geekpower said:
can anybody comment on the practicality of using multiple lights in amateur settings? not people coming to you for portraits, but you whipping out the camera and lights to take pics of family and friends. will they hold still long enough to get set up?
No, they won't hold still. The essential of these photos are not technicality (correct) but to capture the moment. If you have a wedding photographer friend he will have better explanation for you.
My approach is based on color temperature and a two lighting setup, at max 3 but that is (I consider) an exaggeration.
For a two lighting setup, I always use the strongest available light, and I use a flash to kill the other one; the purpose is to remove color cast.
If window light is strong enough then I expose for it (main light) and use a flash to compensate. By this I mean, if time permits I would have a flash on a stick (lightstand and a receiver) and I put it on the opposite side of window light; I have it in TTL and I regulate its power via exposure compensation. The first shoot is a test, the second is the right one. If time doesn't permit then I would have it on camera and bounce it of ceiling or wall.
If window light is weak, then I gel my flash to match room light color. I use the flash as main light and room light as fill/hair.
Sometimes, the room is too big, then I might end up using a strobe and a lot of calculation based on distance (and most of the time I have to fix it in post). I know that some strobes have TTL nowadays but mine are still manual.
In 3 lighting set up, I use a second flash as a background or hair light; but again I use this very rarely.
Hope that helps to start with.