Flash or Lights

[412 Burgh]

Hello,

Long time since I posted anything lately. I'm a freshman in college and I have been talking to a few other kids from local colleges and show'd me their work and it really inspired me to try and step into the portrait field! I always stuck with random objects or landscape. But Now, I want to try and get into portrait photography and see if I can succeed in that area, because I know it's a lot of work.


So my question is to take a step in the right direction, should I get a SB-700 or should I try to get a pair of strobes? I don't have a studio and would plan on shooting outside.

P.S. I plan on getting the 5 in 1 Reflector

 

[Futurelight]

The 5 in 1 reflector will be a good investment and my suggestion for the lighting is to get 1 strobe (position it well) AND the flash. This will give you more scope and manouverability.

 

[o hey tyler]

Flash or lights? How about an array of 50 or so LED flashlights?











I jest! A SB-700 on a light stand and perhaps a modifier (softbox or umbrella) can render some pretty nice outdoor portraits. The reflector will be good for filling in some shadows. I believe Zach Arias has a lot of info about shooting with one light that you might find helpful. Google "Zach Arias one light".

 

[KmH]

The SB-700 is a strobe. Check out off camera flash (OCF) techniques - Strobist: Lighting 101

For location portraiture I used radio triggered hot shoe strobe units almost exclusively over the last 3 years.

The SB-700 has a lot of features and functions and can do TTL. Of course you pay for all that, and have to learn all the permutations of how to use it all.
TTL is inconsistant, because the camera/speedlight can only perform according to the software program that a committee of Japanese software engineers wrote way back when the camera and speedlight were being designed. Consider to that the camera/speedlight have no clue what you are shooting or what your artisitc intent is. Put another way, bad to mediocre is the order of the day with the occassional good, when you use TTL.

Using TTL effectively is complex because many decision makers are involved - you, the camera, and the speedlight - and the variables in their interaction is many.

The easiest to learn, and way to get the most consistant results, is to bypass all the auto-this-auto-that and use strobed lighting and the camera in manual modes.

Doing so also saves you a lot of money because you don't have to buy lighting that has all the expensive, gollywog geewizz, auto-this-auto-that features that produce inconsistant results.

You will also need light modifiers. Light modifiers make your strobed light source apparently larger which softens the light and makes ithe light 'wrap' so shadow edges are not sharp. The bigger the apparent light source is, the more the light wraps and the softer it is. But, the more diffuse the light is too, so the power output of your strobe lights becomes something to consider.

5-in-1 reflectors include a diffuser and outside in direct sunlight the diffuser is very handy for making shade. The diffuser is the part that supports the 4 reflectors so when the diffuser is in use it's harder to use the limp reflectors that usually cover the diffuser. So plan on getting 2 reflectors and seriously consider getting rectangular rather than round reflectors.

Interfit Reflectors

Westcott Reflector Kit

Vivitar 285HV

Yongnuo YN-560

Impact Light Stands/Umbrellas kit

 

[412 Burgh]

Thanks Keith, and others! I looked into some of the videos on strobist.. So correct rme if I'm wrong. I believe the Yongnuo YN-560 and this wireless adapter would work for me to use OCF and it will be trigger by this Radio Trigger Then All I would need is a stand to hold it for example the one you directed me towards as the Holders and Diffusers

So if I start out with one Yongnuo YN-560, radio triggers, and light stands/diffusers I should be on my way to learning Lighting ?

 

[KmH]

I prefered a different brand of radio trigger, because the receivers allowed me to mount 2 hot shoe strobes on each receiver. That allowed me to double the light at each lighting location if I needed to.

However more importantly, it allowed me to mount 2 lights so I could reduce the power output of each light so they could recycle faster.

iSHOOT, PT-04 C Wireless Remote Radio Flash Trigger, with 3 Receivers

The Chinese lights were not available when I started using hot shoe units for OCF, so I used the 285HV's. A lot of them. At one point I had 14 of the 285HV's.

I have tested the YN-460 II and it worked fine, but was a bit short on power. I have never used a YN-560 which is newer than the YN-460.

There is a lot to learn about lighting. Study the master painters of the last 2000 years or so, and pay close attention to how they used light in their paintings. At school, if you haven't already, take an Art Apreciation class.

There are many portraiture lighting styles, and it is helpful to be familiar with them all.

 

[Derrel]

A pair of studio flash units would be a better learning tool than a pair of speedlight flash units. Why? Two words. Modeling lights.

I love what the Strobist movement has done.I really,really do. But the movement seems to be filled with young, inexperienced people who do not understand the learning process can be more than shoot-chimp-guess-shoot-chimp-guess-shoot-chimp-guess when it comes to placing and adjusting lights. For the beginner, having modeling lights allows for previewing of lighting effects, and real-time, continuous previewing of where the light is falling, and how it looks on the subject AS THE LIGHTS ARE BEING SET UP. Modeling lights also keep the subject's pupil's smallish during shoots in darker studios, so you do not have to worry about HUGE pupils that make people look like they're going to O.D. at any second.

I would say, buy a pair of inexpensive monolights, like the Adorama Flashpoint 320M models, with stands and softboxes or umbrellas, and learn lighting by using regualr studio flash units, which are designed for lighting things when using light modifiers. Speedlight lighting is fine. The more experienced shooter can estimate where his shadows will fall,and can estimate a lot of things...but that is all it is--estimating, based on experience and practice. With modeling lights the beginner (as well as intermediate or expert shooter) can literally SEE WHAT his lights are creating, at ALL TIMES. The quality of the light coming from an umbrella that is properly filled with light from a monolight looks a looooot better than the sickly light squeaking through a cheap shoot-through umbrella from a 50 watt-second Chinese speedlight choked up on the shaft...

Wait until some hardcore Strobist-fanatic type reads these comments...his ears will begin to turn red...his heart rate will elevate...he will smack the mouse on that reply button...

 

[412 Burgh]

now would something like this be appropriate to achieve the beginner phases?

Amazon.com: 900W Strobe Studio Flash Light Kit - Photographic Lighting - Strobes, Barn Doors, Light Stands, Triggers, Umbrellas, Soft Box & More!: Electronics

 

[Village Idiot]

now would something like this be appropriate to achieve the beginner phases?

Amazon.com: 900W Strobe Studio Flash Light Kit - Photographic Lighting - Strobes, Barn Doors, Light Stands, Triggers, Umbrellas, Soft Box & More!: Electronics

No. The strobes that Darrel recommended are Adorama's brand and Adorama is an excellent company to order from. They'll provide support for your products and you'll know the exact warranty and who to call if something goes wrong.

With that being said, the down side about monotlights is that they require AC power, so if you're shooting at a location without a wall plug, you will have to purchase a sepecific battery to power your strobes and then the modeling lights become a huge power drain and are generally turned off when shooting on a battery.

Of course, the down side of shooting with speedlights in comparison to a more powerful strobe is that they're not much good beyond acting as a fill light once you stick a modifier on them and have them anywhere right up in the subject's face if you're shooting outside in bright sun. That means you're generally limited to dawn, dusk, and shaded areas when shooting outdoors if you're trying to do any dramitic work with killing the ambient. The up side is extreme portability. When I go to strobist meets and don't bring the big lights, I take my main camera bag and a small second bag with my lights. When the big lights come out, I have a Pelican 1654 that weighs over 100lbs loaded, larger modifiers, and a 20lb battery on top of my already main camera bag.

The ideal situation is to have both setups so that you can choose which to take depending on the shoot you're doing, but unfortunately not everyone has the cheese to start off with all the gear and it becomes a process of collecting what you need over time.

Oh, and the big thing with purchasing the larger lights is that you're going to be purchasing into a system. Different lights have different mounts for modifiers. Modifiers from 3rd party companies often come with speed rings for their gear and there's even ways to adapt one strobe brand's modifier to what you own, but this isn't always the case and it's sometimes expensive. Beyond buying a for cheap $100 150 w/s monolights to start with, make sure you keep in mind what each brand will give you in terms of modifiers before setting yourself on a brand of strobes you want. It can be just as much of a hassle and a money sink switching from one brand of strobes to the next as switching from one brand of camera and lenses to the next.