Godox | FUJI X WEEKLY

Godox iM30 Flash

Godox sent me their new iM30 flash to try. I have a number of Godox flashes, including the Lux Junior, Lux Cadet, and Lux Master. Of those, the Lux Master is the most capable, but also the largest and heaviest. The Lux Cadet has a cool retro look, but I like the Lux Junior the most because it is smaller, and a tend to prefer compact gear. The iM30 is significantly smaller than the Lux Junior, so is it an ideal flash to pair with compact Fujifilm X-series gear, like my Fujifilm X-E4? Let’s find out.

Surprisingly, the Godox iM30 uses two AAA batteries. In one sense this is good, because you can easily carry a spare pair of AAA batteries, and if not, they are easy to find. You could also get yourself some rechargeable batteries and a charger. Personally, I would have preferred an internal rechargeable battery with a USB charging port. I’m not sure how many flashes you can get from a pair of copper-tops because I’m still on the original two after about 50 activations, and I have no idea if the batteries have a lot of life left or if they’re nearly depleted; however, Godox suggests that you can get about 230 flashes, so I might have a long ways to go.

Without a doubt, I can say that the iM30 is for those who want a compact flash. It is 2″ deep, 2.4″ wide, and 1.8″ tall (including the hotshoe mount). It weighs only 0.17 pounds without batteries, and 0.23 pounds with the batteries. It’s not the smallest flash I’ve ever used, but it is certainly one of the smallest. It looks great on cameras like the Fujifilm X-E4. Recycle time is just under four seconds.

The oddity of this flash is that it is cheap, so you might think that it is for beginners, but that is not true. While it is fairly simple, beginners might find it challenging, and perhaps even frustrating. You have to have some prior experience with flashes to use the iM30 effectively (or this might be your opportunity to learn). Also, the lowest setting, which is designated as 1/64, is sometimes too strong, and I wish that there was a lower power option.

*My Fujifilm X-E4* – Buckeye, AZ – Fujifilm X-T5 + Godox iM30 & Lux Master – Pacific Blues

For only $35 on Amazon, the Godox iM30 offers cheap thrills. There’s a lot of fun that you can have with it. For instance, it can be used as a secondary flash triggered by a primary flash. While you can’t use colored gels with the iM30 (without tape, anyway), you can shoot through a color correction or B&W film filter. That’s what I did for the above photo. I had a Godox Lux Master attached to the camera (and set to its lowest power), and the iM30 off to the side with a Tiffen 47B filter placed in front of the flash, giving a splash of blue to the otherwise warm scene. Is it ideal for that purpose? No, but it certainly can be done, and without spending a lot of money.

If you want a compact flash and have experience with flashes, and also don’t want to spend much money, the Godox iM30 is for you. It can be a lot of fun, and the opportunity to use it creatively is certainly there. It’s not my favorite Godox flash, but I can see bringing it on trips simply because it doesn’t take up much space in the bag. I do plan to use it in the coming months, but I don’t anticipate it being a tool that I reach for frequently.

Example photos, all camera-made JPEGs captured using the Godox iM30 flash on my Fujifilm cameras:

*Backyard Boy* – Buckeye, AZ – Fujifilm X100VI + Godox iM30 – Nostalgic Americana

*Loves Her Dress* – Buckeye, AZ – Fujifilm X-E4 + Godox iM30 (w/Hoya G(XO) Yellow-Green filter) – Nostalgia Color

*Jump Over It* – Buckeye, AZ – Fujifilm X100VI + Godox iM30 – Kodak Max 800

*Distracted* – Buckeye, AZ – Fujifilm X-E4 + Godox iM30 (w/Tiffen 47B filter) – Redscale

*Jon, at Night* – Tonopah, AZ – Fujifilm X-E4 + Godox iM30 – Classic Color

*Slow Shutter Portrait* – Buckeye, AZ – Fujifilm X-E4 + Godox iM30 – Color Negative 400

This post contains affiliate links, and if you make a purchase using my links I’ll be compensated a small amount for it.

Flashing Cactus — Using a Godox Lux Master in the Desert

Posted on June 11, 2024 by Ritchie Roesch

I really like Godox flashes. They’re good quality, easy to use, oftentimes retro styled, reasonably priced, and fun to use. The Godox Lux Junior is my personal favorite mainly because it is compact and lightweight. I also like the Godox Lux Cadet; it’s also fairly small and light. Either one of those are fun to use, but I’m not really a flash-photography guy, so I only occasionally utilize them.

I paid for my Lux Junior out of my own pocket, and wrote briefly about that flash in Getting that ’90’s Film Look with Fujifilm Cameras. Perhaps because of that, Godox sent me a Lux Cadet, which I discussed at length in Using a Godox Lux Cadet for a ’90’s Film Look. More recently, Godox asked if I’d be interested in trying the Lux Master. I said sure; however, I probably should have researched a little before agreeing. Anyway, the flash arrived, and I was a little surprised by the size of the box. The Lux Master is neither compact nor lightweight!

Of course, that doesn’t mean it’s not good, because the Lux Master is definitely a pro-level flash (and only $250, which seems like a bargain for what it is). If you are an event, wedding, or portrait photographer and do flash photography, the Lux Master is one to strongly consider. Or, put on a fedora hat with a paper containing the word PRESS on it, and you could be an old-fashioned photo journalist. I don’t have anything negative to say about the Lux Master, other than it’s a little too much for my photography. I’d use a Lux Junior or Lux Cadet over the Lux Master any day of the week, personally, just because those suit me better (mainly, the size and weight). But, there are some people who need a bit more, and that’s where the bigger flash comes into play. If you need a pro-level flash that is retro cool and affordable, the Lux Master should be high on your list.

There are two main ways that I use an external flash with my photography. With the X100-series I sometimes use the built-in flash for daylight fill, but for the Godox flashes I use them either to get a retro ’90’s look (for lack of a better description… essentially, Film Simulation Recipes combined with flash) and/or creatively use shutter drag (slow shutter speed with intentional movement combined with flash). That’s how I typically use the Lux Junior and Lux Cadet, and how I initially was using the Lux Master.

*Fujifilm X-T5 + Fujinon 56mm f/1.2 + Godox Lux Master flash*

But then I decided I’ve probably covered that topic enough, and maybe you’d like to see something else. So I waited until sunset, grabbed my Fujifilm X-T5 with the Godox Lux Master attached, and headed out into the desert. How about some cacti photographi? (BTW, that spelling error was intentional). I live in the desert and photograph cactus regularly, but not often when combined with a flash. I did this after-sunset desert trek a few different times, and came away with a few good pictures.

Obviously there’s a pretty significant difference between after-sunset photography with and without a flash. How bright the flash is set, how close the subject is to the camera, and the exact light situation will all affect the outcome. I don’t know if I came away with any good tips to pass along, other than try and try again. For a lot of images, finding the right flash and camera settings often took three or four or five tries, sometimes more. It was a fun little project to do, and I think the experimental nature of it (for me, anyway, since it’s not something that I normally do) was somehow both therapeutic and thrilling. Even if you don’t do much flash photography, something like the Lux Master could be a good training tool to help improve your photography. Or it could be just for fun.

The photographs below are all camera-made JPEGs captured with a Fujifilm X-T5 + Fujinon 56mm f/1.2 lens + Nostalgic Americana Film Simulation Recipe + Godox Lux Master flash:

This post contains affiliate links, and if you make a purchase using my links I’ll be compensated a small amount for it.

Fujifilm X-T5 in black:
Amazon, B&H, Moment, Wex, Nuzira
Fujifilm X-T5 in silver:
Amazon, B&H, Moment, Wex, Nuzira
Fujinon 56mm f/1.2 R WR:
Amazon, B&H, Wex, Nuzira
Godox Lux Cadet:
Amazon, B&H
Godox Lux Junior:
Amazon, B&H, Wex
Godox Lux Master:
Amazon, B&H

Using a Godox Lux Cadet for a ’90’s Film Look

Posted on April 11, 2024 by Ritchie Roesch

*Godox Lux Cadet — Fujifilm X-E4 — Fujinon 35mm f/2*

The easiest way to recreate a ’90’s film aesthetic, which is really popular right now, is to use a Fujifilm camera loaded with a Film Simulation Recipe, plus utilize a flash. The nostalgic snapshot pictures from that era were often captured with cameras—whether a disposable QuickSnap or FunSaver, or a cheap point-and-shoot—that had a built-in fill-flash; the use of a flash plus a Fujicolor or Kodak print film palette are essential elements of the look. I have a number of Film Simulation Recipes that will produce a convincing aesthetic, and for this project I used Kodak Max 800, which is one of my favorites for flash photography.

The kind folks at Godox sent me a Lux Cadet retro-styled flash to try out. This flash pairs well visually with Fujifilm X-series cameras (such as my X-E4), and flash photography in-general couples well with Film Simulation Recipes, so Godox offered me one for free. I’m familiar with Godox flashes, because I already own and use a Lux Junior (which I paid for… almost all of the gear that I talk about on this website is purchased by me out of my own pocket). Even though Godox gifted me the Lux Cadet, they didn’t put any stipulations on what I could or couldn’t say about it; these are my thoughts and opinions, and they’d be the same if I had purchased the flash myself.

My grandfather was an amateur photographer of sorts. He shot a lot of slide film, mostly Kodachrome. He had a flash that looked quite similar to the Lux Cadet; I think it might have been from the 1960’s, but I’m not sure. Anyway, Godox gave the Lux Cadet a beautiful vintage design that looks especially great on Fujifilm cameras. While it might appear that it’s from a bygone era, the flash is definitely modern.

The Lux Cadet works the same as my Lux Junior, which means that it’s super simple to use. If you are new to flash photography, there are some important things to know. Whole books have been written on this topic, which might be worthwhile to read, but I’ll try to keep this as simple and brief as possible, and just know that there’s a lot more to this topic.

First, most cameras don’t have high-speed flash sync, so there’s a limit on how fast your shutter can be. The X100-series has a leaf shutter, so it can do high-speed flash sync (it also has a built-in flash); for other cameras, look for an X next to a shutter speed on the knob, and that’s the upper limit. On my X-E4, “180X” on the shutter knob tells me that 1/180 is the fastest that I can sync my flash, so I need to use that shutter speed or slower. Because of this, using a flash in bright daylight can be challenging—you might have to use a small aperture like f/11 or f/16, or try an ND filter.

Second, the flash is quite powerful; because you are adding in a bright light source, you might have to significantly underexpose compared to what the meter says. It’s not uncommon that I have the exposure compensation dial set to -2 or even -3. The flash can be set to A (Auto) or M (Manual); I prefer M, and often choose the lowest setting (marked by 1/64 on the flash). Each situation is unique, so the exact camera and flash settings can vary significantly picture-to-picture. What works in one scenario won’t in another, so each should be judged individually. Once you get a feel for it, the process becomes easy and natural.

*Using the Lux Cadet in bright midday sunlight*

The best time to use the flash is right around sunrise or sunset and during blue hour, which is the 30 minutes immediately before sunrise and the 30 minutes immediately after sunset. After dark is also a good time, as well as anytime indoors. In those situations, using the Godox Lux Cadet on a Fujifilm camera with a Film Simulation Recipe—such as Kodak Max 800—will produce a ’90’s film look that can be quite striking. If that’s the aesthetic you’re trying to achieve, this is probably the easiest and one of the most convincing ways to do it. You can get creative with the flash, such as intentional movement—the bright flash will freeze close objects, while things further away will be a streaky blur. There’s a lot of potential fun that you can have with flash photography.

My only complaint—if it’s even a complaint—is that a flash adds bulk and weight to the camera, so it’s less convenient to carry around. The Lux Cadet is pretty compact and lightweight compared to many other flashes, but it still adds some notable girth. Between the Lux Cadet and Lux Junior, I prefer the Lux Junior because it is slightly more compact, but I like the vintage look of the Lux Cadet more. Also, the Lux Junior uses AA batteries, while the Lux Cadet has an internal battery that recharges with a USB-C cable (included). They’re both highly affordable, and you can’t go wrong with either. The Godox Lux Cadet retails for $94.90. Even if you don’t do a lot of flash photography, it’s a good idea to have one around, and the Lux Cadet is a solid option to consider.

This post contains affiliate links, and if you make a purchase using my links I’ll be compensated a small amount for it.

Godox Lux Cadet:
Amazon, B&H
Godox Lux Junior:
Amazon, B&H, Wex

Example photographs, all camera-made JPEGs captured using the Kodak Max 800 Film Simulation Recipe on my Fujifilm X-E4 with the Godox Lux Cadet flash: