Why f16 for a portrait? Why not 5.6 or 8?
Why f16 for a portrait? Why not 5.6 or 8?
My memory is a little hazy, but when I used Dynalites, I had a good Wafer softbox, and I vaguely remember using the power pack at only 1/4 power, or 250w/s.
So perhaps a 400 w/s light would be enough, but as I said, my memory is probably not accurate.
Thanks, Randy; if the numbers were indeed that close with a softbox, it would be great. Only way to find out is buy something and test it.
Have you seen the prices of head braces these days? Almost as much as a new Victrola!
Jim, I do shoot my portraits at f8 mostly, and sometimes at f11; I was hoping for a little wiggle room should a set-up necessitate moving the light a little farther away.
You should be able to rent some small unit in your area some weekend... Try some out and see if a small unit does it for you...
Don't expect a modeling light on a small battery strobe pack... (They use too much power...)
Soft boxes tend to eat up a lot of strobe power... Smaller strobes usually like to flash direct, or with minimal light modification... But they are great at filling "holes" in available light situations...
Shooting with that wide-open lens look can work with LF...
(Alfred Eisenstaedt once said "I like shooting in available light... That is, using any light available"...)
Steve K
I've spent so much time scouring the internet, I forgot that there are actual photo stores where I can buy or rent equipment, and if I don't like it, I can return it.
Thanks, Steve.
I don't plan on using strobes often, just on location when there's no other light available, so one good light with a few modifiers (these days, I like octaboxes and beauty dishes) is enough.
They are re-branded Godox flashes. They're sold under a number of labels. Here's a review: http://flashhavoc.com/godox-witstro-ad180-ad360-review/
I have three of the smaller Cheetahstand V850 flashes. I really like the user interface and wireless remotes, which are the same for the Godox Wistro AD360. Using them is dead easy. The lithium battery packs give fast recycling and a large number of flashes. Some of the earlier batteries have had reliability issues, but I haven't heard about many lately. You might email Edward at Cheetahstand. Ask him what the output is in your preferred sized modifier at your desired working distance. I'm sure he'll measure it for you.
“You often feel tired, not because you've done too much, but because you've done too little of what sparks a light in you.”
― Alexander Den Heijer, Nothing You Don't Already Know
Thanks, Peter!
The Cheetahstand website also shows the CL-600, which looks like a decent battery-powered strobe.
I'll send them an email tomorrow to ask about some specs.
There's a little info at: http://flashhavoc.com/godox-rs400p-r...izer-released/
“You often feel tired, not because you've done too much, but because you've done too little of what sparks a light in you.”
― Alexander Den Heijer, Nothing You Don't Already Know
As a point of reference, I have Norman 200 W-s portables (LH-2 and LH-3b heads and a 200C battery pack, as well as a 202 plug-in pack that usually lives on my copy stand), and at max output with a small softbox (which eats around 1.5-2 stops), it should give you about f:8 at 10 feet at ISO 100, so if a Norman 400 W-s unit is a stop brighter (I don't have one, so I can't confirm on the basis of experience, but my Norman studio heads seem linear in this regard--twice as much input yielding double the output), it should put you in the ballpark of f:11. A more modern unit might be more efficient, of course. ISO 400 film would get you there with a unit like that.
Cheers, David; I am considering the 600w/s head from Cheetahstand, which should be enough for my basic needs.
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