Continuous or Flash?

chromeboy007

chromeboy007

Well-known member
Maybe I should post this on the Still Photography forum but I'm a videographer first so maybe you folks can relate better.

I'm trying to learn the skills set and experience to do still photography, studio fashion and product would be my concentration. I just find those images to be so clean and so extraordinary if they are well done. I own the 60D, though I don't use it for video too often.

So my main question is, since I have invested some money in and spent years working with my Lowell tungsten lights for video, would I be able to get professional studio results using them for photography as well? Sure I'll get some more large umbrellas or softboxes or lightcubes etc., but would I NEED studio flash lights? From my research as seems to be no reason why my Lowell lights can't do the work, but part of me thinks that expensive flash studio lights are there for a reason (though what I am not sure).

Thanks
 
Studio flash IS there for a reason. More often than not, it's outside the studio where you really need them. There are a number of factors in play here that make studio strobes a much better idea than Tungsten. If you had said LED or Fluorescent (Kino) the argument would be harder.

1. Heat. Tungsten sources are HOT. Studio work is often shot between F5.6 and F16. It's HARD to get continuous light into the F8-F11 world unless the lights are uncomfortably close.
2. Color. Tungsten light lacks significant amounts of blue light. On these daylight balanced sensors, the image will always be noisy. More so than using daylight balanced sources.
3. Control. Studio strobes use any number of modifiers to get certain looks. Umbrellas, softboxes, beauty dishes, parabolics, etc. Some of these are simply not available for continuous light sources.
4. Power. To get the f-stops you'll be wanting, you'll be needing 2K-10K lights. That is a TREMENDOUS amount of draw. God help you if you ever need to shoot fashion on location.

I do both stills work and video. Sports, fashion, beauty, swimwear, lingerie. You can take my word for it, or talk to dozens of other people, or simply give it a shot your own way. But truthfully, at some point, you're going to want strobes. And triggers, and modifiers, and a number of other things. The GOOD thing is that all the grip is the same. Stills strobes use mostly baby-pin connections so all your light stands, c-stands, clamps, etc. will still be good. Best of luck!
 
^ What he said

Plus: really, heat!

And: I wouldn't worry too much about color, in fact I've heard Stu Maschwitz explain how warm light makes skin tones more pleasing and people more beautiful because it goes deeper into the skin before being reflected back, so it makes people "glow from the inside" (here). I don't think I'll ever be able to notice such subtle things...
 
In this business one image speaks more than a thousand words, I own A BRONCOLOR strobes system, but for this assignment, one of these girls has the habit of blinking her eyes 9 out of 10 shots when strobing, so I decided to use a Lowel DP. with a Dichroic filter to mix with daylight and a White umbrella. their father ( my client ) was very pleased with the results.

lowel-1.jpg
 
Thanks guys.

High quality strobe lights seem to be quite pricy for a newbie: http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/695140-REG/Impact_10052530_LiteTrek_4_0_Flash_Head.html

Plus I have to invest in lenses as well (like fast 50mm, 85mm and that dreaded 70 to 200mm I have been avoiding to buy). As of now I have the 60D and the Tamron 24 to 70 2.8, which I use ALL THE TIME with my FS700 for video work, and the Tokina 11 to 16, and a vintage 135mm 2.8.

I'm not sure how best to utilize my money, as a beginner trying to put together a portfolio to get into professional work.

1) For fashion: is there a set of entry level strobes that you folks can recommend?
2) Ideally, how much power would I want for my on camera flash for location work? I don't think I would venture out to do fashion work on outdoor location any time soon.
 
Im sorry to say that I will caution you a bit about the advice given my Mr. Henao . Firstly, while the example shown is indeed a nice photo, it hardly speaks to shooting studio fashion. And unless the father of these delightful children is a fashion editor, I'd be loathe to take his pleasure as critical or professional endorsement. While there are some very famous photographers who prefer continuous light (Peter Hurley comes to mind) there is a reason that in nearly ALL instances in commercial and fashion photogrpahy, you will find strobes.

Secondly, Mr. Henao has linked you to a light that will not work in your country. It would have been most unfortunate should you have purchased this only to find it didn't work for you. I do agree with him however, that purchasing "cheap" lights is a bad idea. Purchasing quality lights, even used, is a far better idea. In terms of getting started on a reasonable budget, the range of products from Paul C. Buff are quite popular with MANY photographers, amateur and professional alike. I have 6 of my own and use them professionally. They have been excellent and have never failed me. They are a fraction of the cost of Lights from people like ProFoto, but offer very nearly equal quality. Performance to dollar spent is unmatched. I am NOT going to tell you that the lights are the same build as some other top level brands but they are certainly sturdy enough. I had one take a tumble as a drunk patron knocked over my 20ft lightstand 2 years ago. The light continued to work flawlessly and even the bulb survived.

If you will be sharing gear with other photographers (sharing a studio or going into business with another photographer) you might do well to see what they are using and try to buy into that system.

Triggers are another expenditure. I trigger with PocketWizards and they are something of an industry standard. They offer a great range of products with different price points and capabilities, but they are VERY reliable.

One other small thing of note. Studio strobes come with "modeling" lights. Generally either 100 or 250w incandescent lights that are used as guides for shaping your light. In the case of working with a subject who is sensitive to flashing (epileptics in particular) the strobe lights can simply be used closer to the subject as continuous lights. Although not without drawbacks, this is a nice compromise.

Best of luck with your purchase.

(Here is a link to the Paul Buff webpage: http://www.paulcbuff.com/ The Einstein is what you want if you can afford it. I have a pair plus 4 Alien Bee lights.)
 
PerroneFord : Yes the right light for USA is this
http://www.bhphotovideo.com/bnh/controller/home?O=nav&A=switchLanguage&Q=&ul=E

Is very accurate and consistent exposure strobe and long lasting light besides, has a wonderful accessories system.
What I mean is that Lowel can be used successfully, however flash has advantages , but if for some reason like happened in this occasion you have to make it
with Lowel DP you can achieve very good results.
If I understood well chromeboy has Lowel lighting and limited budget . My advice remains, buy Visatec solo 800B USA Version of course like just was re linked.
but don't forget tha Lowel tungsten can do many things besides of being a Fantastic continous video light.
 
Firstly I say flash (aka strobe) is it.

Secondly todays digicams are good to 800 ISO, people often actually struggle with studio strobes being too bright.

You want to start with mastering a normal flashgun, on a lead, maybe boucing of a $10 brolly.

(1m lead, gaff tape the brolly onto the strobe, hold all in your left hand)

I use a vivitar 283 a lot which can be picked up for maybe $25 in most photo store bargain bins.

BTW - Im working at I hope a reasonable pro level with stills. http://www.sammorganmoore.com/cuttings

VP1 is important..
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MR6CTeRPhMc

===================
FYI my flash kit is brand wise..
Viv 283
Bigger- 2Xquantum Qflash - probably the best non budget portable flash
Bigger still, 4XElly 500 - elly bowens - I dont care
Pocket Wizards X 4 (or so)
I think this set up is pretty normal for a pro.
You will note none has TTL or any such similar garbage- just powers down to 1/64
S
 
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David Hobby's site is a great resource for getting into flash photography: http://strobist.blogspot.com especially the lighting 101 series: http://strobist.blogspot.com/2006/03/lighting-101.html
One of the good things about David's approach is that it's not just a "look at how much expensive stuff I can use to get a picture you can't" but more like "here's how to do this without breaking the bank". There are a lot of good resources for how to get good light using cheaper camera flashes, and those same techniques will translate to studio strobes if you go that route later.
You can do static product shots with continuous lights and get decent results, but for all the reasons that PerroneFord pointed out earlier, it's' not the ideal approach. Strobes have a lot of advantages and there are some things that are hard to replicate in continuous light.
 
Thanks alot guys. Cool - did some research and started to figure out my order of priorities and preferences. That Paul Buff site is awesome. The Einstein unit even has a LCD menu screen. Thank god!

So like what Morgan said I should probably get myself a somewhat powerful flashgun and get used to it before digging into studio strobes. My question for now is, is TTL Dedication something I can 'turn off'? I'm not exactly sure what it is but from what I have read:

In combination, the camera and flash use information about lens length, ISO sensitivity, f-stop and shutter speed to determine optimal flash-strength output.

source: http://www.exposureguide.com/camera-flash-types.htm

This sounds to me like some automatic exposure thing which I don't want. So if I were to buy say this seemingly popular Canon Speedlite600: http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/847537-REG/Canon_5296B002_Speedlite_600EX.html I should be able to set my flash power manually without worrying about if my 60D is telling my the flash unit what to do, or vice versa?

Also question for Morgan specifically, or anyone else who knows, which 2X Quantum Qflash unit are you referring to exactly? I did a google search and that unit seems to price from $100 to $700... so I'm not sure if there are different models with similar names or...

Thanks again!

And I'm glad that my tungstens can be of some use when needed.
 
You can turn off eTTL, but it's nice to have sometimes. I use it when I'm in a situation where I'm moving around a lot at an event and don't have time to dial in the settings, especially using bounce and multiple strobes in a quickly changing environment. I can use eTTL wirelessly with the Phottix Odin triggers: http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/1011941-REG/phottix_ph89062_odin_ttl_flash_trigger.html
The other reason I use these, is that I can remotely dial in all the settings on the flashes without having to touch them. For the stuff that I shoot, getting to the flashes can be a real chore as they're often 50+ feet away in deep snow.
The Canon 600 is a nice flash, but it's pricey because it has a built in wireless transmitter. If you want to stick with Canon, you can get a good used 580exII for a bargain now that people have been upgrading to the 600. If you have one of the newest Canon cameras that can talk to the 600s, they might not be a bad choice since you won't need to buy triggers (unless you're going to get other strobes too).
 
Andrius Simutis said:
If you have one of the newest Canon cameras that can talk to the 600s, they might not be a bad choice since you won't need to buy triggers (unless you're going to get other strobes too).
Click to expand...

Oh I plan on getting other strobes in the future, so ok I won't get the 600. Thanks.
 
I agree ttl can be useful but manual is where you want to start.

I've done 20 years without a ttl flash.

qflash - from quantum instruments - not cheap - mine are 10 years old so I don't know current model numbers or prices.

i think I have td5 heads - maybe $800 running off 'turbo' packs which are maybe $300, 2 heads 3 packs - a pro priced set up.
 
Felipe Henao said:
Go manual Go Vivitar 285, and if you need it has auto, TTL or auto will lead you to frequent exposure errors.
Click to expand...

Hey that's a good price.

I'm a little confused can't seem the google the information I want.... now can the same transmitter sync your on camera flash with your studio flash? Or did I just ask a dumb question? I maybe a step ahead of myself but I want to make sure that whatever on camera flash I buy now would be compatible to industry transmitters and receivers like the PocketWizards.
 
Felipe Henao said:
Sure Chrome you can use PocketWizards with the Vivitar, also sync cable, or about any infrared system
Click to expand...

Hey Felipe the Vivitar arrived a few days ago. It is so powerful I can light up my pitch dark apartment!

Next is a light cube which is being shipped right now!
 
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