Light & Motion launched its first action camera companion light line, the Sidekick, on Kickstarter last week (Tuesday 13th January). The powerful Sidekick redefines what is possible for the GoPro Hero by delivering a smooth wide 600 lumen beam to enhance the range of great action shots.

“Action cameras are very limited by rapidly changing light conditions, especially low light. The Sidekick is a long overdue extension of the GoPro, and will enable people to take amazing POV video and photos, day or night,” said professional photographer and videographer Kip Evans.

The Sidekick is small, low profile and—at 123 grams—weighs less than the GoPro. Its factory-sealed design and clean simple mount allows Sidekick to seamlessly integrate with any GoPro set-up and go wherever a GoPro goes, including 200 feet underwater. Adjustable spot and flood modes give users the flexibility to control the amount of light to create the perfect POV footage.

Smart design features—including regulated output, external USB recharging, battery status indicator and a spot light function for navigation—make Sidekick a really good companion light.

The Sidekick line will include two models: the Sidekick Duo, with a spot and flood light, and the single beam Sidekick Flood. Light & Motion will also offer a Sidekick Accessory Mount Kit that allows positioning the light over the camera.

Light & Motion hopes to raise $50,000 with this Kickstarter campaign to purchase the tooling equipment necessary to bring the Sidekick into production next month at Light & Motion’s design and production facility in Marina, California. Backers of the campaign will have exclusive access to the first run of the special aluminum hand-machined Sidekicks and product production updates, among other rewards.

“We want to keep manufacturing in the United States, and successful crowd funding campaigns on Kickstarter may be one way that small entrepreneurial businesses like ours can keep on inventing,” said Daniel Emerson, CEO of Light & Motion.

Models

• Sidekick Duo – 23-degree Spot and 90-degree Flood
• Sidekick – 90-degree Flood
• Sidekick accessory mount kit includes flex arm for mounting over the camera.

Key Features

• Regulated output – does not dim during use
• Simple low-profile mount works with all GoPro bases
• Intuitive button user interface
• Factory sealed with external USB charger
• Duo model has dual beam – Spot for navigation and Flood for capturing the action

Materials

• 6061 – T6 Billet Aluminum/Black Anodized
• Highest Efficiency CREE LEDs (XM-L)

Specifications

• Lumen output/Run time
  1. High: Flood – 600 lumens/60 minutes, Spot – 400 lumens/60 minutes
  2. Med: Flood – 300 lumens/120 minutes, Spot – 200 lumens/120 minutes
  3. Low: Flood  – 150 Lumens/240 minutes, Spot – 100 lumens/240 minutes

• Recharge Time: 4.5 hours
• Weight: 123 grams
• Colors: Black, Silver
• MSRP:
  1. Sidekick: $129
  2. Sidekick Duo: $149

To make a donation to Light & Motion’s Sidekick Kickstarter campaign, click here. For more information about Light & Motion, visit www.lightandmotion.com.