flash vs dedicated lighting setup

[wideangle]

What is the difference between a flash setup with umbrellas and dedicated lighting setup? Is one more effective over the other, or do they both have their place?

[I @ M]

Not quite sure what you are asking Thomas but at a rough guess I will say that you are referring to the difference between speedlights as Nikon refer to them and speedlites as Canon refer to them versus studio style lighting heads or monoblocs, then yes there is a large difference between the two systems and both do have their place but in many instances one can be substituted for the other.

A more definitive answer might be given if you tell us what in particular you wish to photograph using incident lighting.

[wideangle]

Not quite sure what you are asking Thomas but at a rough guess I will say that you are referring to the difference between speedlights as Nikon refer to them and speedlites as Canon refer to them versus studio style lighting heads or monoblocs, then yes there is a large difference between the two systems and both do have their place but in many instances one can be substituted for the other.

A more definitive answer might be given if you tell us what in particular you wish to photograph using incident lighting.

To clarify - would a small room setup for portraits/small groups/family photos work well with a x2 speedlight setup and umbrellas or would dedicated studio lighting work more effectively?

[jjphoto]

I assume when you say 'dedicated' are you referring to a strobe connected to a power pack or running directly off mains power? This is probably not the best way to describe such lights because the only 'dedicated' studio lights are probably those connected to a power pack (ie a small strobe head with all the power related electronics in the power pack instead of the head itself) rather than monolights/monoblocks which are commonly used outdoors on inverters or even generators for larger units (even power packs).

The main advantage of any 'studio type strobe' (that is not a speedlight or intended for use mounted to a camera) is simply that they have MODELLING LIGHTS!!! This makes the world of difference because it makes it much easier to adjust your lighting. They are also better suited for use in very large light modifiers/softboxes etc which typically need fairly strong lights.

To clarify - would a small room setup for portraits/small groups/family photos work well with a x2 speedlight setup and umbrellas or would dedicated studio lighting work more effectively?

You can pretty much do all the same things with speedlights (thanks to being able to shoot at very high ISO's which compensate for their lack of power) but they are hardly ever the best choice for the job.

[I @ M]

Ok, with you now.

For one person portraits, 2 or even 1 speedlight/s will work very well with an appropriate modifier. Don't just think umbrellas as there are many "strobist" soft boxes available to suit although both shoot through and reflective umbrellas are more than useful for portraits.
For 2 people, 2 or more speedlights should work OK and then when getting into groups you may need more speedlights simply to cover all angles and eliminate unwanted shadows.
It will all depend on how many people, spread how far apart and how close you can get the lights to them but if it isn't a session photographing a football team with 100 exposures in rapid succession there is no reason that speedlights can't be used successfully.

[WhoDo]

...if it isn't a session photographing a football team with 100 exposures in rapid succession there is no reason that speedlights can't be used successfully.

I agree with this, and so does this guy - David Hobby, strobist.com.

[BigBear]

I don’t have any experience with ‘dedicated’ studio strobe lighting but I use two Nikon speedlights and umbrellas in a small room studio setup, usually with 1-3 people and they work well. The big advantage for me is that they are very portable, I can take them to other locations very easily as they fit in my camera bag and don’t require power points.

[fillum]

Not remotely my area of expertise, but a few (perhaps random) thoughts...

- in addition to speedlights and studio strobes there is also continuous studio lighting (for example*). I assume that the advantage is similar to jj's statement about modelling lights - you can see exactly where the light is hitting. I think the disadvantage is lack of power compared to strobes, and portability obviously...

- speedlights are directional by design. In larger softboxes this can result in uneven spread of light and 'hot spots'. A second internal diffusion layer and one of those stofen-type diffusers over the speedlight will help alleviate this, but at the cost of reducing effective output...

- speedlights can be 'doubled up' (although obviously you need to fart about with mounts, etc) giving either increased power when needed, or reduced recycle times due to a lower setting on each speedlight. (If interested there's a vid on youtube showing how Joel Grimes does this). I think there are mounts available that will hold 4 speedlights...


edit: * Just provided as an example available from a site sponsor. I haven't used that gear so not provided as a recommendation, or otherwise...


Cheers.

[Brian500au]

The answer here is horses for courses.

As everybody has suggested above the speedlites are multifunctional - they can be set up indoors and they are very portable for outdoors. For years I only used speedlites. If you have a couple of speedlites then I would not invest any further unless you have the cash to do so.

As for a studio, there are advantages in using dedicated lighting set up. These include a more balance spread of light through modifiers, faster recycle times, more consistent light temperatures, not having to change and recharge batteries. Also don't under estimate the time it takes to charge up all these batteries for a session - how long are you planning a session in the studio (you may need 20+ batteries)?

If you don't have a portable flash set up then for the price of a couple of speedlites, modifiers, batteries etc you could easy set yourself up with a smaller studio lighting system. Once again horses for courses.

Kel

[wideangle]

Thanks for your replies eveyone. Sounds like a 2 external flash setup can work well, I like the portability as well. Can anyone recommend and good places to get backgrounds, stands and umbrellas from? Ive seen a lot of cheap items on ebay, but not sure of their durability.

As everybody has suggested above the speedlites are multifunctional - they can be set up indoors and they are very portable for outdoors. For years I only used speedlites. If you have a couple of speedlites then I would not invest any further unless you have the cash to do so.

As for a studio, there are advantages in using dedicated lighting set up. These include a more balance spread of light through modifiers, faster recycle times, more consistent light temperatures, not having to change and recharge batteries. Also don't under estimate the time it takes to charge up all these batteries for a session - how long are you planning a session in the studio (you may need 20+ batteries)?

If you don't have a portable flash set up then for the price of a couple of speedlites, modifiers, batteries etc you could easy set yourself up with a smaller studio lighting system. Once again horses for courses.

Kel