends, Jake, called me to ask for some help with headshots. He needed them taken so that he could submit an audition package for The TV SHOW THE Voice. Unfortunately, he has a really tight schedule. He works long hours and has a family to care for so the only time we could work on a photo shoot was after dark.
For this shoot, I knew that I would need to use something more powerful than my Speedlight or even my 400W moonlight (the Godox AD400 Pro). Since I had been using it for various jobs for a while, I knew the QT1200IIIM would get the job done.
Even though the QT III series lights are studio strobes and need to be connected to AC power to operate, I ended up taking the light on-location to our local downtown area. I don’t have a battery-powered 1200W flash so I thought the QT1200IIIM was the best plan. I have a portable generator that is powerful enough to power the QT1200IIIM so I packed it along with my camera gear and a couple of modifiers for this shoot.
Like all Godox products, the QT1200IIIM is built very well so I felt comfortable taking it on location. We ended up shooting in three different locations in our downtown area. I knew that after dark these areas might be partially lit with street lights or other structure-based lighting, but that the fill light would need to be fulfilled by the QT III.
The first location we went to was a historic auditorium. The structure was built in 1916 and it features stone, marble, and wood on its exterior. I had Jake sit on the steps at the front of the building and set up the QT1200IIIM on a light stand. The modifier I used was the 34-inch Glow EZ Lock Collapsible Silver Beauty Dish.
I had a larger one with me but ended up only using the 34-inch option. I also ended up using the RGB Tube Light TL120 from Godox to add a little colored light to the shots. I asked Jake to sit down and play on his guitar and I just shot while he was playing. I did ask him to pose a couple of times, but most of the shots were taken while he was playing.
The coliseum had some built-in recessed lighting above the front steps, but there was no lighting in the street that provided fill light. The QT1200IIIM did a great job of providing the main light source I needed to overcome the night’s darkness and to fill Jake’s face with sun-like lighting. Once I got everything set, we stayed in that location for about 15 minutes while I shot and he played.
There were a few times when I fired off several shots in a row and the flash recycled so fast that it seemed instantaneous. The results were dramatic. Jake’s face has a nice glow on it and the background falls off because of the surrounding darkness. Jake was overjoyed with the shots I showed him in-camera.
The next location we moved to was an ivy-covered wall near a financial institution’s headquarters. I wanted to use this spot because I liked the texture the leaves provided and I thought the green would be a good contrast as a background. I was more focused on capturing the classic ‘headshot’ (cropped from his chest to the top of his head) in this spot rather than action with his camera.
In this location, we had streetlights to compete with as well as passing cars because we were on a busy street. Again, the QT1200IIIM proved its mettle. I raised the light up quite a bit higher than when we were at the coliseum to make sure that the top of Jake’s head was lit as well as his face. The flash did a great job. Since it is so strong, it was able to overpower the existing lighting in the area so that I could control the outcome of the photo better.
The last location we visited was outside a retail storefront on our Main Street walkway. This part of town is also quite old and the building we visited was originally built in 1932. It has had different tenants over the years and the most recent one actually added a really cool wooden wall to its front patio area. The ceiling area also features wooden paneling so the natural tone of the area is a little darker. There are metal tables and chairs there for people to gather. So, we used that space as another spot for Jake to sit and play his guitar.
This location has some dull recessed lighting and some street lights that spilled into the patio. The QT1200IIIM created a warm, relaxing tone for this shot. While we were in this set-up, I did some more quick shots and again, was very impressed with how quickly the flash recycled. One thing I did notice is that the QT1200III is quite loud. Well, it’s louder than the monolights I’m used to taking with me on location shoots. It’s not distracting, but you can definitely tell when the flash pops.
As we were loading the car, I looked down the street and decided to do one more shot with the QT1200IIIM. I had Jake stand in the road and stretch the light very high up in the air so that it could light up the entire street area. This had to be done very quickly because it was an active street. Fortunately, because it was late into the evening, there wasn’t as much traffic as there would have been earlier in the day.
There was some existing light with this street shot, but my goal was to have the environmental lights blur out into the background. It ended up working really well and I got a really nice bokeh effect with the lights in the background and Jake’s face and guitar was well-lit, but it still looked like nighttime.
None of these set-ups would have been possible with a less powerful light. And, since Godox makes all their lights compatible with their wireless trigger ecosystem (X-Series), getting the light set up and ready to shoot took less than five minutes. Honestly, it probably took longer to get the light on the stand with the modifier attached than it did to have the flash ready to shoot.
Once the stand was up and light mounted, I was able to position Jake at each location and snap away. We were done in a rather short amount of time (I think we were done in less than 90 minutes and that included travel time) and it was all because of how easy the QT1200IIIM is to set up and how powerful it is. I only needed to bring one light with me on this shoot and thankfully I picked the right one to bring.
CONCLUSION
All in all, you can’t go wrong with the Godox QT1200IIIM Studio Flash. Even though it’s designed to be used in a studio setting, it’s built well enough that I can feel comfortable taking it on-location. The light is powerful enough to be the only one you need – even in a nighttime shoot.
1 Comment
One of my two QT12000iiim strobes has just died with a very loud bang after only 6 months of pretty light use. I am currently waiting for the warranty process to play out, hopefully that will be smooth. For European customers that requires shipping back to Poland. Will provide a new comment with my experience when that happens.