Sunday, October 6, 2019

Installing CTO Gels On A Godox V1- Update

Buy yours here.
Dribs and Drabs: Well, the gels started to arrive. By Saturday, September 21, I have samples of all of the bits necessary to properly gel my Godox V1 Round Headed flash.

The Color Temperature Adjustment Kit: The Kit consists of a collection of round gels tinted to the accepted hues which included four levels (Full, Half, Quarter, and Eighth) of orange, green, blue, and something called "minus green", a magenta tint which I assume is the compliment to the green series.

I ordered one set from B&H Camera and one from Amazon, and the latter arrived first. I don't think the Chinese had fully embraced the concept of a licensed distributorship, based on the fact the Amazon delivery arrived with a Chinese return address.   Adorama chose to market the Godox product line under the Flashpoint name.


All you want are the two clear gel holders.
Mounting The Gels: You need to get a Flashpoint AK-R16 Gel Set to properly mount the gels. As I mentioned in an earlier post, the 4 gels (3 degrees of orange, one of green) are not true CTO gels, and might be suitable if all you need is to warm you flash's output. Using the round gels from the Color Temperature Adjustment Kit will provide more accurate color match. 

To mount the gels, start by installing one of the clear gel holders into the magnetic retaining ring. Just align the four nubs on the clear holder with the four slots in the back of the retaining ring, drop the holder in place, and while pinching the holder between your thumb and index finger, rotate the holder to lock it in place. Next drop the desired gel in place. Finally, install the second gel holder and lock it in place. I used a used dental explorer to push the tab into alignment. One could also drill a 1/16 " hole near the edge of the holder. You can now use a toothpick to help with the installation.

This approach requires the purchase of a Gel Set for every gel you want available for rapid deployment. This could become costly, but nowhere near as much as the similar Mag Mod filtration system. You could also get by with a single Gel Set and changing the gels in the field, a tedious process at best. But it you must go this route, don't forget to bring a toothpick.