NWPBanner
Welcome! NWPphotoforum.com
Previous Thread
Next Thread
Print Thread
Page 1 of 2 1 2
Studio Lights, advice please #28659
03/18/10 02:53 PM
03/18/10 02:53 PM
Joined: Jan 2008
st. petersburg, florida, usa a...
V
Visceral Image Offline OP
Old hand
Visceral Image  Offline OP
Old hand
V

Joined: Jan 2008
st. petersburg, florida, usa a...
I am planning another studio setup. In the past, I purchased lights from ebay, an old photogenic set. This time, I would like to get a more convenient setup (not a central powerpack with all the cords).

I know many of us on NWP use Alien Bees. I will be using an average to small studio, approx. 12 ft wide by up to 20 ft long. I will photographing pets. On some occasions, I do on-location pet photography.

I am thinking two B800 Alien Bees for main and fill or two front lights at 45 degrees each, one B400 for background and my Nikon SB600 for hair light, when needed. In the past, I used 45-60 inch umbrellas, either white or silver.

Do you agree two B800's are good for the front lights and the B400 is good for background? Would you do umbrellas or giant softbox for the studio?

Background will range from all white to all black to dark tones (browns, dark reds, blues). No background light for black (hair light will provide separation between dog and background), maybe do not have enough light with the B400 for a white background.

I appreciate all thoughts.

Re: Studio Lights, advice please [Re: Visceral Image] #28660
03/18/10 04:13 PM
03/18/10 04:13 PM
Joined: Nov 2008
Kansas
psmith Offline
Pooh-Bah
psmith  Offline
Pooh-Bah

Joined: Nov 2008
Kansas
For the difference in price between ab800 and ab400, I would opt for all ab800's just so that all lights could be interchanged in the case of one failure. I also trust the color temperature of one model light better than a mix of the two.

Note, you should soon see the company selling refurbished (cheaper) AB800s and AB1600s due to their Einstein trade ins.

Re: Studio Lights, advice please [Re: psmith] #28661
03/18/10 05:21 PM
03/18/10 05:21 PM
Joined: May 2008
Virginia, USA
Jim Poor Offline
Addict
Jim Poor  Offline
Addict

Joined: May 2008
Virginia, USA
Are they going to change their policy on selling re-furbs? They have stated in the past that they won't do that.

I may go to the Einsteins myself for a little more flexibility.

Re: Studio Lights, advice please [Re: Jim Poor] #28662
03/18/10 07:54 PM
03/18/10 07:54 PM
Joined: Sep 2009
Vermont, USA
M
MountainDog Offline
Wanderer
MountainDog  Offline
Wanderer
M

Joined: Sep 2009
Vermont, USA
I use 3 AB400's and 3 SB-900's and I love them all. I find that the 400's kick out plenty of power for a small setup (and so do the SB's for that matter!). I went with the 400's because they are a little cheaper and the recycle time is a little quicker. I've had the AB's for over 2 years now and they've been solid, dependable workhorses.

Re: Studio Lights, advice please [Re: MountainDog] #28663
03/18/10 09:38 PM
03/18/10 09:38 PM
Joined: Nov 2008
Kansas
psmith Offline
Pooh-Bah
psmith  Offline
Pooh-Bah

Joined: Nov 2008
Kansas
Jim, if you ordered Bees and preordered Einstein Paul has always said he would make you 'whole'. The delay in Einsteins has forced their hand to sell refurbished ABs due to the delay of the promised product.

Re: Studio Lights, advice please [Re: psmith] #28664
03/18/10 09:49 PM
03/18/10 09:49 PM
Joined: May 2008
Virginia, USA
Jim Poor Offline
Addict
Jim Poor  Offline
Addict

Joined: May 2008
Virginia, USA
Thanks Preston, I wasn't aware of those details.

I didn't pre-order though, so the point is probably moot.

Re: Studio Lights, advice please [Re: Jim Poor] #28665
03/19/10 04:13 AM
03/19/10 04:13 AM
Joined: Nov 2008
Kansas
psmith Offline
Pooh-Bah
psmith  Offline
Pooh-Bah

Joined: Nov 2008
Kansas

Re: Studio Lights, advice please [Re: Visceral Image] #28666
03/19/10 04:17 AM
03/19/10 04:17 AM
Joined: Nov 2008
Kansas
psmith Offline
Pooh-Bah
psmith  Offline
Pooh-Bah

Joined: Nov 2008
Kansas
Quote:

Would you do umbrellas or giant softbox for the studio?





I prefer the light from softboxes and strips, and I don't care for umbrella catchlights. That said, umbrellas are quick to set up and easy to transport.

For the price, a giant Paul Buff PLM with a front diffuser looks like a lot of bang for the buck.

Re: Studio Lights, advice please [Re: MountainDog] #28667
03/19/10 02:16 PM
03/19/10 02:16 PM
Joined: Mar 2005
Florida
Jim Garvie Offline
Addict
Jim Garvie  Offline
Addict

Joined: Mar 2005
Florida
I've had the AB400s since 2000 and I've never missed a shot with them. They work great in my fairly small studio and they work great on location at shows. They also recycle in approximately 1 second which really helps catch those ooops/got it moments with dogs and tongues. With my 400s, I'm at F8 and 1/250 at ISO 200 so I really don't need more power. I suppose if I were using them a lot outdoors, I'd want more juice but I don't. Just my 2 cents.

Jim


Jim Garvie
www.jagphoto.biz
Re: Studio Lights, advice please [Re: Jim Garvie] #28668
03/19/10 09:32 PM
03/19/10 09:32 PM
Joined: Jan 2008
st. petersburg, florida, usa a...
V
Visceral Image Offline OP
Old hand
Visceral Image  Offline OP
Old hand
V

Joined: Jan 2008
st. petersburg, florida, usa a...
Thanks Jim, I remember using your lights the day I visited; they worked great. Thanks again.

Page 1 of 2 1 2

Who's Online Now
0 registered members (), 354 guests, and 1 spider.
Key: Admin, Global Mod, Mod
Newest Members
CTiefisher, DrSuse BlueDevil, airphotog, dwilson7878, carters paul
3317 Registered Users
Forum Statistics
Forums6
Topics627
Posts989
Members3,317
Most Online629
Dec 4th, 2019

Copyright 2005 - 2020 Nature, Wildlife, and Pet Photography Forum. "NWPPhotoforum" and "nwpphotoforum.com" are the property of Nature, Wildlife, and Pet Photography Forum. All Rights Reserved. Wild Coyote Studio, New York Pet Photographer

Powered by UBB.threads™ PHP Forum Software 7.7.1
(Release build 20190129)
PHP: 5.6.40-1+hw4 Page Time: 0.043s Queries: 15 (0.013s) Memory: 0.9627 MB (Peak: 1.9681 MB) Data Comp: Zlib Server Time: 2024-03-28 11:26:45 UTC