INON s2000 Underwater Strobe Light Review

This Inon Strobe Is Awesome, Compact & Easy To Use!

Let start by saying before I wrote this INON S-2000 Strobe review, I already loved it in the first place , this small compact underwater strobe from Inon makes a truley fantastic set up for beginners when combined with a compact camera rig set up and likewise as a second or third slave strobe for SLRs rigs. Simple to set up and use with beginner and professional applications, it is also important to note that it is a slave strobe meaning it fires whenever it detects another flash. You cannot change this behaviour, so if your camera fires a pre-flash and exposure flash for each shot, the Inon will also fire a pre-flash and exposure flash. Lets take a look at INON S-2000 Strobe

Lets Talk INON S2000 Strobe Specifications

Strobe Control Mode ::: S-TTL Auto / Manual / TTL Auto
Connection ::: INON states this strobe has a ‘Wireless’ connection which means it can fire without a fiber optic cable. This is a great feature. Underwater, the strobes can be placed away from the camera rig, allowing for creative side lighting and back lighting of subjects. The strobe will simply slave off another strobe or flash, as long as the receiver can "see" the flash. You can also use optical D Cable or an optical D Slave Cable
Flash Output ::: 20(FULL) 17(-0.5) 14(-1) 12(-1.5) 10(-2) 8.4(-2.5) 7.1(-3) 5.9(-3.5) 5.0(-4) 4.2(-4.5) 3.5(-5) 3.0(-5.5) (12 steps in 1/2EV increments)

Battery Requirements:: Takes 4 AA batteries
Recycle Time ::: I found it was around 2sec per cycle using Lithium.
Flash Capacity ::: I found it was around 600 using Lithium.
Dimensions ::: Diameter: 64mm. Height: 83.1mm. Depth: 106.5mm.
Depth Rating ::: 100m / 328ft
Beam Angle ::: 105° x 95° [No diffuser] -110° x 110°circular beam [-0.5 white diffuser]
Color Temp ::: 5500K [ no diffuser] - 5400K [Using -0.5 white diffuser]

INON S-2000 Strobe STTL Mode

This mode provides automatic exposure control with most cameras which utilise a 'pre-flash' and are housed in a transparent housing. In this mode, the INON S-2000 strobe mimics the camera on-board flash. The camera controls the external strobe without being aware of its presence, with the camera flash and the fibre optic cable being the controlling link. To use the INON S-2000 in STTL mode turn the switch to STTL and the Dial to B. STTL mode gives Auto flash exposure by copying the duration of the camera flash. Changing this knob to 'A' or 'C' allows additional flexibility by adjusting EV compensation up or down for fine tuning your S-TTL results. Position 'A' will output more light (lighter image), position 'C' will output less light (darker image). Position 'C-' will output less light than position 'C' for yet a darker image.

INON S-2000 Strobe TTL

Looking at the dial at 9 o'clock or -5.5 You will see TTL, disregard it. This is only there to confuse you. TTL relates to film cameras. Digital cameras don't use TTL for flash, they use STTL. With TTL the exposure is worked out while the shutter is open and the flash is quenched when enough light has been delivered, requiring only one flash. With STTL the exposure is worked out by doing a pre-flash. Rotating the dial to TTL allows the S-2000 to sync with a strobe connected to a film camera in TTL mode (I think).

INON S-2000 Strobe Manual Mode

Manual Mode, also known as 'TTB' (Thru The Brain), is designed for cameras that allow manual exposure control. In this mode you may select the power of the exposure. The INON s-2000 strobe offers 12 manual power settings (½ EV increments) to fine tune exposure.
To use the INON S-2000 in manual mode you must turn the switch to M and the Dial to Full. In this mode you can reduce the power of the INON S-2000 by turning the dial anti-clockwise. There are 12 steps from Full power around to minimum power of -5.5.
In Manual mode the flash fires when it sees the camera flash but delivers whatever power you have selected on the dial. If your camera fires 2 flashes for each shot then Full and -0.5 power it will not work because the S-2000 cannot recharge from the pre-flash in time for the exposure flash.
Full and -0.5 can be used when the camera or strobe used to trigger the S-2000 only produces one flash.

The Magnet INON S-2000 Strobe Review

The INON S-2000 come with a little magnet. The magnet is used to turn off the ACC (Advanced Cancel Circuit) when in Manual mode. ACC is always off in STTL mode.
All the ACC does is save the camera battery life by making the INON S-2000 give a brighter first flash. This fools the camera into giving a darker second flash, with the INON S-2000 giving whatever power flash you have selected. The ACC is only useful for compact cameras that always give 2 flashes. For these cameras leave the magnet out if you want to use the INON S-2000 in Manual mode as well as STTL.
For all other cameras leave the magnet in to cancel the ACC. There is no way to make the INON S-2000 ignore the pre-flash.

INON S-2000 Strobe Accessories

The INON S-2000 can be used without a fibre optic sync cable because it has a very sensitive sensor which will work in some configurations, they call this "wireless".

Inon have included various mirrors and stickers to assist setting up for wireless flash operation. On shallow sunny dives the strobe may fire continually if the sensor is uncovered. Fit the sensor cover/mirror or a fibre optic sync cord to prevent this.

Do you Have Any Tips For Using This Strobe? Comment Below!

Conclusions INON S-2000 Strobe Review

I really liked this compact strobe unit. I recently took this INON S-2000 (with LUMIX and Canon G7X Digital compact cameras to Sipadan) I clicked mostly on STTL mode the picture and flash quality really made some some great shots and best of all, I found it simple to use in addition to easy to transport. I can highly recommend the INON S-2000 to any underwater photographers looking to get a first time strobe even if you later take your photographer to the next level you can use this later as a slave which its optically fired meaning you can really set up some amazing and interesting light projects with side or back light which can be really fun!