A welcome new thread

[Jim Noel]

I am surprised that I am the first poster on this new stream.Many have asked for it, so now it is time to show it was really wanted and needed.
I have four rather complete strobe systems, Tote lights, old fashioned reflectors for #1, #2 and #3 Photofloods, and several "work" Lights. Why so many systems? They have been accumulated during the 75+ years I have been practicing LF photography.
When I do small tabletop set ups I am more likely to use one or two slide projectors than any of the above.
Of the several books on lighting in my library William Mortensen's "Pictorial Lighting" is still my go to text.
I guess I am saying all this to show that I am a believer in using the least expensive and least technical methods available.
I almost forgot, I also have two folding cardboard reflectors for #1 photofloods produced many years ago by Kodak. Very handy.

Enjoy this new addition to the forum.

Jim

[bob carnie]

Like Jim I too am a believer of using very simple tools..

I have a light tent- which is fantastic for very small objects . I borrow hot lights (will trade some printing for used hot lights btw) simple cloth backgrounds of different colour, as well as a 8x10 100 year old century camera with 480 mm lens , and a 4 x5 sinar set up.

I like strong directional lighting about a 3 or 4 : lighting ratio and basically set my focus and close down to f32 and bracket ... I use three holders per shot , one I develop normal BW, one set I develop (solarize neg) and third set I use 4 x5 colour film and solarize the neg during development.

The front room of my gallery is lit by a huge bank of windows and the light coming in is non directional so I can use this as my base light and then the hot lights create the mood of the image.132979132980132982

[Ralph Barker]

OK, in the interest of "balance" - let me say I'm mostly an electronic flash guy in the studio. I often use a 650W Arri Fresnel to focus, but try to turn that off as quickly as possible. People, in particular, don't always appreciate the intensity of that many watts staring them in the eye.

I started with White Lightning monolight units - their so-called "coffee can" style - back in the early '90s, when they were the most-affordable brand available. I've added a few 800WS, 1600WS, and 3200WS units over the years, along with softboxes and other modifiers. Certainly, there are "better" brands (more trendy?), but the White Lightnings have served me well.

[bob carnie]

BTW Jim - how old are you?? I would be really proud to say I have been practicing photography for 75plus.. you are my new hero.



I am surprised that I am the first poster on this new stream.Many have asked for it, so now it is time to show it was really wanted and needed.
I have four rather complete strobe systems, Tote lights, old fashioned reflectors for #1, #2 and #3 Photofloods, and several "work" Lights. Why so many systems? They have been accumulated during the 75+ years I have been practicing LF photography.
When I do small tabletop set ups I am more likely to use one or two slide projectors than any of the above.
Of the several books on lighting in my library William Mortensen's "Pictorial Lighting" is still my go to text.
I guess I am saying all this to show that I am a believer in using the least expensive and least technical methods available.
I almost forgot, I also have two folding cardboard reflectors for #1 photofloods produced many years ago by Kodak. Very handy.

Enjoy this new addition to the forum.

Jim

[mdarnton]

My setup is based on three 300WS Interfit Stellars, and some umbrellas and softboxes and reflectors. Just recently I added one of these as a hairlight, with a nut can black-painted snoot: www.amazon.com/Neewer®-Strobe-Location-Portrait-Photography/dp/B0043GT9Y0/ It's crap, but it works, was silly-cheap, and it's very light, so it's good on an overhead boom.

Lately I've been using the Stellars without any reflector at all, as direct lights--they make great fill that way--some of it forward, a lot of it off the ceiling and walls. I read a very interesting chapter in an old commercial portrait book where the photographer set two lights bounced off the ceiling/wall junction at left and right, about even with the camera, then used another more mobile light as the main. It was an interesting idea, and it works! The idea has a lot in common with open sun and sky outside. The subject of fill lights and how to make them do their job without being noticeable is very interesting to me.

[Peter De Smidt]

In commercial location work, we bounce light off of walls and ceilings on a regular basis. It's pretty standard practice.

[Jim Noel]

BTW Jim - how old are you?? I would be really proud to say I have been practicing photography for 75plus.. you are my new hero.

86 and still going.

[Jim Noel]

Some have laughed at my simple lighting. If a person really wants to learn lighting they should begin by making portraits with a five (5) watt bare bulb. There is no need for hundreds of watts of light, no matter the source. Today's films are so fast I often wonder why people even think about buying high powered lights. I understand the reason or electronic flash since bulbs are so hard to come by, but huge amounts of light with today's very fast films don't really make sense to me.
Good lighting has to do with quality, not quantity of light.

[mdarnton]

Five watts of incandescent yellow/red light on my already-slow color-blind xray film. . . . . I don't think my subjects can sit still that long, given that most of them are still alive and have places they need to be. :-) I was just thinking of buying one 800WS head so I could get some depth of field for a change!

[vinny]

Balls! When you need soft ambience to bring up a dark interior. These are switchable (when lowered as shown) from daylight hmi to tungsten. We spent several days rigging that barn and surrounding property.
From the final season of Glee.

I dunno why the pics aren't right side up.

Here's (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3SQpE_f3VR0) a clip from the episode. Make sure you've got mute on, it's an awful show.

[DrTang]

Well...I got all kinds of stuff...

in the field..I'll use a Q-flash on a side arm.. with the diffuser cover


in my Yurt studio..I have a 2400 w/s pack and four heads sitting in the case as I am mostly using a Calumet 750 travelite behind either a ginormous softbox or a 6' Larsen Starfish on C-stand

I used to do the 3,4 light set ups..but just got really tired of lugging all that crap around..so my aesthetic sensibilities changed to meet the needs of my knees and back.. and now...even with a permanent studio..I still prefer a single light.and not even a reflector for fill. and the travelites can be dialed back to match the aperture I want to use...

If I need more light..I can just break out the full pack

[StoneNYC]

Well...I got all kinds of stuff...

in the field..I'll use a Q-flash on a side arm.. with the diffuser cover


in my Yurt studio..I have a 2400 w/s pack and four heads sitting in the case as I am mostly using a Calumet 750 travelite behind either a ginormous softbox or a 6' Larsen Starfish on C-stand

I used to do the 3,4 light set ups..but just got really tired of lugging all that crap around..so my aesthetic sensibilities changed to meet the needs of my knees and back.. and now...even with a permanent studio..I still prefer a single light.and not even a reflector for fill. and the travelites can be dialed back to match the aperture I want to use...

If I need more light..I can just break out the full pack

Point of info, "w/s" means "watts per second" which is different than "ws" which is "watt-seconds".

Not trying to be picky but it is a difference worth noting. Just more of an FYI.

Also, I agree, all that lugging gets tiring after a while.

[Daniel Stone]

I guess I am saying all this to show that I am a believer in using the least expensive and least technical methods available.


Jim

+1 :)

[DennisD]

86 and still going.

New hero + inspiration !

[Emil Schildt]

My studio light.... (for about 75% of my images...) :D

[Michael Roberts]

You win. I'm guessing a good part of the other 25% is done with an electric torch?

[StoneNYC]

You win. I'm guessing a good part of the other 25% is done with an electric torch?

Probably sunlight ;)

[vinny]

This was for the 2005 Lexus IS250. Shot on 4x5 E100g. Thomas Strogalski was the shooter, I was hired to light it. If you look closely in the third image, you'll see the glass portion of the R1 arm attached to the car.
Those 8ft flourescents (we bought $600 of them) on the wall and ceiling are still going strong in my garage:)

[Jody_S]

I have a bunch of antiques I bought for pennies. A 400ws and a 800ws commercial setup with 4 heads apiece (both Ascorlight), and a bunch of old Bowens monolights. Assorted umbrellas and smaller softboxes and a couple of snoots. I don't want to spend money on this stuff if I don't know how to use it. I almost never attempt studio setups for my shots, I use the gear mostly for selling. I just bounce one off a wall and another off the ceiling, most of the time. I have a 4' light tent and I've just bought a few '80s-style backdrops from school portrait sessions. Ugly as sin, but I shoot b&w and I just wanted some texture in an oof background. For 'on location' fill lighting, I use an old Metz 402 set with 2 heads, or a Sunpack hammerhead with a bracket and white card, or sometimes I handhold a little consumer flash from the 90s with a 12" softbox velcroed on.

I've recently tried a couple of 11x14 still lifes with studio lighting, I very quickly realized I would have to take over another room of the house if I wanted to do this properly.

[StoneNYC]

I have a bunch of antiques I bought for pennies. A 400ws and a 800ws commercial setup with 4 heads apiece (both Ascorlight), and a bunch of old Bowens monolights. Assorted umbrellas and smaller softboxes and a couple of snoots. I don't want to spend money on this stuff if I don't know how to use it. I almost never attempt studio setups for my shots, I use the gear mostly for selling. I just bounce one off a wall and another off the ceiling, most of the time. I have a 4' light tent and I've just bought a few '80s-style backdrops from school portrait sessions. Ugly as sin, but I shoot b&w and I just wanted some texture in an oof background. For 'on location' fill lighting, I use an old Metz 402 set with 2 heads, or a Sunpack hammerhead with a bracket and white card, or sometimes I handhold a little consumer flash from the 90s with a 12" softbox velcroed on.

I've recently tried a couple of 11x14 still lifes with studio lighting, I very quickly realized I would have to take over another room of the house if I wanted to do this properly.

Careful Jodi those Ascorlights can be dangerous! Don't get zapped!

[DrTang]

Careful Jodi those Ascorlights can be dangerous! Don't get zapped!

Yeah..I would retire those asap

I had a beat up set like 30 years ago.. and I brought them in for repair, and the repair guy wouldn't give them back..he said they were too dangerous

YMMV

[Jody_S]

What exactly is the danger with old Ascorlights?

[DrTang]

What exactly is the danger with old Ascorlights?

I HEARD..they were not grounded best practices and could zap you esp if you yanked a flash head cord out while there was still a charge in the pack

plus..by this time..all the caps have to be all dried up..it's been like what...45-50 years since they came out or something

[Michael Graves]

I have three of the White Lightning units as well. I use them primarily when I go on location. My "in-house" lights (I hesitate to call them studio, because I don't have a permanent studio) consist of a 2400WS Speedotron power pack, an 800WS Speedotron power pack and five heads. Now that this thread is up and running maybe I can learn to use them correctly!

My biggest complaint about the White Lightning units is that they do not respond to my infrared trigger. Unless a real strobe is used, they only fire from a synch cord.