portable lighting

Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Richard Crowe on January 13, 2010 at 9:10am

Will you have A/C power available or will you need to use battery powered lights?

Permalink Reply by Wellelsey Stanbury on January 13, 2010 at 10:09am

i will have A/C power

Permalink Reply by Omar Mediano on January 13, 2010 at 10:55am

If anyone has any input on portable on location lighting without AC, that would be helpful as well.

Thanks

Permalink Reply by Mike Hiler on January 28, 2010 at 8:04pm

I'm trying to find answers to this same requirement.

To meet my need, I'm looking for a portable power supply to provide AC power to my lights. I'm about to purchase a device which provides AC power (no generators) but I'm unsure about how long I'll be able to run. If I go that route I'll post a review.

Mike :)

Permalink Reply by Richard Crowe on February 12, 2010 at 7:54am

I can probably help a bit with information on A/C powered lights but, other than using hotshoe battery operated strobes (Strobist type) I have not worked with battery powered strobes outdoors.

Although they can be inexpensive (such as used Vivitar 285HV units) I don't recommend using hotshoe flashes for portraiture where A/C power is available. The main drawback is the lack of a modeling light which I consider essential for controlling my light source. Shooting blind without modeling lights and monitoring the results on your LCD or even on a tethered computer is possible. However, you CAN boil ice cubes to make tea but, that is not the most efficient way to get hot water. Other drawbacks of hotshoe flashes used in a studio venue are: hotshoes are powered by AA batteries and the recycle time gets longer as you use the flashes (however, there are a/c and powerpack options for some strobes), the hotshoe flashes are underpowered and their reflectors are tiny. It is inefficient to attempt to diffuse light made specular by a tiny hotshoe reflector. Additionally, if you are using hotshoes, you are better off with a strobe with which you can remove the reflector. There is only one hotshoe flash that I know of which has a removable reflector and that is the Sunpak 120J which is no longer produced but, can be found on the used market. You need extra accessories to place hotshoe flashes on light stands and to use light modifiers like umbrellas. If you try to buy a set of Canon or Nikon hotshoe flashes for studio work, you will end up paying a LOT more than purchasing mid-grade studio strobes.

Studio strobes come in many grades; from the very inexpensive Chinese models sold new on eBay to very expensive units such as Bowens, Elinchrom, and others.

The Chinese models can be had for as little as $50,00 each and are O.K. if you are a casual photographer and use them infrequently. I am not sure of the quality control of these lights which seem to be marketed under several different brand names on eBay. Although these units can fit on light stands without modifiers and can accept light modifiers such as snoots, grids and umbrellas, most of them have non-removable reflectors and IMO are not great to be used with softboxes.
Here is an example of the type of strobe I am talking about:
http://cgi.ebay.com/150-ws-Pro-Photography-Studio-Strobe-Flash-Bran...

Calumet Distributes a line of decent strobes which are priced within reason:

http://cgi.ebay.com/150-ws-Pro-Photography-Studio-Strobe-Flash-Bran...

http://www.calumetphoto.com/item/CF0514/

These have a wide range of light modifier options

Adorama also distributes a series of studio strobes which have a full range of light modifiers available:

http://www.adorama.com/catalog.tpl?op=cattop_2

Alien Bees which are distributed by Paul C. Buff' of White Lightning fame are also excellent lights at a decent price.

http://www.alienbees.com/flash.html

Although you can produce some nice portraiture with one light or one light and a reflector, the ideal portrait setup is three or four lights. Main (or key) light, fill light, hair light and/or background light. IMO, you don't need the most powerful of most expensive lights to use as hair or background lights.

You can, if you have patience,occasionally find used studio strobes on eBay or other used equipment web sites. However, sometimes these lights go for almost as much as new ones. I found a great set of three German-Made Multiblitz monolights with barndoors, grid, snoot, filter holder and set of colored glass filters, all in a fitted suitcase type carrier for $200 plus $25 shipping. These are not particularly powerful units but are great for portraiture - especially portraiture on location.

Searching eBay by selecting Cameras & Photo > Lighting & Studio Equipment > Studio Flashes & Strobes> and choosing the "used" option will narrow your search down and usually eliminate a lot of the junk. Perhaps you can get lucky and find some nice lights, either in a set or individually.