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SeagullSteve

SeagullSteve

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I've been looking to get a set of studio lights for a home studio. I don't want to spend a fortune so have been looking at buying second hand from ebay. I've been looking at Elinchrom D-Lite 4's and the Bowens Gemini 400/500 all in their various guises. They all seem to be around the £400-500 for a two head set up.I then spotted Lencarta do a ElitePro 300 model for £400 new for a two head setp up. So I could get a brand new set, with slightly less power for propbably cheaper than a second hand set of Elinchrom/Bowens. I appreciate that the modifiers may be different and I would have to factor that in

What's peoples thoughts on buying second hand Elinchrom/Bowen as opposed to buying new Lencarta?

Ta.
 
SeagullSteve said:
What's peoples thoughts on buying second hand Elinchrom/Bowen as opposed to buying new Lencarta?
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•
My experience says that if you extend a kit, one is better stay in
the same system as it helps keep up the resale value eventually.
 
People here like Lencarta and only have good things to say of them.

I myself will soon be purchasing the Lencarta SmartFlash 2 kit as I've done a load of research and these seem to swing it for features, quality and value.
 
I have bowens and lencarta in my studio and the lencarta have failed to EVER to let me down..................the bowens have let me down.
 
GreenNinja67 said:
People here like Lencarta and only have good things to say of them.
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stumac said:
lencarta have failed to EVER to let me down....
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•
I am a committed Profoto user and I don't advertise it…
as I was only answering the question of the OP in his best
interest based on my experience.
 
For a typical home studio, the Elite Pro are far more likely to be too powerful than not powerful enough.

My thoughts would be to upgrade the soft boxes, for irregular use id want something quick to assemble, and maybe s bit bigger too.
In fact I'd buy smart flash and spend more on an Octa and a beauty dish.

YMMV
 
If only shooting at home then 250w is probably better than 500w

My original Bowens are about 20 years old and still going strong

Regardless of brand by buying new from a UK based professional supplier you have much legal protection

Money no object then Profoto, quality most important then Elinchrom must be on the list - to my mind Bowens are still good but have failed to keep up - I know a number of event photographers using Lencarta and Godox equipment and if it can survive that it can survive most things

Mike
 
Kodiak Qc said:
•
I am a committed Profoto user and I don't advertise it…
as I was only answering the question of the OP in his best
interest based on my experience.
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Sorry I don't understand your response to me . I was just posting my personal experience :-)
 
stumac said:
Sorry I don't understand your response to me . I was just posting my personal experience :)
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I think that this is just a misunderstanding caused by language difficulty - I don't always understand Kodiak, but his English is better than my French so I can't be critical :)
 
I thought that Garry I was replying to the op as he mentions 2 manufactures I have a bit of experience with as I say a few things with the bowens annoy me - just little things but 1 for example is if a head is being used as a slave and the modelling light is on full it will not pick up the flash from the master so doesn't flash .
 
SeagullSteve said:
So I could get a brand new set, with slightly less power for probably cheaper than a second hand set of Elinchrom/Bowens.
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If you go the second hand route you can save a chunk by buying 200w heads, many beginners think they're doing themselves a favour by buying a more powerful head when as Phil points out the problem tends to be too much power not too little. Preferably try to avoid Bowens 125 or older and the pre-IT Elinchrom D-lite heads.

If you don't have a specific need for more power you could probably save even more buying a Lencarta SmartFlash 2 rather than the ElitePro 2.

SeagullSteve said:
I appreciate that the modifiers may be different and I would have to factor that in
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Lencarta uses the same mount as Bowens so if you go with any of these three brands you're going to have access to the vast majority of modifiers, it's easier and cheaper to stick to one mount rather than mixing so try to avoid mixing Elinchrom and Bowens etc.

SeagullSteve said:
What's peoples thoughts on buying second hand Elinchrom/Bowen as opposed to buying new Lencarta?
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Mike hits the nail on the head, the key advantage of buying new is having a warranty but I'd say the key advantage of buying second hand is your money goes further and you can get access to some very impressive professional equipment you wouldn't otherwise be able to justify but it can be a bit of a mine field for a beginner. Second hand is always my preference but it helps to have a bit of experience.

In general terms I wouldn't stress over the brand you're buying too much.
 
simonbarker said:
Mike hits the nail on the head, the key advantage of buying new is having a warranty but I'd say the key advantage of buying second hand is your money goes further and you can get access to some very impressive professional equipment you wouldn't otherwise be able to justify but it can be a bit of a mine field for a beginner. Second hand is always my preference but it helps to have a bit of experience.
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A major point is that I have used many studio lights although probably a lot less than Garry and would know wht to test etc. when buying second hand lights (I have done) whereas somebody new to them most likely will not have that knowedge.

MIke
 
Thanks for al your replys - much apprectiated.

mike weeks said:
The advantage of new is the warranty
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This is one of the reasons I was looking at the new Lencarta's. I know I would have a warranty and the kit price is probably a bit less than buying second hand Elinchrom or Bowens.

Kodiak Qc said:
My experience says that if you extend a kit, one is better stay in the same system as it helps keep up the resale value eventually.
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I may not have made myself clear - I didn't intend to buy an Elinchrom and a Bowen - it was going to be a complete set of one or the other. I would always keep to the same manufacturer.

Phil V said:
For a typical home studio, the Elite Pro are far more likely to be too powerful than not powerful enough.

My thoughts would be to upgrade the soft boxes, for irregular use id want something quick to assemble, and maybe s bit bigger too.
In fact I'd buy smart flash and spend more on an Octa and a beauty dish.
Click to expand...
The ElitePro 300 is only 300 watt which is why I was looking at them. Less power than the Elinchrom D-Lite 4 or the Bowens Gemini 400's that I was looking at. Given the price my intention was to get a larger softbox (lencarta are offering an 85x85 for a good price as well) as well as beauty dish.

mike weeks said:
If only shooting at home then 250w is probably better than 500w

My original Bowens are about 20 years old and still going strong

Regardless of brand by buying new from a UK based professional supplier you have much legal protection

Money no object then Profoto, quality most important then Elinchrom must be on the list - to my mind Bowens are still good but have failed to keep up - I know a number of event photographers using Lencarta and Godox equipment and if it can survive that it can survive most things
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I was looking at the 300watt versions of the Lencarta's which seem to be best (to me at least) for home studio type work along with the odd charity do that I'm asked to cover where I have to do groups of upto 10 people in a larger room. Money is an object so Profoto is out (I've just looked at them on ebay - blimey!!!)

Is Godox worth looking at. I would be concerned that they are a Chinese only company, so any warranty would be pretty worthless - would be like buying secondhand really.
 
SeagullSteve said:
Is Godox worth looking at. I would be concerned that they are a Chinese only company, so any warranty would be pretty worthless - would be like buying secondhand really.
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There are UK Suppliers that will offer a UK warranty and the Lencarta Lights are built in the Godox factory

Mike
 
mike weeks said:
There are UK Suppliers that will offer a UK warranty and the Lencarta Lights are built in the Godox factory

Mike
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True - but when dealing with one of these re-sellers, it's a very good idea to check the length of the warranty, whether or not the warranty covers wear and tear, whether or not the warranty is provided by the retailer - "manufacturer's warranty" isn't worth a lot when the goods have to be returned to China - whether or not the retailer actually has their own repair facilities (because if they haven't you'll struggle if you need repairs out of warranty) whether the price quoted includes VAT and whether or not they are in fact offering the same goods, or whether they are offering an inferior model contained in the same or a similar case - comparing the specs will answer that one, some of the other info may be harder to find. AFAIK only The Flash Centre (Elinchrom distributor) and Lencarta actually have their own repair facilities in the UK, but I'd be happy to be proved wrong on that. Obviously, as I'm heavily involved with Lencarta, I'm not exactly impartial, so please do your own checking to see exactly what a warranty offered by others is actually worth.

To come back to the question of power, I agree that the SmartFlash is all that you need for a home studio. Too much power can cause more problems than too little, and if you're shooting on digital then simply increasing the ISO by 50% will increase the effective power by 50% - all is explained here
 
Garry Edwards said:
To come back to the question of power, I agree that the SmartFlash is all that you need for a home studio. Too much power can cause more problems than too little, and if you're shooting on digital then simply increasing the ISO by 50% will increase the effective power by 50% - all is explained here
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Modern DSLR changing from ISO 100 to 400 will be virtually impossible to detect and that is a 400% change so like having 2 more stops on your lighting, whereas if you need to go the other way (some cameras have a low setting) as in reduce from ISO 100 to ISO 25 (unlikely) but 50 ISO is often possible there will be a reduction usually in tonal range.

Mike
 
I am swaying towards new Lencarta's (new as opposed to second hand, warranty, uk repair facilities etc etc) but their pricing structure seems a little wayward.

I'll PM Garry with my concerns rather than air them here.

Thanks everyone for your replies.
 
I started out with Speedlights (Nikon, SB28 and SB800). They were adequate for learning, and in a small room (4x4m) have ample power. Few brollies, a softbox umbrella (An umbrella with a white diffuser over the open face) and a few home made snoots and grids.
From there I got some used Elinchrom BXRi's (1x 250W and 2x 500W) from the Flash Centre. I still use the Speedlights as accent lights and rim lights as they're powerful enough for those tasks in conjunction with the studio heads. What I *do* find is that in small spaces, and for product style shooting, the 500W heads can be overbearing, as well as being large and clunky to set up and move around in confined spaces.
 
Go with the Elinchrom - as it has quite a wide range of accessories and you can buy older models for quite cheap now.

Bowens is ok but not as consistent in its flashes (own experiences).
 
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