Higher end lighting advice

neo2810

neo2810

Suspended / Banned
Messages
1,443
Edit My Images
No
Chaps,

I'm about to buy a set of lights which will be used initially for a small studio space (house and small hall shoots). In the very near future we will most likely have a fairly good size studio fitted out and the lights need to be suitable to use there in some capacity. At the moment I'm leaning towards 500W or 600W lights which I can use as mains until the studio is ready, where they will become background or peripheral lights to compliment a couple of 1200W heads.

So, my question is really on which of these sets would be your recommendation (or any others)? I don't really have a max budget but I was looking to spend around £800 - £1200 roughly. :thumbs:

Elinchrome BXRi 500's (My preference so far)

Elinchrome RX600's (I'm guessing the RX300 on the description is a typo as the title and price suggest 2x 600W heads)

Bowen Gemini 500R pair

OR, do I spend a little extra for the Bowen's with a battery pack for some outdoor creative freedom?

Bowens 500R pair travel pack

I don't want to make the wrong choice :shrug:
 
neo2810 said:
I don't want to make the wrong choice :shrug:
Click to expand...

My first observation would be that if the studio is small then you may not need that kind of power. The budget could be used much more wisely for modifiers etc.

The most common flash head I see in small studios are D-lites or at most FX400's and I would deem the 400's overkill for small spaces really.

You could save a packet there.

IMO, power/output is only really an issue if lighting over large or more significant distances, the quality of light gets very harsh and thin the further the distance so, you crank up the power to compensate.

A 1600w/s head is something I'd use to light over a large distance in large studio or out on location to wrestle the light from high sun to the floor. Way OTT for small spaces.
 
Tomas Whitehouse said:
My first observation would be that if the studio is small then you may not need that kind of power.

The most common flash head I see in small studios are D-lites or at most FX400's and I would deem the 400's overkill for small spaces really.

You could save a packet there.
Click to expand...

Cheers for the quick response Tomas,

I agree, but the studio space we have almost secured is about 20ft (6m) by 30ft (9m) with some additional space behind for runoff (seating area and office/editing suite), about another 20ft. So the stage area will be fairly large and I want to ensure the lights are good enough to handle that studio. Using them initially in smaller a space is fine since I can just turn them down.

Open to advice that 400W will be enough power in the large studio but advice I've been given so far suggests maybe not :shrug:
 
neo2810 said:
Cheers for the quick response Tomas,

I agree, but the studio space we have almost secured is about 20ft (6m) by 30ft (9m) with some additional space behind for runoff (seating area and office/editing suite), about another 20ft. So the stage area will be fairly large and I want to ensure the lights are good enough to handle that studio. Using them initially in smaller a space is fine since I can just turn them down.

Open to advice that 400W will be enough power in the large studio but advice I've been given so far suggests maybe not :shrug:
Click to expand...

Well, given those dimensions then power is more necessary, I consider a small studio to be big enough to do at maximum, a group of 4, full body, medium close ups and of course head shots.

Sounds like your place is much bigger and more capable than that so go for all the power you can afford. :thumbs:
 
lol, hardly Tomas but it gives a very good comparison.

I'm incredibly fortunate that this studio is located at the end of the road where I live. How handy is that! and at £25 an hour I could not afford anything like it. :)

Come over and do a shoot there someday! Free accomodation :)
 
AliB said:
lol, hardly Tomas but it gives a very good comparison.

I'm incredibly fortunate that this studio is located at the end of the road where I live. How handy is that! and at £25 an hour I could not afford anything like it. :)

Come over and do a shoot there someday! Free accomodation :)
Click to expand...

Well, I'm certainly not the type to turn down such a kind and generous offer! Why thank you Ali, the next time I'm in the UK I'll be dropping by then ;)

I stumbled across this pic of a studio my mate Marko uses, a little off topic but my immediate thought was 'How tidy and neat!' I love the various seamless colours they have too, I was quite jealous and also inspired.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/markosaari/3535598520/

This shot was taken in the same studio:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/markosaari/3537523431/
 
WARNING: Thread Hijack!!! :rules::naughty:

Ali, thanks for that, looks very much like the space we are getting even down to the height and makeup of the ceiling. I'll be quite keen to get some more info on the Higlide system, looks handy... Supplier and price if you can find out would be superb :thumbs:

We were planning on purchasing a couple of 1200W lights to use as main lights, with the 2 that I'm buying now as assist lights or to blow out BG and I reckon that will be enough for most shoots. We can then add to the arsenal as we go.

Tomas, your mate clearly has OCD with a studio that tidy :)
 
neo2810 said:
WARNING: Thread Hijack!!! :rules::naughty:

Ali, thanks for that, looks very much like the space we are getting even down to the height and makeup of the ceiling. I'll be quite keen to get some more info on the Higlide system, looks handy... Supplier and price if you can find out would be superb :thumbs:

We were planning on purchasing a couple of 1200W lights to use as main lights, with the 2 that I'm buying now as assist lights or to blow out BG and I reckon that will be enough for most shoots. We can then add to the arsenal as we go.

Tomas, your mate clearly has OCD with a studio that tidy :)
Click to expand...

Ennit! But it does look nice :love: So does Ali's place! :love:

Make sure you keep us posted with all the advances and progress Neo!
All the best with it and remember to show us pics!
 
Back on topic..................he he.........

It's a Bowens system and is user configurable because it's modular. Have a look at the Bowens website. :)
 
Tomas Whitehouse said:
Ennit! But it does look nice :love: So does Ali's place! :love:

Make sure you keep us posted with all the advances and progress Neo!
All the best with it and remember to show us pics!
Click to expand...

Thanks and I will do matie... Just finishing off the business plan and negotiating rent right now so we'll see how it pans out :)

AliB said:
Back on topic..................he he.........

It's a Bowens system and is user configurable because it's modular. Have a look at the Bowens website. :)
Click to expand...

Brill cheers, I'll have a spy...
 
My thoughts on this is that unless your new studio will be really large and will be used for still life shots, paying money for extra power will probably be money wasted. Portrait-type photography under studio conditions needs very little in the way of power and your money will be far better spent on light shaping tools, because, assuming that you choose a brand with consistent power and consistent colour temperature output, it's how you modify and shape the light that really matters.

Which IMO rules out Elinchrom, because their light shaping tools are extremely expensive for what they are and the range of 3rd party alternatives is very limited.

This short article may help.

If you find yourself doing demanding still life or location work in the future then that's another story entirely. I did a shoot a couple of days ago, 1 x 1 metre engineering subject on location in a very large factory space. I took 3 x 24000J generator packs with me and, using a large softbox and some very hard key and effect lighting I could only manage f/8 @ 50 ISO, which was only just enough with medium format - but, as I say, that's another set of requirements entirely.

As for portable power, using mains powered flash with battery packs is just a compromise - a lot of weight to lug around and a very limited number of flashes. If budget allows it's usually much better to get a dedicated battery powered system like this one from Lencarta
 
Excellent, thanks Garry. I've already got my eye on the Lencarta Safari kit but wasn't sure if there was much difference between that and the battery pack with a std set of lights, so question answered :thumbs:

I think I'm going to go for a set of 500W, either Elinchrome, Bowens or Lencarta. I'll have another good look.
 
Ok, so after a fair amount of comparing specs and reading user reviews, I'm still a little torn. My preference at the moment is still Elinchrom, because I've used them so know I like the setup. However, I've done a lot of reading up on Hensel which seem to be widely regarded as equal to both Elinchrom and Bowens but a little cheaper. Does anyone have actual experience with Hensel, and how do they compare in reality? :thinking:

On the Elinchroms, are the BXRi heads compatible with the Ranger battery packs, or do you need RX heads to use the packs? Also, what benefit do you get for the RX heads over the BXRi heads to justify the hike in price? :shrug:

All advice is very much appreciated :thumbs:
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top