It’s “Tricky Tuesday” which is a way for me to share some of the tricks, tools & techniques I use when shooting portraits in the studio, It’s also National Coffee Day and although I don’t drink coffee, if you enjoyed today’s blog post and would like to buy me a cup of Earl Grey tea ($3.50), click here. If you do, thanks so much.
Today’s Post by Joe Farace
“Nothing can dim the light which shines from within.”–Maya Angelou
In my post Portraits with Monolights I talked about what I saw as the advantages of using monolights for studio photography. That’s not the only lighting choice portrait photographers have when working in the studio. What about using power pack and head systems? Are they also a viable option? Here’s a few things to consider:
Let’s start with power supply: Most power packs are AC powered but just as DC powered monolights are gaining favor, DC power packs are becoming popular too. If you’re thinking about an AC powered system, ask yourself this: On shoots, how far away is the nearest power outlet? Here’s a few other things to consider, such as…
Using Power Pack & Head Systems
Flash Head Size: Like everything else in the word of studio lighting, the size of power packs continue to shrink and many flash heads are downright tiny. Flash heads in this kind of system are typically small anyway because, unlike monolights, the power supply is located somewhere else, so there’s less weight to hang on boom arms and lightstands. If your working on location or in tight spaces, small light heads are a lot easier to hide.
Power output: With the different outlets found on a power packs, the light output can be symmetrical, evenly divided so power from one head is the same as to the others or unevenly with power packs offering an asymmetric design. But there’s a downside: In a two light system, if a power pack fails, you can’t shoot. If you have two monolights and the power supply on one of them fails, you still have one light to finish the shoot. Maybe not perfect but better than nothing,
Portability: In addition to size and weight, a DC power pack’s lets you take your flash system into a cornfield to create studio lighting in the middle of nowhere. This is also where you run into the second downside of power pack/heads and that’s cables. You’ll need to run a cable from the power pack to each head to make it all work.
How I made this shot: For the first session that I had with Misa Lynn, I placed a single Speedotron M11 head with a 32-inch round reflector at camera right. The background was Silverlake Photo Accessories “Wild Flower” Colorsmack background hung on JTL background stands. The image was made using a Canon EOS 50D and EF 28-135mm f/3.5-5.6 IS lens at 125mm with an exposure of 1/125 sec at f/16 and ISO 100.
Making a Decision
When making any lighting equipment purchase, the first question to ask is what kind of photography do you do and where do you do it.
The next question is budget. I strongly believe you should only buy equipment that you can afford and that will pay for itself from your cash flow within a reasonable time frame. The worst thing to do business-wise would be going into debt to purchase an expensive system without having sufficient income to justify the purchase.
Don’t be embarrassed by purchasing the least expensive lighting you can afford. Believe me your clients won’t notice or don’t care. You can always upgrade in the future as your photographic income and technical skills permits.
My book Joe Farace’s Glamour Photography is full of tips, tools and techniques for glamour and boudoir photography and includes information on all of the cameras and lenses used as well as the complete exposure data for each image.
New copies are available from Amazon for $45.08. with used copies selling for around forty-three bucks, as I write this. The Kindle version is $19.99 for those preferring a digital format.