new lights too bright

[Skyeg]

i just got some strobes with softboxes and what not but im having trouble using them. when i turn them down all the way (1/8th power) i have to set my camera to around F20 which makes it hard to use a 2nd one as fill becuase the main light is already as low as it gets. i already have the iso down as low as it goes. what should i do?

 

[markc]

What ISO (on what camera)? How close are you using the lights? Remember, light drop off isn't linear. If you move the light twice as far away, the light reaching the subject is cut to 1/4. What shutter speed?

 

[Skyeg]

iso 100 on 20D, they were a little less than a meter away. ill try moving them further away. does the shutter speed matter?

 

[jstuedle]

No, shutter speed will not affect exposure, until you get higher than sync speed, or so slow ambient light affects exposure. Moving the lights out to 2 meters will drop your exposure 2 stops. Remember, the smaller the aperture, the greater your depth of field. This may be an advantage to you in macro-close work.

 

[markc]

Yeah, I wanted to be sure he was close to sync speed, though I guess it's not really pertinent to his question. It does look like it's simply a matter of the lights being too close.