ROTOLIGHT NEO 3 Amateur Photographer User Manual

ROTOLIGHT NEO 3 Amateur Photographer

Product Information

• Specifications:
  • Model: NEO 3 & AEOS 2
  • Editions: Standard & Pro
  • Version: V3.0 January 2023
  • Colour Output: 16.7 million colours
  • Filters: 2500
  • Display: Intuitive touchscreen
  • Battery: USB rechargeable lithium battery
• Product Overview:
  • The Rotolight NEO 3 & AEOS 2 are high-speed sync RGBWW flashlights designed for powerful output in a lightweight design.
  • With 16.7 million colours and 2500 filters, these lights offer versatile lighting options.
  • The intuitive touchscreen display allows for easy operation and customization of settings.
• Usage Instructions:
  • Touchscreen Display:
  • The touchscreen display allows you to access various menus and settings. Use the knobs or sliders to make adjustments to color temperature, brightness, and other parameters.
  • Battery:
  • The lights come with a high-performance USB rechargeable lithium battery. Ensure the battery is fully charged before use for optimal performance.
  • Colour Temperature Adjustment:
  • Use the touchscreen slider or knobs to adjust the Kelvin from 3000-10,000K. For maximum brightness, set the light to 4600 Kelvin where both warm and cool LEDs are on full power.
  • Presets:
  • To save your current settings, long press on one of the numbered presets. To recall a preset, simply tap on it. Swipe right across the preset bar to access additional presets.
  • Flash Menu:
  • Adjust flash settings including frequency, flash power, and flash receiver mode. Make sure to set the appropriate mode for wireless flash receivers like Godox, Profoto, or Elinchrom.
  • Modelling Light Power:
  • The modelling light power can be adjusted or turned off using the left-hand knob. This feature provides enough light for focusing and composing shots while preserving battery life.

FAQs

• Q: Can I use third-party transmitters with the lights?
  • A: Yes, third-party transmitters like Godox X1T/R can be used via a wired connection to the 3.5MM flash sync socket on the light.
• Q: What is the difference between the Standard and Pro editions?
  • A: The Pro models offer additional features such as red dials, handles, and compatibility with certain wireless flash receivers.

TIME TO CREATE WELCOME TO YOUR NEW ROTOLIGHT

PRODUCT OVERVIEW

HOME MENU

From the home menu, select from 5 operating modes; CCT (Continuous light, Kelvin 3000- 10,000K), HSI (Hue, Saturation, Intensity) for 16.7M RGB Colours, GELS for 2500 digital filters and sampled ‘source match’ effects, FLASH for RGB HSS flash (flash in any CCT, HSI or filter colour). System settings, such as language, display and factory reset, can also be adjusted by the ‘SET’ page. On start-up, the light will automatically recall your last used settings on each of the 5 operating mode pages. (e.g. CCT, HSI).

CCT MENU

• Using the touchscreen slider or right-hand knob for fine adjustments, adjust Kelvin from 3000-10,000K to your desired setting, (typically 5600K).
• For maximum peak output brightness, set the light to 4600 Kelvin where both warm and cool LEDs are on full power.
• Use the left-hand knob to adjust brightness or tap the bottom-left brightness icon to use the on-screen slider that appears.
• To save your current settings, long press on one of the numbered presets, (across the top) and a prompt to save will appear.
• To recall, short tap on a preset, (indicated by a thick blue line at the bottom of the preset box). Swipe right across the preset bar to reveal additional presets.

FLASH MENU

• Rotolight AEOS 2 & NEO 3 are the world’s first RGBWW LED lights capable of High-Speed Sync flash, providing an extra stop of output when compared to their maximum continuous power.
• The flash will default to the colour mode you were using before entering flash, (e.g. CCT, HSI or GELS).
• Tap the bottom-right button to switch between colour modes, (Kelvin, Gels, HSI).
• For best results, maximum power is available at 4600 Kelvin. Flash power should always be set to ‘MAX’ or ‘MAX+’ if available with flash duration to the longest available, e.g. 1/50th. Any faster shutter speed will be captured automatically.
• The lights feature an integrated Godox, Profoto, Elinchrom Skyport, and other* wireless flash receivers compatible with their associated transmitters.
• For Elinchrom, ensure Skyport mode, (top-right) is set to ‘SPEED’ for HSS, and that the transmitter is also set to ‘SPEED’ mode, (Menu> ELSP mode> Speed).
• Third-party transmitters, e.g. Godox X1T/R, can also be used via a wired connection to the 3.5MM flash sync socket found on the light.

Pro models only

Please note: modelling light power can be adjusted or turned off with the left-hand knob. to preserve battery life, it is significantly less bright than the regular continuous power, whilst providing enough light to focus and to compose your shot. **in CCT mode.

UNIVERSAL FLASH SLAVE MODE

• NEO 3 PRO / AEOS 2 PRO can output a synchronized flash slave command using the spare Elinchrom receiver, that will fire ANY Skyport enabled Rotolight ( NEO 2, AEOS 1, AP2, TITAN).
• This would allow you to use a Godox / Profoto transmitter* to trigger an older generation Rotolight when utilising a NEO 3 PRO or AEOS 2 PRO.
• Alternatively, plug in a third-party (e.g. Godox) flash reciever into the 3.5mm flash socket and using a standard edition NEO 3 / AEOS 2 now trigger all your Skyport-enabled Rotolights from a Godox or Profoto transmitter.
• See Rotolight.com/support for a list of compatible transmitters

1. In the flash menu press the downward arrow to reveal user prests & flash slave out toggle. Touch the slave out icon to enable slave out mode. (the icon will turn green when enabled)
2. In the top left box, select Skyport (skyp, speed) to set the flash slave output frequency settings for any connected slaves.
3. Next, in the top left box, select the desired flash input receiver brand (Godox, Profoto, etc). Select sync wired on standard NEO 3 / AEOS2 when plugging a third-party receiver into the 3.5mm flash socket.

HSI MENU

Access up to 16.7 million colours with the HSI menu. Using the touchscreen slider or righthand knob for fine adjustments, adjust the hue colour to your desired setting. Tap the bottom right-hand box to adjust the saturation of the selected colour. Use the left-hand knob to adjust brightness or tap the bottom-left brightness icon and use the on-screen slider that appears. To save your current settings, long press on one of the numbered presets across the top and a prompt to save will appear. To recall, short tap on a preset, (indicated by a thick blue line at the bottom of the preset box). Swipe right across the preset bar to reveal additional presets.

MASTER OF LIGHT PRESETS

• Including over 100+ built-in exclusive special effects, GEL and HSI colour presets and accompanying tutorial videos from some of the world’s leading photographers and Emmy-winning filmmakers at your fingertips.
• With CineSFX™ presets designed by Two-time Emmy® Award winner Roy Wagner (Nightmare on Elm Street, House, Ray Donovan), Emmy® Winning Visual FX Veteran Stefan Lange, (Batman, Tombraider, No Time to Die), Cinematographer of the Year 2021, Denson Baker, (The Colour Room, Ophelia, The Lumineers) and more.
• The Master of Light preset pack comes included as standard with the PRO models however they can be purchased for standard models via the Rotolight APP.

CINESFX™ MENU

Enhance your feature film, music video or short film with Rotolight’s award- winning CineSFX™, which has been designed and developed with Stefan Lange, (James Bond – Skyfall/No  Time to Die, Batman, Tombraider & many, many more). Swipe across the SFX row to reveal available CineSFX™. Tap desired CineSFX™ to start the effect and tap once more to stop. Certain effects, (fade, gunshot and paparazzi) can also be triggered using the right-hand knob when selected via the app or the test-fire button on the Elinchrom Skyport trigger. Each effect typically has multiple adjustable parameters. A grey triangle on the bottom-left box indicates a secondary function. Tap to reveal and adjust accordingly. For example, touch to select the Police CineSFX™; use the bottom- left knob to adjust CineSFX™ brightness or tap to adjust colour mode. Touch the downward arrow to reveal user and MOL presets and switch between default CineSFX™ parameters or custom. In custom mode, CineSFX™ will use the last used RGB colour from the HSI or gels page as the base colour for the CineSFX™ setting.
Note: The inbuilt CineSFX™ have colours assigned to them, (i.e. warm orange/red for fire) by default to produce realistic SFX™. For fully customisable SFX, determined by the last-used HSI or filter colour, the default colours can be disabled in the MOL menu at the top of the sfx page.

FILTER MENU
Access up to 2500 digital filters and sampled ‘Source Match’ effects using the ‘GELS’ menu. Tap to select the preferred filter group, (i.e. ‘RED’) and use the right-hand knob to cycle available filters in that group. Click on the right-hand knob to switch between daylight, ‘D65’, or tungsten, ‘D32’ emulation of the selected filter. The selected filter is indicated by the last digits of the displayed filter name. Use the left-hand knob to adjust the brightness of the selected filter. Tap the top-righthand box, ‘Source Match’ for real-world sampled lighting sources. Rotate the right-hand knob to cycle available Source Match samples.

SYSTEM MENU

Adjust universal system parameters and apply factory reset in the SYS menu. Swipe up to reveal system parameters and use the right knob to adjust selected option.

APP CONNECTION GUIDE V3.0

To connect a fixture to the Rotolight App it is necessary to have firmware version 3.0 or later installed into your light. To verify which firmware is currently installed, go to the system page > About OR it is also displayed on power up of the light

Current firmware can be found on the Rotolight website.

1. Power on your light and navigate to the ‘SYS’ menu.
2. Select the ‘Wifi control’ option from the Sys menu.
3. Within the control menu, you will see two options. LOCAL CONTROL turns off the WiFl APP CONTROL turns on the Wifi. Select ‘APP CONTROL’ If ‘APP CONTROL’ is already highlighted then the WiFl is on. The fixture will remember the setting so every time your light is power cycled the fixture will remain in the state it was set in previously.
4. If you have just switched to ‘APP CONTROL’ or if you have just powered on your light the WiFi module needs time to boot up. This takes approximately 20 seconds and you will see the message WiFi Initialising, wait for ‘Wifi Ready”. This message is only displayed within the control menu.
5. When the Wifi module has finished booting up and is ready to accept connections you will see the message ‘Wifi Ready’.
6. When the WiFi is ready to accept connections you will be taken back to the control menu. Select ‘APP CONTROL’ again to open the QR code screen. Please note that if your Wifi was previously ready to accept connections then selecting ‘APP CONTROL’ in step 3 will take you straight to the QR code screen.
7. Open up the Rotolight App on your mobile device. If this is the first time you have used the app you will need to complete the sign-in process and accept the Terms and Conditions.
8. From within the Rotolight App Select the Red circle with the plus symbol.
9. After you have selected the plus symbol this will open the Camera on your mobile device. Move the camera over the QR code shown on the light. The App should now attempt to connect to your light.
   • Important Note: Some cameras on lower-end devices, or in conditions with a lot of ambient light, can struggle to focus on the QR code. There are two alternative ways to add a device without scanning the QR code. You can scan the 2D barcode shown on the serial label of your light, alternatively, you can enter the SSID and Password manually. The SSID and Password are identical. They are both the Serial number of your light which can be found in the ‘ABOUT’ option located in the SYS menu or on the serial label on your light. These fields are case-sensitive and all characters should be in capitols.
10. You should now see a request from the App asking if you want to join the WiFi network. Select Join. When the App has successfully connected to the fixture (indicated with a green status dot on the light within the app), you can close the QR code page on the light and go to the home menu (or CCT/HSI etc). Please also note that the QR page on the light will self-close when the connection to the app is complete.
11. You are now connected to your light and can begin to control it via the App. To add additional fixtures repeat the process above. You can then switch between lights by selecting them on the fixture list in the App.

Troubleshooting

Troubleshooting and bug reporting

If you have any issues connecting to your lights or experience any bugs please use the email address below and give as much detail as possible including the mobile device you are using. We will respond to you as soon as possible.

TROUBLESHOOTING AND BUG REPORTING

SCAN QR CODE TO WATCH OUR TROUBLESHOOTING GUIDE

If you are experiencing repeated issues with connectivity please try the following steps

1. Ensure you have the latest Rotolight firmware installed on your light. The app will only work with firmware 3.0 or later. To install the latest firmware go to rotolight.com/support and download the latest firmware to a USB 2.0 stick, with no other files on it. With the light powered off, insert the USB stick containing the update file, hold down both knobs and whilst continuing to hold them down, turn the power on. An update dialogue box will now appear prompting you to upgrade. You can verify what firmware you have installed on the light by turning the light on and noting the version on the bottom of the logo screen OR, by going to the system settings page, scrolling down to ‘About’, and tapping on the arrow to enter the menu. Firmware will now be displayed.
2. Ensure you have the latest version of the app installed from the Apple or Android app stores. For links to the app in the respective stores visit rotolight.com/app
3. Cycle the power on your mobile device and light. Turn the power off/on both your phone and the light. It is always good practice to do this after installing any new firmware or update for your device.
4. Ensure Wifi is enabled in the light (this is disabled after a factory reset, or on first use). To switch on Wifi (you will only need to do this once unless you do a factory reset), from the home menu, go to the system settings page (bottom right) > Wifi control > select App control. You will now see a Wifi initializing, ‘wait for Wifi Ready’ message. After 15-20 seconds the message will clear and “wifi ready” will be displayed. Wifi is now enabled. You can now pair your roto light with the app by tapping the app control box to display a QR code, then open the roto light app, press the “+” button to add a fixture and place the QR code label in the middle of the camera display window, then press join when the dialogue  box appears
   • Note: Upon turning on the light, it takes approximately 15-20 seconds for the Wifi to fully initialize (like a wifi router in your home). You can also verify that Wifi is turned on by going to the system settings page (bottom right) > Wifi control, and if the right-hand box “wifi/app control” is highlighted blue, then it is on.
5. Force quit the app, re-open it, and tap on the light to reconnect to your light. If you exit an app, to use other functions on your phone, the app is not quit, it fact still running in the background. Force quit the app if you are having problems to refresh the app. In iOS, to force quit the app, swipe up from the bottom of the screen, the swipe the selected app upwards off the screen to quit it. Now reopen.
6. Remove the light within the app, and re-add the light. To do so swipe left across the fixture to reveal a red “x”, and press to remove the light. Now press the “+” button to repair the light to the app.
7. Ensure any use of a VPN is disabled. Virtual Private Networks (VPNs) can interfere with the connection of the mobile\tablet to the app, if you use a VPN, please ensure VPNs are disabled.
8. Factory Reset your Rotolight Go to the system settings page (bottom right) > Factory Reset > Click the right knob and select “Yes”. (Please note wifi will now be disabled, see step 4 to turn Wifi on)

Important Note:

• Please ensure location information is enabled. The Rotolight App will request that location information be switched on. Rotolight does not collect your location information. IOS and
• Android operating systems restrict the app’s access to WiFi controls if the location information is not enabled which leads to communication issues between the App and the light.
• If having tried all of the above troubleshooting steps, you continue to have any issues connecting to your lights or experience any bugs please use the email address below and give as much detail as possible including: mobile device details, iOS/Android software version Which lights you are using Rotolight firmware version installed (displayed on startup screen, OR System page> About) The exact nature of the problem and when it started
• We will respond to you as soon as possible.
• Appfeedback@Rotolight.com.

SAFETY WARNINGS & NOTICES

1. Do not under any circumstance attempt to use the USB port for any purpose other than inserting a USB stick for firmware updates. Do NOT under any circumstance attempt to charge your phone from the NEO battery from the USB port. Doing so presents an immediate risk of fire or explosion.
2. Rotolight is a high-performance hybrid flash and continuous light and places a unique demand on batteries in flash mode to achieve a zero recycle time flash. Rotolight only recommends the use of official Rotolight batteries for flash operation.
3. Only ever use the Rotolight official power supplies. Using any other power supply may present a risk of damage to the light, fire or explosion
4. Wooburn Industrial Park, Unit 10 Thomas Rd, Wooburn Green, High Wycombe HP10 0PE

WWW.ROTOLIGHT.COM.

References

• Rotolight | Advanced LED Lighting for Photography & Filmmaking
• Support
• Rotolight | Advanced LED Lighting for Photography & Filmmaking

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