Canon VL-5 Video Light for Mini Advanced Accessory Shoe

by Canon

Product Details

• Item Weight: 0.3 ounces
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Shipping: This item is also available for shipping to select countries outside the U.S.
• ASIN: B001DYLNIU
• Item model number: 3186B001
• Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (17 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank:
  • #67 in Electronics > Camera & Photo > Flashes
• Date first available at Amazon.com: June 17, 2003

Product Description

The VL-5 Light is a stylish video light for mini advanced accessory shoes. It is compatible with the following Canon Camcorders: VIXIA HF10, VIXIA HF100 VIXIA HF11 VIXIA HG20 VIXIA HG21

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

28 of 29 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Not much brighter, but an upgrade from the Vixia's HF100's onboard light..., October 13, 2008

By 

ffass "ffass" (Brooklyn, NY United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Canon VL-5 Video Light for Mini Advanced Accessory Shoe (Electronics)

I just bought the Vixia HF100 camcorder and the built-in video light is adequate if in a situation where you MUST shoot in a very low light setting. Unfortunately, the HF100's light is very much on the cool-blue end of the light spectrum and makes for some ugly skin tones and just plain awful video in general. The VL-5 light, while perhaps emitting only 25 to 50% more lumens than the onboard light, has a distinctly warm tone, which translates into better skin tones and an overall acceptable image. The VL-5 is small but not "tiny" (protrudes 2 3/8" from top of camera, and measures 2 1/2" from front to back at the widest point). The light has a switch for "On, Auto, and Off." You can't use both the onboard light and the VL-5 at the same time (the HF100 won't allow it). IMPORTANT NOTE: You'll have to update the firmware of your Vixia camcorder to 1.0.2 in order to use this light (download from Canon's website). I attempted to use the updater on my Mac Pro and had a glitch with the update: it said that my camera could not be updated. I think I needed to disconnect all of my computer's connected USB devices (other than keyboard, mouse) so the updater would get a clear "read" on the camera). I used my MacBook Pro to install the update and it worked fine (took about 8 minutes). Though it's a certainly overpriced, I'm going to keep it; my night-time videos will at least progress from the camera's default unacceptable and dreadful blue tone to an acceptable warm tone. Note: I think that this is the only accessory light that will currently work with the new Canon Vixia camcorders' "Mini Advanced Shoe."

21 of 21 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Nice compact, lightweight light with warm tone., December 23, 2010

By 

HD Videographer - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Canon VL-5 Video Light for Mini Advanced Accessory Shoe (Electronics)

Length:: 8:25 Mins

This is my video review of the Canon VL-5 Video Light. I am using a Canon VIXIA HF200 and a Canon WD-H37II 0.7X Wide Angle lens. I have my camera setup up on a small tripod on a chair which is 64" away from a desk, computer monitor and desk lamp. I start the camera with accessories attached. I dim the room lights and turn on the on board LED lamp and pan a little. I then go to full darkness and pan a little, then bring up the room lights to full intensity. I repeat this process with the Wide Angle lens attached. I repeat it again with the lens removed and the VL-5 attached and finally I have both the VL-5 and the Wide Angle lens attached.

The light itself is small and unobtrusive, measuring about 2.5" long, 1.5" wide and 2.5" high. When mounted, the light is approximately 2" above the body of the camera. The light weighs 1.5 Oz or 42g, which almost exactly the spec weight of 43g. The bottom of the light has four slits and the top has 12 holes for ventilation. The light gets warm with use and hot with prolonged use. The lamp itself is covered with a translucent plastic lens that diffuses the light. The light has a warm tone that looks much better when reflected off skin than the on board lamp which is quite cool and can give subjects a cool, pale appearance. The back of the light has a three position switch with the following settings: OFF, AUTO and ON. With Auto, the camera controls the light and turns it on or off depending on the amount of ambient light. The ON position turns on the light continuously and OFF obviously turns off the light. Once the camera detects the light is mounted, it will disable the on board LED light even if the VL-5 is off. One thing to note is that the VL-5 housing is symmetrical and is perfectly centered on the camera. I bring this up because from the pictures I saw of the VL-5, I thought the lamp was slightly to the right of the housing, it is not.

As you can see in the video, the light works well and because it is center mounted, the center subject is always well lit. Surrounding objects are illuminated less so, but still very much visible. The on board lamp is mounted on the left and tends to illuminate slightly to the right (at least on my camera). The color tone is much warmer than that of the on board lamp and looks much better on skin. It's also really nice that the camera's battery life meter updates the instant the light turns on or off. The spec says this is a 3.3 Watt light and from my tests, the VL-5 will cut your battery life in half. With a BP-819 battery pack you can expect 90 minutes of continuous use. With the standard BP-809 battery pack you can expect a little less than half that. Perhaps the most useful feature of this light is that it can be used with the wide angle lens. I find this critical because this light is meant mostly for indoor use and the wide angle lens increases the viewing area by roughly 40%. With the wide angle lens, the on board lamp is essentially useless. The VL-5 allows you to use the wide angle lens with minimal shadowing from the lens housing. The only disadvantages I see with this light are the price ( $90 for an LED and a switch )and the fact it is a power hog. Overall, I like this light because it enhances low light indoor performance with my HF200. I would definitely recommend this light, but just beware you are going to need at least two battery packs if you are going to do a lot of indoor shooting.

Pros: Bright, warm light; compatible with Wide Angle Lens; compact; Automatic function saves power; compact.

Cons: Power hog; gets very warm (naturally); a little pricey.

Overall, I think it is a nice piece of gear, definitely an improvement over the on board lamp. Would recommend for purchase.

17 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars quality accessory, April 1, 2009

By 

Alexander B. Dewitt "shopaholic" (east coast, usa) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Canon VL-5 Video Light for Mini Advanced Accessory Shoe (Electronics)

I bought this to use with my Canon HG-20 and the light works fine. It will turn on automatically when you begin to record when the light is not sufficient. It can also be set to stay on full time if you wish. The light runs on the camera's power so you don't have to worry about batteries, which is a feature I like alot. It also attaches easily as well without any undo effort. Once you slide it into its bracket, it has a small adjustment you turn to lock it in place, and it stays tight without moving until you unscrew that piece. The purchase was delived on time and I am pleased with the way AMAZON does its business. AMAZON clearly is one the best online merchants I have dealt with, and there are some real nightmares out there in TV land.