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10/13/2005 06:43:26 PM · #1 |
| I just need to know which litting system is better for a studio....Flash or Continuous. I'm ready to buy one and it will just be used for family or senoir pics....please help! |
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10/13/2005 06:47:35 PM · #2 |
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10/13/2005 06:48:17 PM · #3 |
My opinion:
Continuous for small kids (hard to hold them still long enough to pose anyway). Strobes for the rest.
You'll need to do something to keep the place cool if you're using continuous light though.
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10/13/2005 07:35:29 PM · #4 |
Originally posted by dwterry:
My opinion:
Continuous for small kids (hard to hold them still long enough to pose anyway). Strobes for the rest.
You'll need to do something to keep the place cool if you're using continuous light though. |
Uh, That's the main reason flash is better!!! Strobes are for studios. There are some people who use hot lightsw, but why I have no idea.
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10/13/2005 07:38:27 PM · #5 |
Definitely strobes. To give you an example of how big the difference is between continuous and strobe lighting... lets assume you have two studio strobes that produce a combined output of 500 watt-seconds (which is pretty modest; that is only 250 W-s per strobe). Assuming you need to shoot at 1/60th of a second, you would need 30,000 watts of continuous lighting to achieve the same amount of light that the two studio strobes would output. (Yes, 30 of those 1000-watt Home Depot "work lights"!) Pretty much impractical from a safety, heat and power standpoint. (A 1000 watt incandescent light is roughly equivalent to the light that would be produced by an 8 W-s "strobe". For comparison, a decent battery-operated camera-mounted flash can typically achieve 30-35 W-s.)
Working under hot lights is no fun for your subject (unless it happens to be inanimate).
There are lots of posts about strobes in the forums. Search in the Hardware forum for "alien bees" for lots of good posts. |
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10/13/2005 07:51:20 PM · #6 |
I definetly think strobes are the way to go if you have the MONEY.
But, having worked around "hot" lights for the past twenty years in the industry that I represent, and am burnt out with, if you are not wealthy, and can control the exposure levels in your camera, standard lighting is an easy, cheap alternative.
As I have said many, many times before, Home Depot IS the poor mans source to lighting.
And if it is not obvious, there is this thing called the "on/off switch" that you use for your standard lights to help keep your heat issue in check.
If you have the money, get the Alien Bees. Good product all around.
Good luck.
Message edited by author 2005-10-13 19:52:13.
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10/13/2005 07:51:42 PM · #7 |
Originally posted by MeThoS:
[quote=dwterry]There are some people who use hot lightsw, but why I have no idea. |
keep themselves warm in the winter? ;) |
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10/13/2005 08:06:41 PM · #8 |
Originally posted by Bobster:
Originally posted by MeThoS:
[quote=dwterry]There are some people who use hot lightsw, but why I have no idea. |
keep themselves warm in the winter? ;) |
The quartz lights are the same lights that the automotive industry uses to bake car finishes....
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10/13/2005 08:42:49 PM · #9 |
I've been thinking the same thing so thanks for the post.
As I am totally inexperienced in this field, I had come to the conclusion that continuous was better as you can see the effects of the lights as you set up. It takes time to learn how lighting will work on the subject so I had thought that continuous lighting was simply an easier way to start. If those with experience can tell me otherwise, that would be most helpful.
Re systems, look at the October issue of Shutterbug which has articles both about flash and continuous. With modern bulbs, heat from continuous is not nearly the issue it used to be.
Here are some lower heat continuous systems:
digitLite600 (the one on the far right)
Spiderlite
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10/13/2005 08:55:37 PM · #10 |
Originally posted by joezl:
I had come to the conclusion that continuous was better as you can see the effects of the lights as you set up. It takes time to learn how lighting will work on the subject so I had thought that continuous lighting was simply an easier way to start. |
You can buy strobe lights with modeling lights built in. These lower watt modeling lights show you the effects of your set-up and then the flash lights up the scene for the shot. Even the modeling lights make it hot after a while, so I switch these off while changing set-ups.
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10/13/2005 10:10:30 PM · #11 |
My dyna-lites have 250 watt modeling lamps. They produce enough heat for me. I can't imagine the amount of heat that normal bulbs would produce in order to keep up with my 1000 watt pack, not to mention a 2000 watt pack.
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10/13/2005 10:47:38 PM · #12 |
Originally posted by Spazmo99:
The quartz lights are the same lights that the automotive industry uses to bake car finishes.... |
yeah, and your point is?
zenon is used in police heliocoptors, as well as the motion picture industry.
flourecents are used in office buildings, and also in photography.
tungsten is in everyday bulbs in an average household, and in some of the workhorses of the film biz.
TANG was first used in the Apollo missions and found its way to the breakfast table.
the only light you won't see from an average consumer is the HMI, which is a dedicated 5600k lamp of various watt and kilowatt sizes. Too expensive, too bulky, VERY HOT, not practicle.
quartz is just another method engineered to produce light, and by the way is used in alot of modern globes used in the film industry.
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10/13/2005 11:06:56 PM · #13 |
Originally posted by swinging_johnson_v1:
Originally posted by Spazmo99:
The quartz lights are the same lights that the automotive industry uses to bake car finishes.... |
yeah, and your point is?
zenon is used in police heliocoptors, as well as the motion picture industry.
flourecents are used in office buildings, and also in photography.
tungsten is in everyday bulbs in an average household, and in some of the workhorses of the film biz.
TANG was first used in the Apollo missions and found its way to the breakfast table.
the only light you won't see from an average consumer is the HMI, which is a dedicated 5600k lamp of various watt and kilowatt sizes. Too expensive, too bulky, VERY HOT, not practicle.
quartz is just another method engineered to produce light, and by the way is used in alot of modern globes used in the film industry. |
I think my modeling lamps are 250 quartz, not sure though.
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10/13/2005 11:15:40 PM · #14 |
Originally posted by swinging_johnson_v1:
Originally posted by Spazmo99:
The quartz lights are the same lights that the automotive industry uses to bake car finishes.... |
yeah, and your point is?
zenon is used in police heliocoptors, as well as the motion picture industry.
flourecents are used in office buildings, and also in photography.
tungsten is in everyday bulbs in an average household, and in some of the workhorses of the film biz.
TANG was first used in the Apollo missions and found its way to the breakfast table.
the only light you won't see from an average consumer is the HMI, which is a dedicated 5600k lamp of various watt and kilowatt sizes. Too expensive, too bulky, VERY HOT, not practicle.
quartz is just another method engineered to produce light, and by the way is used in alot of modern globes used in the film industry. |
My point, in case you honestly didn't get it, is that they are HOT, obnoxiously so. Despite the fact that they produce light, they are much more efficient at producing heat as are most continuous lights.
No need to be so smartass about it.
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10/13/2005 11:16:57 PM · #15 |
Originally posted by CHIEFVOLS:
I just need to know which litting system is better for a studio....Flash or Continuous. I'm ready to buy one and it will just be used for family or senoir pics....please help! |
I have been working on the same decision for about a month now and still have not selected a direction.
First, strobes are clearly the standard these days, so going that direction is definitely a low risk decision. Alien Bees are the common recommendation unless you are a pro that needs the durability that comes with some of the more expensive systems.
Some people still recommend continuous lights for photography students because it is easier to visualize the results. I also read recently that some fashion photographers still prefer continuous light sources, but I don't think that applies to the purpose you outlined in your original question.
I think flourscents may also be an option in the future because they have the advantages of continuous without the heat. Lowel scandles are a good example, but the price is still very high. I picked up some 5000K 93CRI flourescents from home depot about a week ago and have had one chance to experiment with some quick portraits of my daughter. I like the color and the quality of light, but this setup isn't what I would call portable.
I still think strobes are the safe bet, but I'm always looking for something a little unique.
Message edited by author 2005-10-13 23:55:12.
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10/13/2005 11:29:37 PM · #16 |
of course it is strobes. strobes with modeling lights provide the preview that a continuous light would give.
you have more control and better light color with the strobes to begin with. |
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10/13/2005 11:35:58 PM · #17 |
The last 2 days I've been shooting executive portraits. I used (4) 4040 heads, a 1000 watt pack, and a 2000 watt pack. If I would of used hot lights, they would of walked away 4 shades darker and very red.
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10/13/2005 11:41:57 PM · #18 |
Originally posted by MeThoS:
The last 2 days I've been shooting executive portraits. I used (4) 4040 heads, a 1000 watt pack, and a 2000 watt pack. If I would of used hot lights, they would of walked away 4 shades darker and very red. |
Your statement is 100% valid, but let me challenge you a little bit just to help clarify a couple of points in my head. The very red part shouldn't be an issue with digital because you can adjust your white balance to compensate. The lights you have mentioned sound pretty consistent with what you would use for high-end film portraits, but don't we pick up a couple stops when shooting digital (ISO100 for canon and ISO200 for Nikon). Could you shot with less light and achieve the same results?
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10/13/2005 11:43:17 PM · #19 |
Originally posted by Nusbaum:
Originally posted by MeThoS:
The last 2 days I've been shooting executive portraits. I used (4) 4040 heads, a 1000 watt pack, and a 2000 watt pack. If I would of used hot lights, they would of walked away 4 shades darker and very red. |
Your statement is 100% valid, but let me challenge you a little bit just to help clarify a couple of points in my head. The very red part shouldn't be an issue with digital because you can adjust your white balance to compensate. The lights you have mentioned sound pretty consistent with what you would use for high-end film portraits, but don't we pick up a couple stops when shooting digital (ISO100 for canon and ISO200 for Nikon). Could you shot with less light and achieve the same results? |
I meant red from sunburn...
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10/13/2005 11:53:04 PM · #20 |
Originally posted by MeThoS:
Originally posted by Nusbaum:
Originally posted by MeThoS:
The last 2 days I've been shooting executive portraits. I used (4) 4040 heads, a 1000 watt pack, and a 2000 watt pack. If I would of used hot lights, they would of walked away 4 shades darker and very red. |
Your statement is 100% valid, but let me challenge you a little bit just to help clarify a couple of points in my head. The very red part shouldn't be an issue with digital because you can adjust your white balance to compensate. The lights you have mentioned sound pretty consistent with what you would use for high-end film portraits, but don't we pick up a couple stops when shooting digital (ISO100 for canon and ISO200 for Nikon). Could you shot with less light and achieve the same results? |
I meant red from sunburn... |
4 shades darker and red..... now I get it!
Long day, sorry for being so slow.
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10/14/2005 05:18:42 AM · #21 |
I have a set of 4 Lowell lights and I use them because I already own them. I have them for the video work I do, and use them sometimes for stills since they're better than my 60 watt GE bulb. ;)
Originally posted by Bobster:
Originally posted by MeThoS:
[quote=dwterry]There are some people who use hot lightsw, but why I have no idea. |
keep themselves warm in the winter? ;) |
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