Too much light

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jonnybloo

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OK, probably another obvious one but i just want to canvas opinion on how people go about this:

I have elinchrom D-Lite 4's, 21cm reflector and some cheap grids. At the moment Im trying to play around and learn low key lighting. I bought the grids as i only had softboxes and they do help massively with controlling light.

My issue is that i dont really have suitable backgrounds, and fairly small space so im trying to black out the background purely with distance to the wall. I have read the closer the light to the subject the quicker the light falls off (Inverse square law?!). I find when i put the lights close they are too bright on the subject. Im shooting in manual, 1/200, ISO 100, D-Lites on lowest power. The only adjustments i can make are with the aperture.

What are my options for reducing the light power without moving the light itself a lot further from the subject and therefore contaminating the walls/background etc?

I know i can reduce the aperture but is that the only adjustable option? it rules out every trying to use large apertures.

Would filters hanging over the reflector/grids help? CPC sell cheap "Chris James diffusion filters" that i could just hang over the front maybe ?

Someone else has recommended an ND filter on the Lens but im not sure how that would help if the light itself is blowing out the subject?

Thanks all

Jonny
 
Diffusion filters will spread the light over a larger area and so destroy your lighting control.
ND gels over each light will do the job, or you can put a ND filter over the lens, this is probably the best answer provided that your lens has a large enough aperture to focus properly with the ND filter in place.

If you use a 0.9 ND filter it will reduce the light by 3 stops. Doing that would have the same effect on the light as turning it down from its minimum of 1/16th power to 1/128th power
 
As usual, thanks Garry

If i went for the gels do you recommend anywhere that sells them? Ive had a quick look and even on ebay they are sparse, unless im looking under the wrong keywords
 
I'm not sure, the fleabay sellers tend to sell complete packs containing gels that most people will never use. I bought mine years ago from a firm that no longer exists...

This is the filter you want, made by Lee filters. It might be worth giving them a ring.
 
Thanks again Garry

The sheets look tricky to come by but i will call them, all gels i find are small flashgun samples.

I did look at the lee 100mmx100mm filters too, but once you add in even the cheapest holder (Gel Snap in holder for polyester filters) then its about the same cost as buying a glass ND filter for the lens.

I will weigh up the advantages of all. I dont really take landscape shots so dont think i will ever need/use other filters other than a strong ND filter so probably rules out a filter holding system.

In terms of lenses my main ones are 77mm and 52mm, i guess i need to look at whether stepping rings are good enough to be able to use one filter on both.

Thanks again for your help
 
Personally I would (and have) gone for glass filters over the lens. But this presupposes that you have a camera body that autofocusses well, and that you have a fast lens.

Some cameras just can't focus well with a ND filter even with a fast lens...
 
I know what you mean, i guess that part is trial and error. I have a Canon 550d so by no means a pro camera or anything but very good for my use.
Im making things even trickier by doing this for low key lighting so the room is dark anyway, and with grids on im trying to minimise/cut out modelling light usage. No point making it easy eh !!

I think i will try a glass lens filter + Stepping rings

I have read a couple of reviews saying that the variable ND filters can be good as you can focus on the lowest ND setting then adjust the level.

they dont seem widely used though and some get awful reviews. Is it safe to assume they arent the one stop solution they make out to be? I would rather just get an ND4 or ND8 than compromise on the quality of a variable filter
 
I honesty don't know how good (or otherwise the variable ND filters are, but someone did tell me that his is pretty poor.

Can't you just find something like a piece of smoked glass or plastic with similar light stopping qualities and hold it over the front of the lens to see whether your camera/lens combo will focus OK before buying a real one?

Or I suppose you could just buy a Nikon camera :exit:
 
haha i will pass on the Nikon thanks!

Yes that probably is the best bet, the missus will appreciate my turning the house upside down looking for something appropriate later!!

Cheers
 
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