Profoto B10 Plus

Profoto B10 Plus – the most versatile and powerful compact flash on the market

Profoto knows it has a great product, but rather than resting on its laurels, it is bringing another treat to the market in the form of the Profoto B10 Plus flash. It doubles the power of its predecessor, reaching 500 watt-seconds.

Like the B10, the B10 Plus is part of the OCF family, which began with the relatively compact B2 power pack and was followed by the B1X monoblock. The range also includes the recently launched A1 ”handheld” flash. The B10 Plus cleverly combines the features of a monolight with the automatic exposure control familiar from handheld flashes that are operated from the camera. The idea is to take the concept of ”technological innovation” a step further.

The 500Ws flash unit features 10-stop power adjustment and fast recycling times of 0.05–2.5 seconds. The light also features a ‘Freeze’ mode which prioritises a short flash duration, allowing you to achieve a minimum duration of up to 1/50,000 of a second at minimum power. The B10 Plus is powered by a lithium-ion battery capable of delivering 200 flashes at full power after a 90-minute charge. A 60-minute charge will bring the battery up to 80% if you have less time available. Naturally, one of the most interesting features of the B10 Plus flash is its TTL technology, which utilises your camera’s automatic exposure system and significantly reduces the time between inspiration, execution and exposure. The way to access this excellent feature is to purchase the wireless Air Remote TTL controller, which is currently available for Sony, Fujifilm, Canon, Nikon and Olympus cameras.

The controller, which attaches to the boot, has 8 channels and three groups that keep signal interference under control. Each group can be controlled separately, and exposure compensation can be set within a range of +/- 2 EV in TTL systems, and across 9 stops in manual mode. It can trigger the B10 in manual mode from a distance of up to 300 metres. The range in TTL mode is a third of this, equivalent to the length of a football pitch. The B10 Plus and Air Remote TTL also support High Speed Sync photography at shutter speeds of up to 1/8000. This allows the photographer to easily control the ratio of ambient light to flash output. And you can capture wide-aperture shots even in bright conditions. What’s more, with Profoto’s smartphone app, you can capture well-lit images using your mobile phone too.

In addition to these wide-ranging features, the B10 Plus is fitted with an LED modelling lamp equivalent to a 150W incandescent bulb. Not only is it dimmable, but its colour temperature can also be adjusted from 3,000 Kelvin to 6,500 Kelvin. Its high CRI (90–96) makes it ideal for video use. The battery life with the modelling light on is 75 minutes at full power.

Profoto B10 Plus – key features

• 500 Ws
• Lightweight and wireless
• the power of ten hand-held torches
• continuous adjustment of light output and colour temperature
• also handy for use with camera tripods
• Compatible with over 120 Profoto light-shaping tools, including the entire OCF range
• Compatible with Profoto Air TTL transmitters, including the Profoto A1
• Smartphone control
• Freeze mode reduces the duration of flashes to as little as 1/50,000 of a second

Profoto B10 Plus vs B10

The three main differences between the B10 and B10 Plus models are flash power, size and weight. They are compatible with the same accessories, but the carrying cases for the individual flashes are, of course, sized to fit the flashes themselves.