Using flash and strobes has never come as easily to me as using existing light and I know I have a lot to learn. Recently I've been doing more real estate interiors and filling in with my existing AB800. I'm also dong on site product shots and just using my EX430. I have been thinking about getting a second 800 - but have also been contemplating going the strobist route. Lighter, more flexible, don't need rapid recycle times. Would it be better selling my existing AB and picking up another 430 and a 580??
dragonfly5 wrote:
Would it be better selling my existing AB and picking up another 430 and a 580??
Pro and cons to both approaches which you seem to have a good grasp of so which to pick is really only something you can decide. Better to keep both if you have uses for both: I've got a set of four AB800s I keep in the basement and a pair of 580ex I use on location.
If you can't afford both, go with the one you will use the most, or if shooting for hire the one which will yield the best return on investment. If running a legit business its a deductible expense.
Click the WWW button below and you'll find tutorials which explain how the Canon wireless system works.
If you plan to use radio triggers don't waste your money on features on the Canon flashes you will not be able to use. Cheaper flashes such as Vivitar will do the job just as well with radio triggers. I have those too
Once you add the cost of PW to the Speedlights, the Strobist setup ends up being FAR more expensive and you end up with quite a bit less power per light. Advantage is portability. Give yourself an extra 15 minutes to set up and a Vagabond and the AB's are just as portable also.
ScottTomlinson wrote:
Once you add the cost of PW to the Speedlights, the Strobist setup ends up being FAR more expensive and you end up with quite a bit less power per light. Advantage is portability. Give yourself an extra 15 minutes to set up and a Vagabond and the AB's are just as portable also.
You can get Vivitar and a Cybersync for less than $150. I don't see any Bees in that range. Portability is a key feature to many people so the speedlights win hands down. If flash power is your main requirement then the strobes are a better choice. And for a few I bet they have a good collection of both.
I have both AB's and an SB800. I love both. I have an SB-24 with a Wein slave attached. I started using Nikon's CLS(Creative Lighting System) with my onboard flash as commander. I can control my SB800 from the camera, but not the SB-24. I plan on getting a couple of SB600's since they discontinued the SB800's(unless I find one on eBay). I love the portability of the small flashes. Of course, in the studio, I use my AB's and my old Speedotron's.
randyat wrote:
I'd go with the AB coz I have never been a fan of the strobist shots.
I always laugh when I see comments like this one.
anyway... shooting with hot shoe flashes has it's advantages... quick set up, portability, and most importantly size.... I can cram a hot shoe flash in places I could never in a million years stick a studio strobe. On the other hand, having the power of monolights/head&pack systems is nice.... that's why I have both.
Josh Evilsizor wrote:
I always laugh when I see comments like this one.
anyway... shooting with hot shoe flashes has it's advantages... quick set up, portability, and most importantly size.... I can cram a hot shoe flash in places I could never in a million years stick a studio strobe. On the other hand, having the power of monolights/head&pack systems is nice.... that's why I have both.
+1, especially the "I always laugh" part.
Although portable flashes are nice to have, they have limitations in power. Also, I find the modeling light of studio flash to be a big help sometimes.
2nd AB800 all the way. You can walk in to do shot of some sort even real estate shoot with two ab800s on stands one in each hand no problem. Put your camera in a backpack or sling bang and you can practically make one trip from the car.
If you use a tri pod --- well, 2 trips to the car unless you attach it to your backpack.
The ABs are light, powerful and allows for much more flexibility than flashes given what you said you want to do. If you were not near a power source and shooting in a park moving around a lot the flashes might be better but then you have to overcome the bright sun so you are back to strobes unless you find shade.
In the end this is personal preference but I will say this:
The more you use "one thing" the better you will become, trying to light things with different types of flashes and strobes based on convenience will result in a longer learning curve. Once you use a certain type of gear, camera body, lens, light, tri pod whatever it becomes second nature and you just know you have to do XYZ to get the result. Keep changing hardware and you will not obtain this level of competence.
This is not to say that you should not experiment from time to time.. I'm basing all of this on what you said in your original post.
Another vote for AB's. I used to have 4 - SB-800s. Charging batteries was a real pain. Getting them to all see the master could be challenging too, especially outside. I find real studio lights much more reliable and much easier to use.
Jesse-H wrote:
Isn't shooting with Ab's still strobist? I thought strobist simply meant using off camera lighting? Whether its AB's or SB800's etc.
You are correct regarding studio strobes being fully accepted at the strobist flickr pool. I believe that the OP here is using the term 'strobist setup' to mean the light portable battery powered strobes instead of lugging around AC powered studio gear.
The term "strobist" makes me chuckle. The only time I use battery powered portable strobes is if I really need to like for events or something of that nature. Lugging Alien Bee's is nothing like lugging my Speedotron Blackline pack and head system around.
Depending on what you shoot, you may need both. Given a choice, I'd go AB.
Studio lighting is much more predictable and easier to use for me, I guess because I've been using it for so long. I use a small handcart and bring everything I need in one trip.
The SB-800's aren't cheap and really don't have near the power of an AB 800.
