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New to studio lights, need help

labpaws

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My wife has bought me some studio lights and I need to learn how to use them. I know this will take a lot of trying different things and playing with them but could anyone give me a good place to start with the setup, distances and power. I do not have a light meter. I want to try some family group shots in a few weeks, range from 6 to 12 people.

This is what I have.....

-Two AlienBee B-800`s with 48" white/silver bounce umbrellas
-One SB-400
-Stands and a few backgrounds

Group shots will be using the backgrounds...in my basement with little to no outside light.
A good starting point would be great to start practicing with.
 
The Strobist is a good place to start. Also do a search on this site, there is a lot of information to be found. Another place to search is Youtube, tons of video there.
 
Yep! ^^ As well, spend the $35 on the bible of lighting. Additionally, search YouTube for "studio lighting tutorial" and similar. And, IIRC, PCB has a lot of tutorials on their own 'site.
 
Yep! ^^ As well, spend the $35 on the bible of lighting. Additionally, search YouTube for "studio lighting tutorial" and similar. And, IIRC, PCB has a lot of tutorials on their own 'site.
Oh you Canadians, always behind the times. Light Science & Magic is now $37.95. :mrgreen:
 
I've never liked mixing flash units with studio lights. The recycle times are often off, and so you end up with inconsistent shots because the flash hasn't recycled when you take a shot too soon after the previous one. But if that's what you have, it will work, just be patient.

Do you have a radio flash trigger? Or a way to fire the SB-400 off-camera? If not, I think your best bet would be to put the SB400 on the camera, but it's very important that you put it into manual mode so that it doesn't use a pre-flash. The SB-400 will trigger the other two light via their built-in optical sensor.

Place one light to one side or the other. 45 degrees is a good starting point, but can certainly move it around as needed. This should be your main or key light. It's the one that should light up people's faces (and thus cause some shadow to show up on the opposite side of the faces).

Now...normally you might use the other AB light as a fill light...but you already have the SB-400 on the camera, which can play the roll of fill. This light should be less powerful than the key light, so that you can still see the shadows cased by the key light. There is no correct balance, it depends on your goals for the shot...but getting the balance just how you want it, is a skill that takes knowledge, time and practice...so I'd suggest you work at it.

To get you started, I'd suggest this:
-Camera in manual mode (pretty much necessary for using studio lights). Start with an aperture of F8, shutter speed of 1/125 and ISO 100.
-Set your SB-400 to it's lowest level, hopefully that is enough to trigger the key light.
-set up a test subject, a stuffed animal works well.
-Set up the key light (with umbrella or whatever you have for it). Maybe start at 1/4 or 1/2 power.
-Try some test shots and look for good exposure on the 'lit' side of the subject. To adjust the exposure, you can change the power setting on the flash, change the aperture or ISO. You can also move the light closer to or further from the subject. Check the exposure on the LCD but don't forget to use the histogram display as well.
-Once you have the key light exposing the lit side of your subject, you can start to play with the power on the fill light. The fill light will light up both the lit and the shadow side of your subject. So watch the shadow side until you get the shadow depth/detail that you want. This will also add light to the lit side, you you may want to back the key light off a little bit.
-Now, we still have the other B800...and since you are shooting with a background, I'd aim this light at the background. I use a short light stand so that I can hide a light behind the subject, but sometimes it does have to be to the side or above them.
-Adjust the power of the background light, to get the background exposure that you want. Only having one light for the background, you'll want to make sure you don't have any wrinkles in the backdrop.

This setup should work well enough for single subject or small groups, but if you're shooting larger groups, you may have to switch to a more flat lighting set up with both of the AB lights out in front of the subject. This adds the problem that you wouldn't have a light left for the background. You could try the SB400 for that purpose, but you'd need a way to fire it, as it doesn't have a built-in optical trigger. You could fire the AB lights with the supplied cord (if your camera has a PC socket), but being tethered to a cord can be an issue as well.

And if I haven't mentioned it, a tripod is a good idea because it keeps your camera position consistent.
 
Yep! ^^ As well, spend the $35 on the bible of lighting. Additionally, search YouTube for "studio lighting tutorial" and similar. And, IIRC, PCB has a lot of tutorials on their own 'site.
Oh you Canadians, always behind the times. Light Science & Magic is now $37.95. :mrgreen:
The Amazon sold and shipped price for the current 4th edition fluctuates a bit and is up right now as Black Friday looms. Other sellers offer the book in the 4th edition both new and used for less than $35.
The Kindle version is less than $30.

Third edition copies of the book sell new for about $20 and used for about $15.
 
Thanks everyone for all the places to check out, I have a lot of reading and playing to do.

BigMike...Thanks, I did forget to mention I have a cactus flash trigger
 
It's a bit confusing as to why you would invest in two AlienBees but not a light meter. You don't need the most advanced; something as simple as the Sekonic L-308 is enough to measure flash. Otherwise you'll be guessing. There's no set of rules because one flash at a certain power may put out more or less light than another flash at the same power given everything else is the same. You can certainly guess and keep dialing until you get it right, but that's a giant waste of people's time. You've obviously invested in studio lighting; I'd recommend just getting a light meter. There are plenty of used ones on eBay.

You're asking for a subjective starting place, and you don't have a meter, so wouldn't it be easier to just set up and start experimenting yourself? Once you find what you like you can write it down and repeat it. Using a suggested setting is one thing, but seeing how it actually works and fine tuning it is another that will take practice anyway.
 
Yep! ^^ As well, spend the $35 on the bible of lighting. Additionally, search YouTube for "studio lighting tutorial" and similar. And, IIRC, PCB has a lot of tutorials on their own 'site.
Oh you Canadians, always behind the times. Light Science & Magic is now $37.95. :mrgreen:
The Amazon sold and shipped price for the current 4th edition fluctuates a bit and is up right now as Black Friday looms. Other sellers offer the book in the 4th edition both new and used for less than $35.
The Kindle version is less than $30.

Third edition copies of the book sell new for about $20 and used for about $15.

First, imagine a face palm image here.

Second, If you clicked on the link that iron put in his post the price is $37.95, not the $35 he posted. I was just having a bit of fun with our friend from Canada since it was his link.
 
It's a bit confusing as to why you would invest in two AlienBees but not a light meter. You don't need the most advanced; something as simple as the Sekonic L-308 is enough to measure flash. Otherwise you'll be guessing. There's no set of rules because one flash at a certain power may put out more or less light than another flash at the same power given everything else is the same. You can certainly guess and keep dialing until you get it right, but that's a giant waste of people's time. You've obviously invested in studio lighting; I'd recommend just getting a light meter. There are plenty of used ones on eBay.

You're asking for a subjective starting place, and you don't have a meter, so wouldn't it be easier to just set up and start experimenting yourself? Once you find what you like you can write it down and repeat it. Using a suggested setting is one thing, but seeing how it actually works and fine tuning it is another that will take practice anyway.

Perhaps you should ask the OP's wife since SHE bought the OP the lights. She probably has less understanding of studio lighting than the OP otherwise, being the nice person she is to have bought what she did, she probably would have picked out a flash meter as well.
 
Well Hirejn let me un-confuse you. Like I said I did not buy the lights and did not know I was getting them. A light meter is not needed for me to START to learn, in fact I feel I might learn more without at first. Either way yes I do plan to get a meter sometime in the future.
Yes a starting point to experiment with...studio lights are all new to me and was very unexpected, so I never expected to have any just yet.
 
Big Mike gave a pretty good reply above as to one good way to start learning. The SB 400 flash unit in the hotshoe of the camera firing straight ahead is a perfect example of a true "on-axis" fill light. The flash is directly on the lens-to-subject axis.

ANother thing you might try is show in this web page. It involves placing a person in a corner of a room, and then using ONE,single light in an umbrella to light both the person, and the background, and also relying on the other wall as a reflector. I've seen a few write-ups on this, and it's a technique a lot of people have used over the years. You can look for other articles and write-ups, but this one will suffice to get you started.

lighting - How can I get good results from a one-light portrait setup? - Photography Stack Exchange

Moving the person closer to the wall on the right-hand side can provide more reflected fill light. Moving the person farther away from the wall behind them will darken the wall. Moving the person out, and more toward the center of the room will darken the background further. It'll make for some fun experimenting and learning.
 
First, your wife kicks some serious butt for doing that. Secondly, welcome to the world of lights. It's in a category of its own when it comes to addiction and gear acquisition syndrome. Hehe.

A light meter is not needed for me to START to learn, in fact I feel I might learn more without at first. Either way yes I do plan to get a meter sometime in the future.

You can absolutely begin without one. However, what I think you'll find is you're going to spend a lot of time walking back and forth between the lights and camera, fiddling with the settings, trying to eliminate hotspots, etc, when with a light meter you take a meter reading once and pretty much be dead on the first time (especially with a one light shot). Believe it or not, having a meter will progress your knowledge much faster when working with 2 or more lights. A lot of lighting schemes work off of ratios to one another. So...definitely enjoy the lights but don't feel like it's a rite of passage learning without a light meter because once you get one, you're going to ask yourself why you waited so long. LOL.

I have a cheap bare bones Polaris meter and it's so simple to use and does everything I need. You can save yourself $200-$300 by picking one if these up. Shepherd/Polaris Polaris Digital Meter SPD100 B&H Photo Video

P.S. Did your wife get you any cyber commander triggers as well?
 
definitely enjoy the lights but don't feel like it's a rite of passage learning without a light meter because once you get one said:
I don't mean that at all, really all I meant was to lean what the light does at different positions and distances.



P.S. Did your wife get you any cyber commander triggers as well?[/QUOTE said:
LOL No way I need something like that, I just got a Cactus trigger...it should arrive this weekend I hope



Thank you everyone for a good place to start and things to try and play with
 
You can use a string tied to a specific light, and use the string as a distance measurement that will allow you to put the light at the precise distance where it will give an exposure for say, f/9 at 200 ISO, at say, 1/2 power setting. Use the light unit with the same umbrella and the same reflector on the light, and as long as the flash unit's power level stays the same, the string will give you a VERY quick and easy way to measure out the distance away the light needs to be.

You will find that at closer, indoor distances on head-and-shoulder type shots, that the lights will need to be turned down quite a ways.
 

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