Backscatter Hybrid Flash HF-1

Powerful Strobe & Video Light Combination

With the Backscatter Hybrid Flash HF-1, you can illuminate both photos and videos underwater. With an underwater guide number of ƒ40 and a 5,000 lumen video light, the Hybrid Flash is the most powerful combination of strobe and video light ever made. The Backscatter Hybrid Flash also includes a 1,500 lumen spot light and a red light mode.

The Hybrid Flash is packed with features and is the first strobe to feature Smart Control Automatic TTL Flash power for Sony, Olympus, and OM System cameras. The Hybrid Flash is also HSS compatible and can be used for remote shooting alongside the Mini Flash 2. The flash is medium-sized, making it easy to carry for both wide-angle and macro photography.

Key Features

• ƒ40 Guide Number
• 5,000 Lumen Video Light
• Spot, Wide, and Red Lights
• Selectable Angle of Coverage, with Included Flat Diffuser and Optional Dome Diffuser—120°, 140°, 160°
• Selectable Color Temperature with Optional Filters—6500K, 5500K, 4500K
• Smart Control Automatic TTL Flash Power for Sony, Olympus, and OM System Cameras
• HSS Compatible
• Wireless Off Camera Remote Control – Mix and Match with Mini Flash 2
• SOS and Emergency Signaling Modes
• Requires Two 21700 Lithium Ion Batteries (not included)

Very Bright Guide Number ƒ40

The powerful flash beam with a guide number of ƒ40 will effortlessly illuminate subjects in high ambient light conditions. Shallow brightly illuminated reefs, sunballs, and big scenes become easier to light than ever before. The brightness of the Hybrid Flash extends sufficiently to reach more distant subjects within a scene.

The Hybrid Flash produces a super wide, even flash. You can light big scenes. It delivers an evenly distributed light intensity across its entire width, ensuring minimal drop-off from the center to the edges. This uniform illumination effectively lights up expansive scenes without creating harsh hot spots or leaving significant gaps. Thanks to its wide angle coverage, positioning the strobe becomes much simpler, courtesy of the light's broad, consistent, and forgiving beam pattern.

90° Wide Angle Beam Video Light (5000 lumen)

The Hybrid Flash comes equipped with a built-in 5,000 Lumen 90° wide-angle beam video light. 

Choose the Angle of Coverage: use a dome or a flat diffuser

The Hybrid Flash offers compatibility with various diffusers. Without a diffuser, the strobe provides a bright, intense light with a 120° angle of coverage. To achieve wider and softer lighting, the Hybrid Flash White 140 Flat Diffuser is included, expanding the coverage angle to 140°, ideal for larger subjects and scenes. For the broadest, softest, and most uniform lighting possible, users can opt for the optional Hybrid Flash White 160 Dome Diffuser, which maximizes the angle of coverage at 160°.

Optional warming filters: 5500K and 4500K

If you use the HF-1 without diffuser the color temperature will be 6500K. Use the included flat diffuser for a slightly warmer color. Optional 4500K and 5500K warming filters are available in both flat diffused and dome diffused filters. 4500K is perfect for adding richer, blue backgrounds at shallower depths, while the 5500K filters and diffusers will provide a more natural daylight appearance. Warming diffusers are also perfect for model shoots, providing you with warmer, more saturated skin tones for your human subjects.

Ambient Blue Filter for a More Natural Look

Traditional strobes use light that is significantly warmer than the much cooler blue light of the ocean. The Ambient Blue Filter matches the color temperature of the surrounding water, making the strobe match the color of the surrounding ambient light. When shot with the Ambient Blue Filter, the Hybrid Flash is filling shadows of the image, but not adding a different color to the scene. The Ambient Blue Filter is optimized for shooting at depths 10-35 feet.

Redefining What Full Power Means on a Strobe

The Hybrid Flash is significantly brighter at maximum power than what most people are used to shooting. At guide number 40 it generates a lot of light but also generates a significant amount of heat if shot in rapid succession at that power level. The Hybrid Flash manages this with an aluminum flash head, internal heat sink, and multiple temperature sensors. These protections allow the hybrid flash to keep shooting without interruption, so you'll never miss a shot.

Full (GN ƒ29) is more than enough light to tackle most situations. Boost +2 (GN ƒ40) and Boost +1 (GN ƒ34) are only needed for extra large scenes or shooting with diffusers to spread the light while maintaining a very bright output with plenty of reach.

We recommend starting at Full power. Boost +2 and Boost +1 are there when needed for extra punch on big wide scenes.

Shoot 30 Frames per Second with No Flash Drop Out

The Hybrid Flash has incredibly fast recycle times for a flash with its size and power and is built for rapid fire continuous shooting. The Backscatter Hybrid Flash will fire at 10 frames per second at 1/4 to 1/8 power, 20 frames at 1/8 power, and 30 frames at 1 click below 1/8 power.

 

Fast Flash Duration to Sync with High Shutter Speeds

Flash duration is how long the flash tube is lit up when the strobe fires. This is measured in hundredths to thousandths of a second, making it relatable to the camera’s shutter speed. If the flash duration is slower than the shutter speed being used, the flash will be cut off by the shutter speed of the camera and will appear diminished in the photo. With a fast flash duration of over 1/400th of a second at maximum power, the Hybrid Flash is faster than the flash sync speed of any SLR or mirrorless camera with a mechanical shutter available today. At power level Boost +1 (GN 34) the flash duration is over 1/900th of a second, and will increase in speed as the power level is turned down. With such a fast flash duration, the Hybrid Flash gives the photographer with compact and global shutter cameras such as the Sony a9 III the freedom to shoot much faster shutter speeds to knock down high ambient light scenes.

Simple, Easy to Use Manual Mode

Only need manual mode? The first mode on the dial is manual mode. The Backscatter Hybrid Flash has 12 power levels in ½ stop increments.

Automatic TTL Flash Exposure for Olympus, OM System, & Sony

The Hybrid Flash is the first production strobe to have Olympus, OM System, and Sony Automatic TTL Exposure using the Backscatter Smart Control System. Smart Control TTL exposure utilizes OM System RC mode and Sony’s native TTL protocol, which is much more accurate than mimic TTL systems. Standard Smart Control mode is perfect for wide angle and larger subjects, while Smart Control Macro will tailor the flash output for macro shooting. The Hybrid Flash also includes an underexposure warning, which sounds when the strobe has reached maximum output. If the resulting image is too dark, get closer, increase ISO, or open up the aperture to properly expose the image. Flash EV compensation is easily handled using the camera’s native menu system.

High Speed Sync (HSS) for Open Apertures and Black Backgrounds

The Hybrid Flash is also equipped with HSS mode, which allows faster shutter speeds to be used beyond the sync speed limit of the camera. HSS allows for wider open apertures while still being able to maintain a darker background than otherwise would be impossible at slower shutter speeds.

Sony Mirrorless cameras can achieve HSS using the Backscatter Sony Smart Control Trigger. Olympus and OM System mirrorless cameras can achieve HSS through RC mode with internal and clip-on flashes or with built in RC compatible flash triggers in housings such as the Backscatter E-M10 IV Octo Housing. For Nikon and Canon 3rd party flash triggers that support HSS are available such as UW Technics and the Turtle Trigger from TRT Electronics.

Backscatter Sony Smart Control Flash Trigger for TTL and HSS

The Backscatter Sony Smart Control Trigger is required for automatic Sony TTL and HSS with the Hybrid Flash. The flash trigger is placed on the hot shoe of the camera and is equipped with two LED lights to fit into a housing’s optical bulkheads. The Backscatter Sony Smart Control Trigger is universal and will fit most housings. The trigger is charged via USB-C. The Backscatter Sony Smart Control Trigger will be available later this year.

Wireless Off Camera Remote Control

The Backscatter Hybrid Flash features a remote transmit and receive function for wireless remote control and triggering.

The remote system works by the main transmitting strobe having the ability to remotely adjust the power level of other Hybrid Flash receiving strobes. The included Hybrid Flash Light Pipe attaches to the fiber optic mount of the Hybrid Flash and allows for receiving the signal from the transmitting strobe without the need for a Fiber Optic Cable or an electronic trigger.

No cables and no reaching out for a remote strobe to change power levels means less silt from moving around or potentially freaking out the critter.

The Hybrid Flash shares the same remote control protocol as the Mini Flash 2, and both strobes can be used together remotely. This works great for off-camera remote side lighting, backlighting, and snooting with the both the Hybrid Flash and Mini Flash 2 from the Backscatter Remote Lighting Muck Stick. Remote lighting is now easy to deploy and a breeze to use.

Dedicated Test Button

The Backscatter Hybrid Flash includes a test button that allows the strobe to be fired at any desired power level. This is great to use for light painting, as a strobe freezes motion where a video light will not. The test flash can also be used as a signaling device. The test button can be used in all modes except for SOS and Video Mode.

Wide, Spot, and Red Focus and Target Lights

The Backscatter Hybrid Flash comes equipped with several different light modes for the target light in Photo Mode. The strobe can be set to wide for use as a general focus or target light, spot for more specific macro work, or red to sneak up at critters and to avoid the swarmies at night. Red, Spot, and Wide Mode are available in M, SC, HSS, REM modes.

375 to 1000+ Flashes

With twin 21700 lithium ion batteries the Backscatter Hybrid Flash will allow for over 375 flashes on maximum power (GN40) or a full day of diving with over 1000 flashes when set to normal power. Professional photographers will be stunned by the full power brightness duration. Amateur photographers will appreciate only using one set of batteries for a full day of diving.

Up to 90 Minutes of Video Runtime

The Hybrid Flash is designed to optimize battery consumption in Video Mode. In Video Mode, the light can run continuously for 45 minutes at 5,000 lumens. After 45 minutes, the Hybrid Flash will gradually ramp down to the next lower setting, to give a total runtime of 90 minutes. This gives the Hybrid Flash plenty of runtime for long night dives. If power consumption is managed by shutting the light off or using a lower power level between scenes, the Hybrid Flash can easily last a whole dive at 5,000 lumens.

Powered by Two High Capacity 21700 Batteries

To keep up with the high performance needs of the Backscatter Hybrid Flash, high performing 21700 batteries with a 20A continuous discharge are required. Currently the Nitecore NL2153HP is the only 21700 battery that meets this specification. Nitecore batteries include built-in overcharge and over discharge protection circuitry safety features. 

Automatic Flash Synchronization

Setting up pre-flash cancellation is a breeze. Simply plug in a Fiber Optic Cable and take a test shot. The Backscatter Hybrid Flash will automatically detect the camera’s internal flash shooting mode on the first flash after power-up and store it in memory on your first test shot. If camera or flash settings change, simply turn the Hybrid Flash off and back on and take another test shot to update the setting. No need to worry about the wrong setting on the strobe. This feature can also be disabled if the Hybrid Flash is being triggered by a manual flash trigger or internal flash set to manual.

Ergonomic and Easy Control Layout

Change Power Levels without Taking your Eyes off the Scene

The Backscatter Hybrid Flash has two dials and two buttons. Mode is a black pointer style control while the flash power control is a red knurled knob. Both controls are large and raised and easily controlled with thick gloves. Each control has a different appearance and feel making both controls easy to differentiate by feel or with a quick glance. Both dials have hard stops, making finding the exact mode and full power easy and quick, without needing to look at the strobe.

Photo and Video Lighting in a Medium Sized Body – Easy for Travel

The Backscatter Hybrid Flash is a medium-sized strobe and video light all in one. The size of the strobe makes it easy to travel with no compromise in performance, and eliminates the need for a separate video light or strobe making packing easier. In air, the Hybrid Flash is 1.1 kg / 2.5 lbs with batteries, ball mount, and diffuser. In water, the Hybrid Flash weighs 227 grams / 0.5 lbs with batteries, ball mount, and diffuser.

Triple Sealed Battery Cap

The Hybrid Flash is protected by two O-rings and a sand gasket to make sure the battery compartment remains dry. The double O-ring seal allows for two lines of defense against leak-causing debris, both of which are protected by a sand gasket, which keeps fine sand from building on the O-rings.

Safety Features

The Hybrid Flash has a sealed battery compartment, and in the rare event of a leak in the battery compartment water will not enter the front compartment of the strobe. The strobe also has two over-pressure relief valves, one on the strobe body, and one in the battery cap.

Battery Level Indicator

An integrated LED indicator shows battery level remaining in 3 levels: green, yellow, and red.

SPECIFICATIONS Backscatter Hybrid HF-1 underwater strobe

Depth Rating: 100m/330ft
Guide Number: ƒ40
Maximum LED Output: 5,000 Lumens
Power: Two 21700 Nitecore NL2153HP 5300mAh Batteries
Recycle time (full): 1.6 seconds
Number of Flashes (full): over 375
Weight in Air: 2.5lbs / 1.14kg (with battery)
Weight in Water: 4oz / 250g (with battery)
Sync Cord: Fiber Optic
Seal: Dual O-rings with additional Sand Seal Gasket
Exposure Control:    Flash: 12-step Power Level    /     LED: 3-step Power Level
Dimensions With Ball (LxWxD):
6.34 x 3.70 x 6.38in    /    161 x 94 x 162mm
Material: Anodized Machined Aluminium and Glass Fill Fiber