studio/camera flash/lighting question

[Fusselinchen]

hey everyone!
i am new to this forum, so please forgive me if i am posting in the wrong category.


aaanyway, i am doing some hobby photography right now and i am having some issues.
i have studio lighting and a nikon d5000, i have a really hard time reading dry stuff like handbooks, so please dont tell me to read in there

so i have this lighting set:
Studioleuchte Synchronblitzlampe Studioset Studioblitz | eBay
it didnt come with instructions or a handbook, so i am going all by guessing.

i have two of them set to half and the front one to full, because any higher and my pictures will turn out extremely overexposed.
but with this set up i still sometimes get shadows, no matter how i place the lights.
also - my pictures turn out kind of dark and reddish, whether i use the golden or white umbrella doesnt seem to matter (i havent tried the silver one yet because im afraid that might make them too cold looking).
here is an example unedited:

i like to play around on photoshop, but i am no pro in that department either (if you are a pro and willing to mentor me let me know!!!!!that would be the best late christmas present ever. haha) so here is what i edited

so as you can see they still look kind of dark and too yellow/reddish, i brightened up by using curves and levels, but i feel like it takes away from the quality and i dont want to over do it either since i dont have too much of a know-how. i learn mostly from youtube tutorials and i cant seem to find one to really help me in this department.

i also had a customer complain that when they had these pictures printed they turned out grainy. what i can i do to prevent that?
my photoshop (i have CS4) wont open the files that come when i take pictures in the settings above fine, the NEF files (if you can help me with that too, i would appreciate it), so that isnt an option for me either unless you can help me solve this issue.

also, my camera flash still tries to open with the remote shoe (i think thats what you call it?) on top of it, the thing thats supposed to trigger the studio flash. so with it on the flash wont open all the way and therefore not shoot, which in return doesnt trigger the studio flash. i just got my lightscoop so i am taking pictures this way with my studio light now...


sooo any help or suggestions?
(and sorry this got kind of long)

 

[Rephargotohp]

Number one, take camera off auto exposure and auto white balance , you can't shoot with strobes with either

ISO 3200 caused the noise

 

[480sparky]

Shoot a gray card and use that to set your white balance. Once that's done, you should know what the color temp of the lights are.

I've run this procedure for all my lighting options. My bare strobes are 5701K. With reflectors, they're 5826 K. When I put umbrellas on, it jumps to 6973 K.

I have those numbers recorded in-camera for easy white balance with no muss, no fuss.

 

[Fusselinchen]

Shoot a gray card and use that to set your white balance. Once that's done, you should know what the color temp of the lights are.

I've run this procedure for all my lighting options. My bare strobes are 5701K. With reflectors, they're 5826 K. When I put umbrellas on, it jumps to 6973 K.

I have those numbers recorded in-camera for easy white balance with no muss, no fuss.

im sorry if this is a dumb question, but whats a gray card?and how do i use it exactly?

 

[2WheelPhoto]

youtube search:

 

[gsgary]

First off they look like flash and not continuos so you should be shooting in manual, try again with your lights set as they were shutter 1/125 aperture F8 iso100 and see what you get, the only things you should alter is aperture or ISO, if there is no ambient altering the shutter speed will make no difference

 

[Fusselinchen]

Number one, take camera off auto exposure and auto white balance , you can't shoot with strobes with either

ISO 3200 caused the noise

i have the same issue if i shoot without flash with only the steady light on.
funny thing is that they look pretty much the same as the picture i have posted in the OP.

so do i set the ISO lower or higher to make get rid of the noise?

 

[Fusselinchen]

youtube search:

wont let me watch from germany :x

 

[2WheelPhoto]

Number one, take camera off auto exposure and auto white balance , you can't shoot with strobes with either

ISO 3200 caused the noise

i have the same issue if i shoot without flash with only the steady light on.
funny thing is that they look pretty much the same as the picture i have posted in the OP.

so do i set the ISO lower or higher to make get rid of the noise?

lower. you may find some valuable info in your manual in regards to setting up the camera

 

[480sparky]

i have the same issue if i shoot without flash with only the steady light on.
funny thing is that they look pretty much the same as the picture i have posted in the OP.

That's why they're called modeling lights.... to show you how the light from the strobe will strike your model. The modeling lights are for our eyes... the strobe is for the camera.

so do i set the ISO lower or higher to make get rid of the noise?

Lower ISO = lower noise. And you only need a shutter speed of 1/100 or 1/125. The strobe will flash far faster than that for sharp images of moving subjects.

 

[Fusselinchen]

First off they look like flash and not continuos so you should be shooting in manual, try again with your lights set as they were shutter 1/125 aperture F8 iso100 and see what you get, the only things you should alter is aperture or ISO, if there is no ambient altering the shutter speed will make no difference

i have tried both, they both turn out looking the same - with continuous is the only difference that they arent as red/have more of a natural color.

 

[Fusselinchen]

Number one, take camera off auto exposure and auto white balance , you can't shoot with strobes with either

ISO 3200 caused the noise

i have the same issue if i shoot without flash with only the steady light on.
funny thing is that they look pretty much the same as the picture i have posted in the OP.

so do i set the ISO lower or higher to make get rid of the noise?

lower. you may find some valuable info in your manual in regards to setting up the camera

we just had to PCS from the states to germany, so im not sure where my manual went
i tried looking online for it but havent put too much effort into it to be honest.

 

[Fusselinchen]

i have the same issue if i shoot without flash with only the steady light on.
funny thing is that they look pretty much the same as the picture i have posted in the OP.

That's why they're called modeling lights.... to show you how the light from the strobe will strike your model. The modeling lights are for our eyes... the strobe is for the camera.

so do i set the ISO lower or higher to make get rid of the noise?

Lower ISO = lower noise. And you only need a shutter speed of 1/100 or 1/125. The strobe will flash far faster than that for sharp images of moving subjects.

aaahh *ding ding ding*
yea that makes sense, i will try that later today and see how that works for me. thank you

 

[2WheelPhoto]

i have the same issue if i shoot without flash with only the steady light on.
funny thing is that they look pretty much the same as the picture i have posted in the OP.

so do i set the ISO lower or higher to make get rid of the noise?

lower. you may find some valuable info in your manual in regards to setting up the camera

we just had to PCS from the states to germany, so im not sure where my manual went
i tried looking online for it but havent put too much effort into it to be honest.

hey from a vet - THANKS for doing what you do my friend.

 

[Tee]

you should be shooting in manual, try again with your lights set as they were shutter 1/125 aperture F8 iso100 (200 for D5000)* and see what you get

^ This. These are pretty universal settings in studio photography (*I bolded for emphasis). Adjust your lights power for desired effect. A few other things:


1. Learn custom white balance (it's in your manual/ YouTube) - remember to re-set it when changing lighting configurations
2. Get a light meter when working with 2 or more lights. Don't wait a year to get one (like me). It saves time and you'll get your settings down more quickly.
3. Put more room between your subject and background
4. Get a reflector for fill
5. Go to YouTube and search studio lighting for portraiture/ using a light meter for multiple lights

You said you were a hobby photographer but then mentioned a customer. If your producing images for other's, investing the time and money into the above things I listed will pay off. Good luck.