If LED lights had a TTL system built in to be used with a camera, then I think it would be an absolute game changer. I imagined myself saying that to the head of Harlowe lighting and also imaging why it’s needed. And nowhere is it needed any more than with the Harlowe Mini 20W light. Sure, it can add sufficient amount of beauty to your photographs — but it’s only going to do so if you really know how to use lighting. Anyone else might get so frustrated with how underpowered it is, except in situations where it’s your primary light.
The Harlowe Mini 20 Watt is a beautiful light, holistically speaking. First off, there’s the ergonomics that I’m sure anyone would appreciate. It’s well built with metal and plastic both. Plus, there are knobs to remind a photographer of old Hasselblad cameras. On top of that, there’s a beautiful leatherette. Honestly, it’s a beautiful product that you’ll enjoy using in the right setting.
That last statement is really key here: it’s going to be a joy to use in the right setting. In my findings, it’s really excelling where the ambient light is very dim and not really affecting your photograph at all. Essentially, it’s great in dark locations or in places where you need just a bit of a kicker light to give off a little bit more of light in just the right place. Sadly, most photographers these days have forgotten how to do that and will instead opt to produce it all in Photoshop.
So, who should buy this?
- Photographers who shoot small products in a lifestyle fashion would really love the Harlowe Mini 20 Watt.
- Portrait photographers who need a bit of an extra kicker light, and the Harlowe Mini 20 Watt isn’t your primary light
- Don’t let video content creators buy this thing or they’ll ruin your favorite bar with random blasts of LED to mess up the entire atmosphere.
I’m going to write the rest of this review with the bluntness of a native NYer. This is an LED light with really nice ergonomics, a small amount of power, and a lot of light modifiers that come with it. But because I am who I am, I’d still use a flash. Serious photographers I don’t think would ever really use this light. But if you’re a small business owner with a camera, a guy with a camera shooting photos of his girlfriend with lighting in specific areas, or want to play around with something, then this is a fun light to use.
But then again, it’s Harlowe. So it’s a pretty pricey light. For that money, I’d much rather just get a Godox flash of some sort.
Harlowe makes some incredible lights. But I think that at the lower end, they don’t really have much that real photographers would want to pick up. At the higher end, they’re some of the most beautiful lights that I’ve seen and used.
Harlowe gives lights away to the Phoblographer for free and to keep. But these? I wouldn’t use these. However, I can totally make great images with these. Here are some photos of my baby, the Leica M6.
