Nighttime photography and videography are fantastic visually, but it’s also something difficult to do well with cameras like smartphones, action camcorders, and compact point-and-shoots. Heck, even DSLRs have trouble with darkest of nights. Shining a light on a subject or object helps to bring them out, and the Lume Cube is an upcoming external accessory that can shine up to 1,500 lumens of bright LED light for your photos and videos.
The Lume can be used as a flash or constant light, but it doesn’t just simply turn on and off. You can sync and control up to five of the light cubes using an iOS or Android smartphone (via Bluetooth). Through a complementary app, you can adjust the brightness, duration, and red-eye latency of each light until you achieve the scene you want. The light can also be triggered as a secondary “slave” flash by another flash. The Lume has a built-in rechargeable battery with a two-hour lifespan, and recharges using USB.
Made with a water-resistant silicone shell, the 1.5-inch Lume is pretty rugged too; there’s an option for a waterproof housing. You can handhold it, or mount it onto something using the magnet or suction cup; also available is a micro tripod made by Joby. The Lume has a standard screw mount that lets you attach it to any ordinary tripod, while an optional ball mount attaches the Lume to cameras with hot shoes like DSLRs. For GoPro users, there’s also an optional mounting bar designed to hold a Hero camera and two or four Lume Cubes. The Lume itself will come in several colors.
The Lume has surpassed its Kickstarter funding goal, even though there’s a week left in its campaign (as of this writing). So, there’s still time to be one of the early backers. Pledges start at $59, and delivery is scheduled for February 2015. Check out the Kickstarter page for more details.
The Lume Cube can be used to bring out subjects’ faces in a selfie (left), illuminate a cool moment at night (center), or used as a constant source of light for a video (right).
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