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Need help understanding lighting
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Studio lighting, just would like to understand something. I don’t have any studio lights now but am thinking of investing.
So. Studio lights – soft boxes, hair lights, background spot lights etc. They are all switched on while you’re composing your shots. The when you release the shutter they flash. Maybe I’m missing something but when you’ve composed your light as you want it, how come the additional flash when you release the shutter doesn’t result in over exposure or just the shot being brighter than you planned ? Am I missing something here ? Can’t understand it.
No expert here and could be way off, but the way I see it is the continuous light is on
so that you can pose your model and see the way the light is falling, you then take a
reading which fires the flash, set your camera to the appropriate reading and bob’s your
uncle. :DIn my opinion, there’s no alternative other than to use a light meter to get your exposures correct for studio flash photography.
One of the best investments a photographer will make.
Not sure about how you are metering or whether it’s the modelling lights on studio flash that you are refferring to. Personally, I use the modelling lights just to see how the light falls on a subject & then turn them off & use a flash meter for the exposure. I’ve never found any difference in the exposure if I left the modelling lights on though as they have a low output anyway.
The modelling light goes off when the flash light fires so no need to turn them off. At least thats how my lights work but maybe others differ.
thefizz wrote:
The modelling light goes off when the flash light fires so no need to turn them off. At least thats how my lights work but maybe others differ.
Some lights allow you to have modeling lamp on all the time even if the flash fired but it wont affect exposures.
Pat wrote:
Studio lighting, just would like to understand something. I don’t have any studio lights now but am thinking of investing.
So. Studio lights – soft boxes, hair lights, background spot lights etc. They are all switched on while you’re composing your shots. The when you release the shutter they flash. Maybe I’m missing something but when you’ve composed your light as you want it, how come the additional flash when you release the shutter doesn’t result in over exposure or just the shot being brighter than you planned ? Am I missing something here ? Can’t understand it.
Can you explain what you mean by saying additional flash??
I think you are using modeling (continuous) light to read your exposure value witch is wrong and then when you press shutter, flash fire and you pictures are over exposure, is that right ??
TwinFlash wrote:
I think you are using modeling (continuous) light to read your exposure value witch is wrong and then when you press shutter, flash fire and you pictures are over exposure, is that right ??
I wasn’t doing anything at the time I wrote this post as I didn’t own any lights and had never used them. However since then I did buy a set of Bowen lights and have used them.
I think I answered my own question. You are correct in that I was confused about how the lights worked, exposure value with modelling lights on and then the flash on top of that when the picture is taken. Some experimentation and I worked out how to get correct exposure. Trial and error, lesson learnt – never go on a real shoot without knowing your gear !
Hi Pat you did not say wheither you invested in a flash meter and from your statement ‘Some Experimentation’ suggests that you have not invested in one. I would suggest that it be your next and most immediate purchase as you can not balance your lights correctly without one. and without one you will never master multiple head flash photography.
Martin Devlin wrote:
Hi Pat you did not say wheither you invested in a flash meter and from your statement ‘Some Experimentation’ suggests that you have not invested in one. I would suggest that it be your next and most immediate purchase as you can not balance your lights correctly without one. and without one you will never master multiple head flash photography.
Hi Martin,
Recently I did my first studio shoot and I did buy a meter for that. Like you said, without it I might have been groping around in the dark. :D A very useful (and essential) piece of kit.
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