THE PERFECT MACRO STROBE FOR ANY CAMERA

The Backscatter Mini Flash 2 MF-2 is a major upgrade to the Backscatter Mini Flash MF-1, with tons of new features and performance upgrades, including Olympus TTL, remote strobe control, high-speed sync, test mode, emergency signaling capability, a faster recycle time, and LED lights that are twice as bright as the previous model. All of the accessories from the Backscatter Mini Flash MF-1 carry over to the Backscatter Mini Flash 2.

This travel friendly, lightweight macro lighting system is the easiest to use and highest performing strobe and snoot combination ever created.

KEY FEATURES

NEW: Automatic TTL For Olympus Cameras
NEW: Wireless Remote Control
NEW: High-Speed Sync
NEW: Built-In 1000 Lumen Focus Light
NEW: Test Mode & Beacon
NEW: Faster Recycle Time
NEW: Bigger Battery, Longer Run Time
Manual Control For All Cameras
Double O-Ring Seal For Reliability

A FLASH BEAM TAILOR-MADE FOR MACRO

Most of the conventional wisdom surrounding underwater strobes is that brighter and wider always equals better. If you're shooting macro underwater photography, you want the exact opposite. You want a tightly controlled light to pinpoint the subject and keep the background as dark as possible. The Mini Flash 2 is the perfect flash + snoot combination for any serious underwater macro photographer. Its tiny size can get into the tightest spots and the companion Optical Snoot OS-1 makes it the perfect macro strobe to give you the creativity you've been missing.


Lighting just the subject is a great way to create a new look for familiar subjects.
Olympus OM-D E-M1 III | Olympus 60mm Lens | 1/250 | ISO 200 | ƒ14

1000 LUMEN BUILT-IN FOCUS LIGHT

With powerful 1000-lumen LED focus lights built-in, there’s no need for a separate focus light to manage on your rig. It makes a perfect companion for compact camera shooters looking for a great all-around streamlined strobe solution. It’s also the perfect solution for advanced mirrorless and SLR shooters looking to reduce their footprint, simplify their lighting and lighten their rig for easier shooting.

The LED lights in the Backscatter Mini Flash 2 are now twice as bright as the previous Backscatter Mini Flash MF-1 making this the absolute easiest strobe and snoot combination to use. Even in bright shallow conditions, it is super easy to see the target light from the snoot in the same exact shape and position as the flash. With no guessing on where the flash will fire, the Mini Flash 2 makes it as easy as can be to get perfect snooted shots right out of the box. The LED lights will run up to 90 minutes on a full 21700 battery.

THE EASIEST TO USE MACRO STROBE + SNOOT COMBINATION

Using a strobe with a snoot was once really difficult. Aiming a snoot took lots of practice. We designed the Mini Flash and Optical Snoot together to make shooting with a snoot as easy as possible. With bright LED lights that project the same beam pattern as the flash through the snoot, you can easily see the exact placement of the snoot beam on your subject when framing a shot and know you are hitting your target.



The Optical Snoot OS-1 is easy to mount, with a simple click on/click off. The Optical Snoot OS-1 is small enough to keep in a pocket or clip off with a double-ender clip, allowing for a quick and easy switch from a wider beam to snooted macro.

Using a snoot is a great way to isolate a subject from an otherwise uninteresting background.

SUPER BRIGHT SNOOT OUTPUT FOR DARK BACKGROUNDS

The key to success in snoot photography is having dark backgrounds in bright ambient light conditions. The Backscatter Mini Flash 2 and Optical Snoot OS-1 combination were designed together to allow the most efficient transfer of light through the snoot optics. The result is an exposure that is brighter than any other snoot on the market and will help you make the darkest backgrounds. When projecting a 6mm hole, a shot can be done at ISO 64, ƒ32 which is a perfect setting to get inky black backgrounds and perfect light on the subject.


The Backscatter Mini Flash 2 and Optical Snoot OS-1 combination has a brighter output when compared to other snoot/strobe combinations on the market. Even when shooting low ISOs and high apertures there's still plenty of power left over.
Sony a7S III | Sony 90mm | 1/250 | ISO 100 | ƒ22

PRECISE LIGHTING CONTROL WITH APERTURE CARDS

The Backscatter Optical Snoot OS-1 includes 2 Aperture Cards, 1 circular and 1 oval set, with 4 different-sized holes on each. Shoot a sharply focused light beam or pull back a little for a softer edge. Shoot a projected beam as small as 6mm. The full range of aperture cards will let you shoot an ultra-tiny subject to even a large fish portrait. When shooting the snoot at an angle to the subject with the oval aperture card, the snoot can be rotated to change the shape of the projected beam from an elongated oval to a circle. No other strobe and snoot system offers this level of precise control.


The oval aperture card allows for tailoring the light beam to the subject for precision snoot lighting.
Sony a1 | Sony 90mm | 1/400 | ISO 100 | ƒ8


One of the key features of the Backscatter Optical Snoot OS-1 is the ability to not only easily change the sizes of the projected hole, but also the shape of the beam of light by simply rotating the snoot with the oval aperture card installed.

AUTOMATIC TTL FOR OLYMPUS CAMERAS

The Backscatter Mini Flash 2 is compatible with Olympus’s TTL protocol through RC mode. In our testing, the Olympus RC system produces the most consistent and accurate TTL exposures of any underwater system. The Mini Flash 2 takes this a step further by also having an option for finely tuned macro TTL.

Most TTL systems from camera manufacturers have not been optimized for close-up macro use. This usually results in TTL not working well at close distances and lower flash outputs associated with macro, leading to overexposed images. The Mini Flash 2 has a TTL mode specifically tailored to macro that allows for better and more accurate exposures when compared to other systems available.

Exposure compensation is possible in TTL and is controlled directly from the camera, but most likely won’t be needed. TTL even works through the Optical Snoot OS-1 for perfect snooted exposures!


Fully automatic strobe exposures look spot on with the Mini Flash 2 and Olympus cameras, even through a snoot.
Olympus E-M10 IV | Olympus 60mm Lens | 1/2,000 | ISO 200 | ƒ5.6

BACKSCATTER REMOTE LIGHTING MUCK STICK

The Backscatter Remote Lighting Muck Stick is a game changer for off-camera lighting. Mount a flash, video light, GoPro, or anything else with the standard 1-inch ball mount integrated into the stick. The adjustable anti-rotation Sand Anchor allows for positioning the Remote Lighting Muck Stick in different types of sand such as loose gravely or tightly packed fine silt. Better than a tripod it’s small, lightweight, and will never fall over.



Backscatter Remote Lighting Muck Stick with Sand Anchor & Backscatter Remote Lighting Muck Stick with Mini Flash 2 & Optical Snoot OS-1

WIRELESS REMOTE CONTROL

The Backscatter Mini Flash 2 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 Mini Flash 2 receiving strobes. The included Light Pipe attaches to the fiber optic mount of the Mini Flash 2 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 you’re trying to take a picture of.

This works great for off-camera remote side lighting, backlighting, and snooting from the new Backscatter Remote Lighting Muck Stick. Remote lighting is now easy to deploy and a breeze to use.


Remote lighting can create a whole new look for subjects that normally blend into their environment. The first shot above is with just the Mini Flash 2. The second shot is with a remotely placed Mini Flash 2 and Optical Snoot OS-1 on the Remote Lighting Muck Stick placed above and behind the subject. The third shot is with the Mini Flash 2 and Optical Snoot OS-1 lighting the front and a remotely placed Mini Flash 2 and Optical Snoot OS-1 with the Backscatter Color Filter System on the Remote Lighting Muck Stick placed above and behind the subject.


Backlighting a subject can take a normal photo to the next level. The Backscatter Remote Lighting Muck Stick makes backlighting a breeze. Use the optional Backscatter IR Filter to block any light from the on-camera strobe from showing up in the shot.
Olympus E-M10 IV | Olympus 60mm Lens | 1/250 | ISO 200 | ƒ22


The Light Pipe allows the Mini Flash 2 to be used as a remote flash without any cables. It's not just a slave sensor that triggers the strobe. It receives optical signals to change the strobe's power levels too. Simply beam over new power settings from your camera-mounted Mini Flash 2 for the ultimate wireless and hands-free lighting control.

HIGH SPEED SYNC

High Speed Sync (HSS) is where the camera can shoot faster shutter speeds than the camera’s flash sync speed by using a special mode on the underwater flash. HSS allows for wider open apertures while still being able to maintain a darker background than otherwise would be possible at slower shutter speeds.

Olympus mirrorless cameras can achieve HSS through Olympus RC mode with compatible housings such as the Backscatter Octo Housing for the Olympus Pen camera or with other brand mirrorless and SLR cameras including Sony, Nikon, and Canon with 3rd party flash triggers that support HSS such as UW Technics and the Turtle trigger from TRT Electronics.


Using a more open aperture allows for more creative control for bokeh blur while the fast shutter speed of HSS maintains a darker background normally associated with more stopped-down apertures. This HSS picture was shot at 1/5000 of a second for the dark background.

TEST MODE WITH POWER LEVEL CONTROL

The Backscatter Mini Flash 2 includes a test feature that allows the strobe to be fired at any desired power level. This is great to use instead of a video light for light painting as a strobe freezes motion where a video light will not. Another photographic use for Test mode is using it as a manual stroboscopic function with long exposures and multiple flashes per shot.

SAFETY FEATURE—BEACON MODE

The Backscatter Mini Flash 2 includes a safety feature where the LED lights will emit a “ping” emergency signal that will last up to 12 hours on a full battery. The Test mode can also be used as an emergency signaling device by pressing the button to activate the flash.

DUAL O-RING SEAL = DOUBLE WATERPROOF

The battery compartment features a double O-ring seal to keep you safe from O-ring maintenance errors. Of course, you need to clean and maintain the O-rings before every use, but our double seal will help reduce water damage from common errors.


The high visibility dual grey o-rings add an extra layer of protection.

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 Mini Flash 2 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 you change cameras or settings, simply turn the Mini Flash 2 off and back on and take another test shot to update the setting. No need to worry about the wrong setting on the strobe.

100% COMPATIBLE WITH ALL ACCESSORIES FOR THE
MINI FLASH 1 & MACRO WIDE 4300

All of the same great accessories such as the Optical Snoot OS-1, The Backscatter Color Filter System, and diffuser are all 100% compatible with the Backscatter Mini Flash 2.




All of the accessories from the Backscatter Lighting System are compatible with the Mini Flash 2, including the highly popular Backscatter Color Filter System.
Sony a1 | Sony 90mm | 1/400 | ISO 125 | ƒ16

OVER 2,000 FLASHES, 90 MINUTE RUN TIME ON LED LIGHTS

With the larger battery capacity, the Backscatter Mini Flash 2 is capable of a mind-boggling 2000+ flashes and a minimum 90-minute run time of the LED lights with a fully charged Xtar 21700 5000mAh battery.


The Backscatter Mini Flash 2 is great for getting in tight spots when doing close focus wide angle bug-eye style photography.
Sony a1 | Sony 90mm with Nauticam EMWL Sony Lens Kit & EMWL 160 Lens | 1/40 | ISO 500 | ƒ16