Welcome to our ultimate Altura Photo AP-C1001 review that we are glad to finally be able to publish as we have had it on our list of topics for a while but simply not had the spare time available to publish it. Now, we have seen a steadily increasing number of people reaching out about the Altura Photo AP-C1001 and hope that this article can help any of our readers thinking of picking it up.
Now, any of our regular readers will know that we are massive fans of the Neewer flash unit range and in reality, there is no doubt that the Neewer TT560 flash is the dominant flash unit in the sub $50 price bracket. It is without a doubt the most popular flash unit and probably has the best reputation at the time of writing too.
Now, that said, our regular readers may be shocked to see us say this but we honestly think the Altura Photo AP-C1001 is a great little flash unit. Although it has earned itself a great reputation within the community as well as grown a solid customer base we feel it has plenty of room left to grow. It is probably the second-best flash unit currently available in the price bracket just behind the Neewer TT560 flash and we hope this article helps to spread the word.
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User Interface And Control System
The image above shows the user interface and control system for the Altura Photo AP-C1001 and as you can see, it follows the standard design of a few control buttons and an LCD panel. Now, we feel that it could have done with a directional pad to help the navigation menu flow a little easier but at this price point in the market, we feel this can be overlooked.
The backlit LCD panel ensures that you can clearly see exactly what you are tweaking when using the AP-C1001 in low light conditions while the various buttons on the interface allow you to quickly set the flash up as you wish. Although the buttons definatley have that cheap feel to them, they are responsive when pressed and do not feel like they are randomly going to pop off the flash like some other sub $50 flash unit buttons can.
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Once the flash unit is programmed as required it mounts to your camera via the standard hot shoe mount and you are good to go for your session. If for whatever reason you need to quickly tweak the settings of the flash unit mid-session, the navigation menu allows you to change most settings within seconds.
In all fairness, considering we had never even heard of the Altura Photo brand priod to seeing people reaching out for information on this flash unit, we feel they have done an excellent job. If this is your first flash unit then you will be able to get it working out the box without issue as it is very simple to use. We really can’t fault them for the control system of the flash and it easily holds its own against the competing flash units.
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Performance And Functionality
The main reason that we feel the Altura Photo AP-C1001 deserves to be much more popular than it currently is with the community is due to its outstanding performance. Now, keep in mind that this is a sub $50 flash unit and we think that it can easily compete with flash units double its price tag. That said, we have actually seen people on social media trying to compare the AP-C1001 to $300 flash units…..not surprisingly, the $300 outperforms the sub $50 one with ease so keep your expectations in line and remember the low price tag.
Here are some key features that the AP-C1001 boasts that we feel our readers will want to know:-
- Fixed 4 second recycle time.
- Fully e-TTL compatible.
- Guide number of 68.
- Various automatic and manual modes.
- Built-in optical sensor for off-camera flash functionality.
- Seven step auto/manual zoom range 24-105mm.
- 0 to 90° flash head tilt and 180° flash head panning.
- 1/1 – 1/128 Power Ratio.
Now, we know that the 4 seconds recycle time is very slow but we doubt that this will be an issue for most of our readers considering adding the AP-C1001 to their collection of camera accessories as it is likely that they are just getting started on their journey. Additionally, the long recycle time helps to prevent overheating issues with the flash due to not generating excessive heat with rapid flash recycles.
Pretty much everything else performance-wise on the flash is as you would expect and it can make an excellent entry-level flash unit and help to improve your image quality for your flash photography sessions.
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Although the Altura Photo AP-C1001 is officially listed as being fully compatible with the following flash units at the time of writing, keep in mind that it also has some limited functionality with other Canon camera bodies and future camera releases may work with it too.
Canon Powershot Range – G11, G12, G15, G16, G1X, SX50 HS, SX60 HS
Canon Rebel Range T6, T6I, T6S, SL1, T3, T3i, T4i, T5i, T5, XT, XTI, XS.
Canon EOS Range 60D, 70D, 7D, 5D, 5D MK II.
We really think that the AP-C1001 offers you some excellent performance and judging by its reputation amongst the community, most of the people who own the flash unit agree with us. As we touched on earlier, we really do feel like the AP-C1001 can easily compete with flash units at higher price points in the market with some of them being twice its price! All in all, an excellent flash unit when it comes to performance and well worth adding to your camera accessories in our opinion.
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Build Quality And Design
In our opinion, the weakest area of the AP-C1001 is definatley its build quality but this is very common in the sub $50 flash unit bracket and it definatley makes up for it with its level of performance. Although the plastic used for the flash units case is pretty lightweight, it definatley has a cheap feel to it and does not seem to be very robust.
Although we do feel that the flash can take a few knocks, we doubt that it would be able to take a ton of punishment without breaking. On the flip side of this though, with this price tag, you can easily replace the AP-C1001 each year if required or even just upgrade to a higher price point flash in the future if you choose to keep going on your photography adventure.
One thing we want to confirm is that Altura Photo has chosen to go with a metal hot shoe mounting bracket. Our regular readers will know that we hate camera accessories that use a plastic hot shoe mount as they quickly change shape and end up causing problems but the metal ones hold their shape much better.
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FAQs
Question – Does the Altura Photo AP-C1001 flash have High-Speed Sync?
Answer – No, it does not support HSS.
Question – Does the swivel on the Altura Photo AP-C1001 have stops?
Answer – Yes.
Question – What is the zoom range on the Altura Photo AP-C1001?
Answer – 24-105mm.
Our Verdict
That brings our Altura Photo AP-C1001 review to an end and we are definatley fans of this flash unit and are surprised by what it is able to offer you. That said, we still feel that the Neewer TT560 flash takes the top spot in the sub $50 flash unit price bracket. Not only is the Neewer flash a little cheaper but it also has increased functionality too making it stand out ahead of the AP-C1001.
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Image Licensing
Shared under Creative Commons – https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/
Kah Wai Sin – Bella Again – https://flic.kr/p/8Yhdzj
