Getting a light in the top center?

rgrebby

rgrebby

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I want to hang my bowens 500w strobe and beauty dish on a boom arm in front and above the subject.

Im guessing I need a boom arm and a C stand or even ceiling mounts. However im not sure the christmas budget will allow for anything too crazy.

Any thoughts?
 
rgrebby said:
I want to hang my bowens 500w strobe and beauty dish on a boom arm in front and above the subject.

Im guessing I need a boom arm and a C stand or even ceiling mounts. However im not sure the christmas budget will allow for anything too crazy.

Any thoughts?
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one of these a pair of these & three of these if you have two stands and a stud. Use the third superclamp to hold the light where you want to position it on the crossbar.

Paul
 
Get one of these, you'll wonder how you coped without it, I love em!

Calumets own C Stand about £100
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If it's a mono block head you'll need a counter weight :)
 
Get a boom. Manfrotto's avengers are fantastic but cheaper alternatives are available.

Don't put it up high and stand in front of it *rolls eyes* you'll be moving the light away from the subject and changing the light as its relative size changes. For something like a beauty dish in a tight beauty shot moving the dish back a foot or two has a big impact on the results you will get.
 
Mattys said:
In which case you can stand behind it and a tiniest bit to one side and focus past it.:)
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That will only work if the focal length you are using puts you right next to the light stand, with something like a beauty dish beauty shot you might have the dish as close as 80cm away for example. A beauty shot 80cm from your models face will result is a short focal length and distortion. It's a work around, a poor alternative to what's required to do the job properly. I've had to do it before, I'm talking from experience, best avoided to be fair. The op has a budget for it, best advice is get the right stand.
 
C stand and boom I think it the answer. Im on the hunt for some simi cheap ones but also a counter weight as well.
 
rgrebby said:
C stand and boom I think it the answer. Im on the hunt for some simi cheap ones but also a counter weight as well.
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Lencarta do a boom & counter weight for £99.99 I think. I'm unsure on what weight it can handle and haven't handled one personally so can't recommend.
 
Mahoneyd187 said:
Get a boom. Manfrotto's avengers are fantastic but cheaper alternatives are available.

Don't put it up high and stand in front of it *rolls eyes* you'll be moving the light away from the subject and changing the light as its relative size changes. For something like a beauty dish in a tight beauty shot moving the dish back a foot or two has a big impact on the results you will get.
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It might, depending upon focal length, but I shoot beauty at 200mm and never had a problem making a2cm adjustment on my position to get round a stand...
But then again ..
 
Mahoneyd187 said:
Lencarta do a boom & counter weight for £99.99 I think. I'm unsure on what weight it can handle and haven't handled one personally so can't recommend.
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The Home Boom Arm can handle that kind of weight easily, and it has a decent stand (included) with a proper footprint. In case anyone doesn't know, the trick to using a boom arm safely is to balance the counterweight properly. The clamp which locks it in position should only be used for that purpose, not to make up for deficiencies in balance...

They've been selling like the proverbial hot cakes and will be out of stock soon:'(
 
Guess I'm the only person with 'scaffolding tendencies' then - that and the fact I dislike stand mounted booms, even the best ones. Used to use a pair of wheeled stands with a section of Hi Glide track and mount the lights on this. No good now though as I just don't have the room in my 'bijou' studio space.:(

Paul
 
I use grip arms (as treeman suggested) all the time, love them to bits for pack+head systems... but they just can't hold a bowens head, no chance.

Booms are pretty affordable, the calumet or lencarta ones are good. Just be careful about how you sandbag it down.
 
Autopole + boom arm. Lock it into a solid ceiling and you could pole dance from it.

I really should sell those auto poles I have in the shed. But I'd need somebody from Kent to buy them....
 
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