I really love my Arri fresnel system, along with my various Lowell hotlights. I have
a variety of simple diffusers and reflectors, and neutral density gels for the lights
themselves. I like to keep things simple. An especially nice setup for traditional 8X10
studio portraiture etc. But's its not very practical for squirmy kids or pets - that's when I switch to a Nikon and available light. Never did care much for flash of any kind.
Hot lights are of course hot, so it helps that I live and work in a mild climate. Nobody
has air conditioning around here on the coast.
Although I have a variety of studio strobe units, I rarely use them as such. It is more normal for me to use the modeling lights through a soft box or boxes to make the negative. This is essentially always true for portraits and nudes.
Alan,
In response to your question, I don't mind the softness with portraits of women. In fact, all of them I've worked with so far prefer it. I don't mind using a ND filter in those situations. I use a Cooke 229mm portrait lens wide open at f/4.5, and adjust my studio lighting accordingly. With such a shallow depth of field, only a small part of the portrait is in focus. For other portraits, I want that sharp focus to see pores, hairs, etc., if not on the bacteria then at least on the sitter.
Jim,
Thanks for sharing your experience. I have been using my tungsten lighting in LF for portraits pretty much exclusively, but I am going to explore the strobes as well.
David
David,
Thanks for the additional information. I thought your first response was hilarious. My wife said that she didn't want you taking her portrait!
Alan
My Arris came with scrims (metal screen type) that fit over the lights. You could do something similar with the monolights and place a screen over the head. Heat shouldn't be to much of an issue so another option would be some Lee ND material over the head. Much cheaper than filtering the entire softbox. You could also mix tungsten and flash with addition of a CTO or half CTO over the head.
Be very careful putting a meltable/flammable item around the flash tube. Modeling lights can produce a lot of heat. Using metal mesh, such as aluminum window screening, would be much safer. You can always use multiple layers if need be.
“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
i haven't read all the replies, but tough spun and silks on your reflector.
Let me say at the outset I'm certainly no expert, which is why I keep it as simple as possible. I use photofloods in hardware store reflectors. When I use ortho film I use blue bulbs. With panchro emulsions you can use either blue or white. Blue is more like sunlight, temperature wise. While I've never used a dimmer, that seems like a good idea, as the bulbs last longer, and the model is not sweltering when you turn the "heat" on. I'll have to see if I can find a dimmer that can handle the watts. One of the advantages of using photofloods is all you need is a reflective meter. I use a Weston Master ll.
David there are reducing get filters for lights. But what you can do in a pinch - you can turn softbox into strip box, cutting its effective surface down by using something as simple as cardboard slices. Half of surface out - one stop down. Or just buy yourself slower film.
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