Help setting up small studio.

[Cinbride]

Just to take pictures of my kids. I am looking for lighting. I can not spend a fortune. I looked at umbrella / softbox kits on ebay. Some have the modeling light, some are just strobe lights, some continous. Please help give advice on what would be a decent set. While I know they are not 'great' sets. I still want to have take decent shots comparable to the some of the mall places, which I find not to be that great most of the time. Thanks.

 

[YesDear]

What camera do you use. If you use a Nikon, an SB600/800/900 and an umbrella on a stand can give you very good results.

www.strobist.com is a great resource for all things flash

 

[Cinbride]

I have an Canon sx10 is w/ additional flash. I have a small room I am setting this all up in so I am thinking I shouldn't need much. Umbrella/strobe and a reflector? Just not sure which kind is the best out of them. thanks

 

[YesDear]

I will let the Canon folks respond more in detail about your camera. I checked it out quickly online and How does it trigger an remote flash? Is it smart enough to evaluate the exposure for the flash? I am not certain it can do either but, as I said, that is for Canon folks to tell you.

You can get inexpensive stands, brackets, etc from B&H. Calumet has their 45 inch umbrellas for $30 here If you want 3 they are $20 each.

 

[mabas9395]

Do you already have an additional flash? If so, which one? It may be beneficial to get items that are compatible with your current gear.

 

[Cinbride]

yes it a flash for the shoe. I was just looking at umbrella kits that flash when your flash is triggered. They have ones

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=160392317718&ssPageName=ADME:X:RTQ:US:1123

and then this kind:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=360223186465&ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT

the last one has the modeling light. I just wasn't sure if one would be better than the other considering one is about a lot cheaper. I know I won't have 'stellar' pictures like going to a studio. I have taken theirs in the past and frankly between the ones I took and places like Penneys and Picture People, I prefer mine. They are just not great lighting wise because I have had to use whatever light I have had. I take tons of pictures of my kids so I don't mind spending a little if it saves me money going to the portrait places. I didn't want to mess with a slr because I have my hands full as it is, didn't want to start learning about those. I read many reviews before I bought my sx10 and for the most part are a favorite. thanks

 

[mabas9395]

Two things you said:

yes it a flash for the shoe.


I didn't want to mess with a slr because I have my hands full as it is, didn't want to start learning about those.

1) Do you know what kind of flash you already have? Is it a Canon 220, 430, 580, etc? Or some other brand? The reason I ask is that some flashes can communicate with each other to tell them not only when to fire, but how much light to put out. Which comes in very handy.

2) Your second comment makes me wonder if the ebay lights you posted would be a good fit. The reason is that with these, there won't be any communiation between camera and flash as to how much light to put out. They will still work, but they will require you to be in Manual mode and adjust the settings (flash power, shutter speed, aperture, ISO) to get the proper exposure. If your hands are too full for an SLR, they might be too full for this as well because you would essentially be using your camera like an SLR (without the changeable lenses).

 

[Cinbride]

my flash is not a canon, I don't remember the brand. I'll have to look.

Actually, I use it in P mode most of the time. I just thought a pure slr was a lot to handle w/ focusing in moments when I was in a hurry. I don't know?? It was either this or an SLR which was more at the time. If I tell my husband I want to get an SLR he may divorce me. I have bought so many electronics this past year. I would probably have to sell my SX10.

I was just hoping to get some sort of additional lighting to help brighten up my pictures.

thanks

 

[Frantasmic]

http://http://www.amazon.com/Cowboy.../B001NDYTKA/ref=pd_cp_p_1/176-5501979-1285839

This looks like something you would be interested in.

 

[fan1080]

Going with a strobe (flash) setup is probably a little too much to handle at the moment.

Your best bet might be just adding more available light in the room, then using your on-camera flash for fill.

 

[disneyboy2003]

my flash is not a canon, I don't remember the brand. I'll have to look.

Actually, I use it in P mode most of the time. I just thought a pure slr was a lot to handle w/ focusing in moments when I was in a hurry. I don't know??

Hmmm...my experience is that autofocusing is pretty much instantaneous on DSLRs. On the other hand, I find that non-DSLR cameras usually have about a 1/2 to 1-second delay while the camera autofocuses.

A lot of (if not all) professional photographers use DSLRs. Sports photographers, wedding photographers, photojournalists, etc all depend on the camera to "focus while in a hurry". I can't imagine doing sports photography, for example, using only manual focus. Today's DSLRs all have autofocus.

Also, today's DSLRs all have a "P" mode, you can still take the exact same pictures with a DSLR. (although this begs the question, do you really *need* a DSLR?)


I have zero experience with studio lighting, so whatever I say below, please take with a huge grain of salt. (mmmm...salt...)

When you buy studio lighting, you have to look for a few things. How are you going to trigger those studio lights? Those lights are going to be a few feet away from your camera, so how will those lights know to "flash" at the same time as your camera?

Pros typically use wireless radio triggers, such as PocketWizards, CyberSyncs, RadioPoppers, cheap eBay wireless triggers, etc. A transmitter is placed in the hotshoe of your camera, and a receiver is connected to each of your studio strobes (ie. if you have 2 strobes, you'll need 2 receivers).

You can also connect them via a PC sync cord. In photography, PC does not stand for "personal computer", but that's just what it's called. I believe you connect the PC sync cord from the external flash on your camera onto the studio strobe.

I looked at the links to the eBay listings you provided. Looks like those studio strobes are triggered optically (ie. they "see" that a flash is going off, so the strobes will fire at the same time). While this set-up is convenient and doesn't require wires, it does require you to use a flash on your camera. Oftentimes, lighting from flash is "prettier" when the light isn't pointed directly at your subject's face. We usually try for "directional" lighting, where light comes at an angle toward a subject. That way, you get *some* shadows that help define your subject's face / features.

The advantage of studio strobes is that you can control this directional lighting and create nice & soft shadows. However, if you're also required to fire a flash directly from your camera, then you may lose some of that directional lighting.


Umbrellas vs. Softboxes
This topic itself brings up huge debates (like Canon vs. Nikon) about which one produces better quality of light. However, in looking at the eBay listings you provided, it looked like one of the sellers was offering 2 different umbrellas: one shoot-through umbrella (the white translucent umbrella) and one reflector umbrella (the black-silver umbrella). Somehow, I would think that you'd probably prefer having 2 of the same type of umbrellas in your kit, rather than having 2 different types of umbrellas.

It looks like the 2nd eBay listing costs more because you're getting 4 umbrellas, instead of 2. Plus, the 2nd listing allows you to control the power of your strobes.


Control the power of strobes
The 1st eBay listing doesn't talk about the ability to control the power of your strobes (maybe it can, but it didn't say). You're never going to fire your strobes at the same full intensity every time. You *need* the ability to adjust the power of each strobe. Sometimes, you'll need the strobe to fire at 1/2 power, sometimes at 1/4 power, sometimes at 1/8 power, etc.


Modeling light
I would think that this is a good thing. Modeling light gives you a preview of how the light will fall on your subjects. This also allows you to see where the shadows fall, if they're really harsh, etc. Without a modeling light, you'll be guessing at the quality of light that falls on your subject.


Finally, do you really need studio strobes? You mentioned that you're going to be taking pictures of your children. I would think that studio portrait photography is only a very small part of photographing children. I'd hate to see you spend all this money setting up a nice mini-studio, only to use it on rare occasions.

I love seeing pictures of children having fun in their natural environment. I wonder if you're better off learning about using an external flash, like a Canon Speedlite 580EX II or 430EX II. Learn how to bounce the flash off the ceiling or nearby wall. Use it as fill flash. Use it to capture pictures of your children in difficult lighting situations. I think an external flash is a lot more portable and *versatile* than a studio strobe kit.

Sorry this post was so long. Again, I have zero experience with studio strobes, so folks who know better, please correct me if I'm wrong.

 

[Cinbride]

Hi, thanks all for your replies. No the first one didn't have control over the flash. That is why I was leaning towards the 2nd. I guess just justifying the expense of the other lighting. Really that isn't too bad for me. Actually 2 lil' kids and love of photography I always am taking pictures. I do there there milestones and monthly pictures. Then if there is a holiday/season I do those also. Getting better lighting would be of great use to me. meaning less visits to the portrait places and spending a fortune there. A few times I didn't even like the pictures and only bought a few. So I want to thank all of you for taking time and giving your advice.. now just need a few minutes to do all of this. I can't help it, I love it!

thanks again.