Does the Ulanzi Falcam Move LightGo Replace Photo Assistants?

It’s not every day that you get to use a niche product that you then realize you can’t do without. That good fortune presented itself to me last month when I tested out the Falcam Move LightGo made by the company Ulanzi. What appeared to be a tad gimmicky at first soon became something that I realized was an exceptionally well-crafted accessory for studio work. And now I absolutely can’t think of doing portrait shoots any other way.

The Big Picture: Ulanzi Falcam Move LightGo Remote Control Lighting System Review Conclusions

When you first look at it, it seems like a sci-fi gadget that an NPC from the popular late 90s video game Half-Life might sport. On second glance you’re tempted to think it’s an unnecessary gadget to have on set. At its core, it’s a motorized mount that sits between your light stand and your strobe, allowing you to remotely pan and tilt your lighting setup without physically touching the stand or the strobe. Who’d need that, right? For decades, photographers and their assistants have been getting around their shoots without needing or having anything like it. The marketing video blew me away, but since I don’t do portraits for a living, could I still find this an essential tool as a professional? Absolutely. I don’t think I could ever come back to a studio setup and not have the Move LightGo attached to my key light’s stand.

At under USD $200 for the main unit and the wireless remote, this should be on every serious portrait photographer’s wishlist for the year. It saves so much time and is way more precise for minor adjustments to the lighting accessories you have on set for your shoots. It is perfectly designed to automate one of the most repetitive tasks in photography and videography – physically adjusting your light’s position relative to your model. I can confidently say that this is one of those products that sounds excessive until you try it. Ulanzi has created a stunningly innovative accessory and deserves a full five stars and our Editor’s Choice Award for their Move LightGo system.

• More precise than manual adjustments and definitely more convenient
• You can adjust your strobe using Move LightGo via wired and wireless remote controls, or a smartphone app
• Strong dual-point locking system
• Tilt capability was a lot more angled than I expected it to be
• Your light stands can stay where they are; just move the strobe around more safely
• You don’t need to make any changes to your lighting system. This integrates in so seamlessly
• Take my money already

Experience

Using the Move LightGo on set is a great way of saving time. It’s especially important when you’re renting out studio space and every minute counts towards getting more and better photographs.

The first thing that surprised me was how secure the entire system feels. If you look at their website, it’s easy to assume the MoveLightGo is simply a motorized accessory positioned on the top of a light stand. In reality, it’s considerably more robust than it appears. While it’s rated to carry 6kg, Ulanzi says it can support up to 10kg. I don’t know any strobe which is that heavy, but thankfully most strobes I own are under 2kg whenever a softbox is mounted to it. I tested it out on a Bowens mount Godox QT 600III strobe that came with the studio (you can see this in the lead image of this article). Yes, it was bulky, even if it wasn’t too heavy, but the unit never felt unstable during our 3 hour shoot.

Tilt and pan speeds are adjustable, although this might be more oriented towards videographers who want to show light moving across a scene. For photography, the default speed was good enough to not want me to tinker with it. Slower and more deliberate adjustments look more professional on set and definitely feel safer. The last thing you want is the whole thing swinging across too fast and whacking your model in the face.

Rather than feeling like an accessory attached beneath the light, the Falcam MoveLightGo effectively cradles the strobe at the mount. This makes it feel more integrated as a complete support system rather than simply adding a motor underneath the mount of your strobe. That distinction matters because it fundamentally changes how secure the setup feels to use. Two locks ensure nothing wiggles while you use it and the built-in anti-disconnect cable management helps prevent cables from pulling loose during operation. These might seem like trivial details, but it’s the difference between getting great shots and having your expensive lighting equipment crashing several feet to the ground. Ulanzi’s R&D team appear to have spent considerable time thinking about real-world failure points.

Other tiny details like having a 1/4″ screw hole for adding accessories like articulating arms, support for approximately 95% of existing Bowens-mount systems (very confused as to why this isn’t 100%), and two methods of wireless control range up to 100 feet make this a well-rounded accessory for portrait and product photographers. Being able to stand beside your camera and make adjustments without touching the light stand is incredibly useful. This might become your best non-human buddy on set. Another thoughtful feature I particularly appreciate is its storage positioning. After approximately two minutes of being powered off, one press of a button returns the head to its storage position. No need to fidget around with the remote trying to manually reset it after you’re done shooting.

Something worth noting: just for extra insurance here, it’s really smart to ensure that your light stand’s base is very, very stable here. We don’t recommend using this thing without weights like sandbags and more holding the light stand in place.

Image Samples

All of these were taken using the key light attached to the Ulanzi Falcam Move LightGo.

Chinese Innovation At Its Best

Perhaps the most interesting thing about the MoveLightGo is what it represents. For decades, Chinese 3rd party accessory manufacturers in the photography industry were often viewed as companies that produced affordable knockoffs but at the sacrifice of quality. Products like this challenge that perception completely. To the best of my knowledge, the Move LightGo isn’t copying any existing idea – it’s solving a problem many photographers hadn’t fully considered. And while it directly improves one of the most common frustrations in studio and location lighting, it might seem like a luxury at first. But use it for a few hours, and it ends up becoming more like a workflow necessity.

We’re not easy to impress out here at The Phoblographer, but Ulanzi have certainly done that with the Move LightGo. This little device genuinely makes life easier on-set and it sets the bar so high for any other lighting accessory manufacturers to innovate.

Just, again: we recommend sand bags and weights at the base of your light stand.