If Lensbaby made a light, and you gave it solid build quality, you’d get the Hobolite Iris. This thing is overall pretty simple to work with. There’s an on/off button that also lets you switch between brightness and color temperature. That’s it. Oh, and it feels like a 110 film camera that was built really well. While I’m usually not one to reach for an LED first, I think that the Iris can fulfill a really niche role very well. What’s that role? Small product photography for social media.
I know, photography for social media. It’s not something that I like to say myself. But if it’s not for social media, the lighting can work well enough for a restaurant’s menu — as long as the restaurant isn’t going for a Michelin Star. However, if you’re a bar owner who has a real camera or someone trading photography for free drinks, this could work well enough.
Before I got about to using the Hobolite Iris for photography, I tried it around my apartment and office with random objects. With lots of the various attachments used, I concluded that this is an absolutely phenomenal light to use with items that seem to have a bit of romance to them. I’m talking about books, cocktails, mocktails, watches, etc. Trust me, I tried it on so many random objects around my apartment. I’m positively in love with my Variegated Monstera Plant which took a starring role in a Hasselblad review I did. But this light didn’t work with that. Eventually, while listening to the latest Nora Jones album and reading some of J.R. Rogue’s poetry, I was transported to a more visually romantic time when I lived in Williamsburg, Brooklyn. I couldn’t help but think about the boozy movie theatre, Syndicated, and their beautiful marble countertop bar. With the prism attachment engaged, the Hobolite Iris made absolute romance happen on-camera.
Using the Canon EOS R5, Samyang 85mm f1.4, and a Rigu Mist filter, I made several beautiful photos that I’d gladly be happy giving to clients. These photos channel a feeling, and not necessarily a place.
The Hobolite Iris flirts with the idea of charm, warmth, and changing into just the right attire for the occasion – though it could absolutely expand on the wardrobe. We’ll get to that later.
Playing with the various attachments was quite fun. There are various tabs that let you change the color of the light. And another attachment lets you control the intensity of the beam via the iris – which resembles an aperture. It’s really tough to explain; but to be honest, I opted to go with full-power all the time. It simply just worked better for my creative vision.
For what it’s worth, the Hobolite Iris is kind of weak compared to the lights that I shoot with. Despite that, I was still able to make it work even when shooting at ISO 400.
Make no mistake, this is the most fun I’ve ever had with an LED light.
Ultimately, my favorite accessory is the prism. It’s incredibly fun to work with. But you really need to get more accessories and mounting options. However, that’s also part of the fun. I was setting the Iris down on various mason jars in my dining room and then applying the different color tabs or even adjusting the aperture setting. Truly, I think that this would work best with little projector tabs, like with slide film. To that end, the Hobolite Iris is great if you’re not looking to use a strobe and want to use creative light modifiers that are otherwise pricy for strobes. At the same time, they desperately need more lighting modifiers like projection tabs, prisms, and other really cool, funky things.
Would I use it again? Yes, but you’d still need to pull me away from my Profoto lights for most shoots. Even though the Hobolite Iris needs more fun accessories to make it truly resplendent, they’re thus far doing an incredible job.
The Hobolite Iris Creator Kit and Standard Kit are priced at $199.00 and $99.00 respectively and are available starting May 24th at their website and through authorized retailers like Amazon.