Godox Launches Tiny Retro-Styled iM30 On-Camera Flash

Sep 20, 2024

Jeremy Gray

A black Olympus camera is placed on a wooden surface with a warm yellow background. The camera is equipped with a Godox flash mounted on top. Shadows and light create a dramatic effect around the camera.

Godox announced the iM30, a compact consumer-grade on-camera flash that weighs just 78 grams (2.75 ounces).

Update 9/23: Godox says the iM30 should be available in October at the earliest and will be priced at just $34.90, making it an extremely affordable on-camera flash option. The article text below has been updated.

The iM30 is the latest in a series of compact flashes from Godox. While the company is perhaps best known for its professional lighting solutions, like the new AD200Pro II flash and AD600 Pro II light, the Chinese manufacturer also makes numerous compact, portable consumer-grade products, like the Lux Elf and Lux Cadet Retro.

However, compared to these, the new iM30 is even smaller and should fit in typical pants pockets. Stylistically, the Godox iM30 is perhaps most similar to the Godox Lux Junior released in 2022. The two flashes share a similar shape and profile, although the Lux Junior is slightly less powerful, with a guide number of 12 meters (39.4 feet).

The 78-gram light has a guide number of 15 meters (49.2 feet) at ISO. While not the most powerful flash, it should work for photographing subjects up close and should deliver superior results than a typical built-in flash.

A young woman stands in a pool with her arms raised beside her head. She has a playful expression, pursing her lips, and wears a bright floral top, pink headphones around her neck, and a pair of decorative sunglasses with flower frames. A beach ball floats near her.

Godox says the iM30 “delivers superior fill light compared to built-in camera flashes, ensuring bright, natural illumination for improved photo quality.”

A black Fujifilm X-Pro3 camera with a silver lens is placed on a wooden surface. A detachable flash unit is mounted on top of the camera. In the background, an open book and a plant are faintly visible. The scene is warmly lit, casting soft shadows. — The Godox iM30 is compatible with a wide range of cameras, including the Fujifilm X-Pro series camera seen here. It is also shown on Nikon and Olympus (OM System) cameras in Godox’s official marketing material. It’s even shown on Asahi film camera below.

A digital camera with a flash attachment rests atop several bottles of orange soda in a bucket. The background features a brightly lit, blurry setting with a hint of a swimming pool and an inflatable float.

A vintage-style camera with a Godox flash unit attached on top is placed on a light-colored surface. Next to it, there's a cup of coffee in a saucer and a corner of a book titled "KINF" is visible. A beige woven fabric is partially seen in the background.

Flash power is adjusted manually over seven steps, from 1/64 to 1/1 (full) power. Power is adjusted via a dial on top of the flash, which also includes a power indicator light and mode buttons. The flash includes an integrated 2.5mm sync socket and can be triggered via an additional flash through an optical sensor mode.

A hand adjusting the settings on an iM30 camera module attached to a larger camera. The module has a textured black surface, a green button, and a dial with various labels for settings. The background is a soft blur of teal. — The iM30’s flash power is controlled via a top dial.

The flash’s color temperature is 6,500K, plus or minus 200K. Powered by two AAA batteries, the iM30 promises around 230 full-power flashes and recycles every 3.6 seconds at full power.