Hey guys I am a relative newb to portrait photography. I am looking to make a home studio and would like some recommendations on the best soft box and strobe kit for under 1k. I would like to spend around 500 but can go up if quality is much better. Thanks for your input.
Elinchrom D-Lite kit. Just a suggestion though. Like Brian said, if you want specific suggestions, we have to know more about your studio and intended usage.
The room I am planning on using is not that large about 15x15 with 9ft ceilings and windows covering one entire wall. I live in San Diego so there is a lot of natural light most days. I am using a 5D II if that makes a difference.
korymchenry wrote:
The room I am planning on using is not that large about 15x15 with 9ft ceilings and windows covering one entire wall.
That is pretty small; a 15 foot length, minus room for you to stand, minus room for the subject doesn't give a lot of room for background seperation and for camera-to-subject distance. It's doable, but certainly not ideal.
A greater concern is the low ceilings; you won't be able to get much down-angle from large softboxes or umbrellas, so you'll want to get mostly small- to medium-sized ones. For a hairlight, if you use one, you can mount a flat reflector on a boom (or nailed to the ceiling, etc.) and aim a snooted light up at it to bounce down on the subject.
I'll second the recommendation for D-Lites -- or more specifically the newer D-Lite it (the "it" stands for (intelligent technology" or something like that, and so should have been capitalized, but the company didn't).
Almost forgot: regardless of the lighting setup you buy, you should make or buy several "flats" (also known as flags, scrims, etc.) of black fabric so you can control unwanted light -- a technique known as "subtractive lighting."
In a small room, black flats can be the best way to get high enough contrast ratios for really good, dramatic lighting patterns.
Here's a good primer on portrait lighting, posing, etc. by the late great Monte Zucker:
Hey Brian thanks for the info. It is really helpful. If I need to since my studio will be temporary I have a room downstairs with 12 ft ceilings that that is 15x25 to give me more room. I can set up with something mobile but it can't be left that way and I don't want setup to last more than 30 minutes or so. I don't plan on doing retail photo shoots or anything like that it is more for fun so it doesn't have to look super professional. Also thanks for the info on the "flats" I knew I needed something but I haven't figured out a good mounting system yet. Do the D-lites come with the relays that I need or do they need to be purchased separately?
korymchenry wrote:
...Do the D-lites come with the relays that I need or do they need to be purchased separately?
D-Lites are monoblocks, so the power supply, controller, flash tube, etc. are all built in.
If by "relay" you mean the trigger, there's a built-in photo sensor that can be triggered by a camera's built-in flash, or you can use a sync cord or a radio transmitter purchased seperately. The radio receiver is already built in, and is the highly rated Elinchrom Skyport, so all you need to buy -- if you want to use radio (which is a good system) -- is the Skyport transmitter for the camera. Note that a basic transmitter, the Skyport ECO, is included with some kits.
Most optical triggers will misfire when the camera's built-in flash is used, because of metering pre-flashes, but the D-Lite "it" has "intelligent triggering" that can be set for your camera's pattern and ignore the preflashes. It's pretty cool, and would work fine in a small studio until you get a radio transmitter.
Here's a link to B&H's two-light kit, which I think is a pretty good deal:
(The owners of B&H are observant Jews, and so the store is closed and on-line ordering is disabled during Rosh Hashanah, but you can still view the site and make plans to order after sunset in New York on October 1st if you like what you see.)
korymchenry wrote:
...I have a room downstairs with 12 ft ceilings that that is 15x25 to give me more room. I can set up with something mobile but it can't be left that way and I don't want setup to last more than 30 minutes or so...
That's a much better size. With a bit of practice you can set up a couple of light stands, a simple background, and your camera in 30 minutes with no problem. 15 minutes is plenty once you're familiar with your set up.
I find that teardown afterward takes a bit longer because I have to carefully pack things so nothing gets broken, but I can still do it in 30 minutes or less. (I have three stands, a large umbrella, a small beauty dish-style diffuser (not a true beauty dish -- it's only 11-inches across), and a hair light on a boom, plus medium-duty tripod and two cameras.)
This looks like a nice starter kit. Assuming a few hundred extra dollars are available, should I consider 2x Einstein + modifiers + stands or should I use the money for something else? Or " Style BX 500 Ri " from Elinchrom?
I know that many of these questions come down to experience and personal preference, but my philosophy is "buy cheap, buy twice" - I'd rather have something that will last me a while.
Look for some used Hensel Integra 500s. They are very robust, great color, excellent reliability and because they are not well known they go dirt cheap on eBay. Couple on there now. Do some research and you'll find they are very well regarded by users. Definitely top notch lights at a fraction of Profoto.
The BX-Ri is a definite step up from the D-Lite IT; if you have the funds I'd go for it.
It has the same optical-triggering capability, but the radio link is the full Skyport, rather than the trigger-only version of the D-Lite IT; that means remote power level control, among other things.
Just went through what you want to do. I looked at the kits too....pretty much all of them. After forum post after forum post (mainly on APUG and photo.net) I decided the minimum flash was going to be Alien Bees. Looked at the packages but figured I had most of the stands and some modifiers....trying to save money. I thought one B400 and one B800 should do the trick, could fire speedlites for hair lite or back ground IF needed. Pretty much decided to order direct for brand new since you were either getting really old lights or you almost paid new at the big auction site.
Then I thought, well, just incase I am going to do a little bit more than seasonal photos infront of the Christmas tree, I really should consider more power. I did and decided on one B800 and one B1600. Just getting those heads won't break the bank and I can always get more/better modifiers as I figure out how to best use them.
Then for just a small premium you could get the White Lightnings and have much heavier duty light (I know, stupid, seasonal portraits at the house...). Decided to go with the Lightnings. Looked at the packages, looked at them individually, then hit the forum sales here and at APUG and the "Bay".........wasn't that impressed, wasn't saving alot, couldn't determine quality of lights more than anything.
Ended up buying two of Jim Heine's flashes in the sales forum.....one B800 and one White Lightening 1600. Did I spend more than I wanted, yes. Did I get more light than I need....yes, for now. I don't regret getting a bigger flash.....you can always dial down the power.....can't do that if you don't have enough power to begin with. My first thoughts were to get one big flash, bounce, reflect....whatever it took. There are guys here and else where that can show you superb photos taken with a single flash....setup for us would take awhile.
If I had your specific digital camera, I would seriously look at getting Einstiens. They are more for the digital shooter and would be all the flash you would ever, ever need. Done....over, no more blowing money at flashes. Two would be at the top or little more of your budget.....although the guy who did gymnastic photos for a kiddie gym a few months ago showed up with a 5D and two B800s and those photos turned out super.
All I have heard is guys telling me, don't waste your money on less expensive flashes unless you absolutely have to.....buying twice is expensive and a good flash or set of flashes makes the job infinitely more pleasurable......you can concentrate on the photo, not making the equipment work....I'll spend a couple hundred more so I am not banging my head around the Christmas tree trying to get the flash right.
Well after trying to look for something cheaper and listening to your input I just decided to order two einsteins with the 48 inch octagonal soft boxes and all the remote control stuff ie cybercommander. It ended up costing like 1750 with shipping and everything but I won't need to upgrade. Like some posters have mentioned, there are not any great deals on this stuff used. It kind of surprises me but I guess people only buy them that actually use their gear. It all arrived today so I have some toys to play with after work.
I doubt if you will ever regret buying the einstiens. With your camera you will have a very nice setup there. I have spent the last two weeks examining all the "deals" out there for mainly alien bees. Pretty much without exception no matter how good or bad the condition for $25 dollars more you could get a new unit.
If you find that you aren't completely satisfied with the octagons, then call them up and trade them for the PLM. I am getting a couple of the soft silver PLMs for my setup which will not be to much different than what you have and are doing.
Sounds like you got the good stands and everything you will need......at least until you discover how wonderful a strategically placed reflector is. I have started building/buying material for some scrims (I believe that's the right term) to block light I don't want. You won't know exactly what you need until you shoot a couple of times.
If you are not in a hurry I would suggest shopping the used market; that way you can get pro-level gear without spending as much. A lot of the sub-$1K kits on the market have a lot of limits....
Yeah that is kind of what I thought. I still need to read the brochure on the cybercommander. It is not as easy as the old remote units to use. It has a lot of features though so once I understand how to use it I am sure I will love it. I almost bought the PLM's and they were cheaper so who knows maybe I made a mistake and should have gone with those but my soft boxes seem to work phenomenally well. I may indeed need a reflector but that is easy enough to add. What I can't figure out is if the white light is worth it or not. I have taken a couple pics with the new unit and combined with my 580 EX II it seem to do a very nice job. Once I start doing some interesting directional shadowy subjects that may change though. Anyway thanks for your input.
Yeah that is kind of what I thought. I still need to read the brochure on the cybercommander. It is not as easy as the old remote units to use. It has a lot of features though so once I understand how to use it I am sure I will love it. I almost bought the PLM's and they were cheaper so who knows maybe I made a mistake and should have gone with those but my soft boxes seem to work phenomenally well. I may indeed need a reflector but that is easy enough to add. What I can't figure out is if the white light is worth it or not. I have taken a couple pics with the new unit and combined with my 580 EX II it seem to do a very nice job. Once I start doing some interesting directional shadowy subjects that may change though. Anyway thanks for your input.
