How much light(watts) do you need to shoot f8 to f11 in studio

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Dylan777

Dylan777

Nov 17, 2011
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#1
I plan to buy a Studio strobe lighting set.

Here is my plan:
1. Setup location, my garage
2. Shooting F-stops, min f8 prefer f11
3. Shutter speed, 1/125 or faster
4. 100ISO
5. Budget $300 to $600 (lower better, don't plan to use much)

You guys know the min light(watts) I should be looking for? or any good suggestions?

Thanks
Dylan
 
#2
It depends on how large your subjects are, how far they will be from the lights and what type of modifiers you will be using. Its better to spend a little more when you make your initial investment rather than find that you can't do something you want to do later because you under spec'd your gear. Studio strobes are aspirational gear in that many people buy them and find that they don't really use them much so you can often find like new gear on ebay/craigs list for 20-40% less then new retail. I'd recommend starting with a couple of monolights such as Alien Bees AB 800s combined with ebay soft boxes or umbrellas. You will also need to budget stands, reflectors and perhaps a backdrop.
 
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#4
i've been using the alien bees b800 (320 W/s) for studio portraits. typically with the ab800 set at 1/16 (20 W/s) power with large softbox, and at f2.8-4.0 iso 100 shutter 1/200, i get great lighting. complementing the ab800 with canon 430ex ii (also around 1/8 to 1/16 power), i easily get to f8. with the ab800 at full power, it's usually too much light indoors for portraits.
 
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#5
Dylan777 said:
You guys know the min light(watts) I should be looking for? or any good suggestions?
Click to expand...

At 2m with a rect. softbox in the 2'x3' to 4'x6' range I need about 150Ws to get f/11; a bit more with very narrow boxes or grids. With a white BD you're in the same ballpark. If you're in a confined space without black light absorbers the walls will act as fill cards, giving you more, although uncontrolled, illumination.
Keep in mind that you might want to dial light down, either to fill in shadows or to shoot wider open or with inherently more efficient tools. Thats where to much power and a narrow range is a problem.
(From a european perspective the elinchrome RX one or renewed D-lite2 are an interesting entry level offering. Enough power for indoor use, a clean accessory/upgrade path and they can be remote controlled via iPhone or PC - at a price point compareable to chinese imports.)
 
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#7
TrumpetPower! said:
What you want is a couple B800s. But if you can spring the extra $80 / head for the B1600s, you won't regret it.
Click to expand...

Are you sure? The B1600 has a 640 Ws max like the Einstein, but only a 6-stop (vs. the Einstein's 9-stop) range. The max power is great for overpowering the sun outdoors, but in a small indoor space like the OP is talking about, depending on modifiers used, the min power of the B1600 may be too much. I often need to dial my Einstein down by 7-8 stops indoors (lower than the B1600 can be set).

Another option is B1600s plus a 2- or 3-stop ND (assuming one doesn't want to stop down past f/22).
 
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#9
neuroanatomist said:
TrumpetPower! said:
What you want is a couple B800s. But if you can spring the extra $80 / head for the B1600s, you won't regret it.
Click to expand...

Are you sure? The B1600 has a 640 Ws max like the Einstein, but only a 6-stop (vs. the Einstein's 9-stop range). The max power is great for overpowering the sun outdoors, but in a small indoor space like the OP is talking about, depending on modifiers used, the min power of the B1600 may be too much. I often need to dial my Einstein down by 7-8 stops indoors.

Another option is B1600s plus a 2- or 3-stop ND (assuming one doesn't want to stop down to f/22).
Click to expand...

Well, even with the B1600s, I've gone close to minimum power but never actually wished I could cut it further. And I do frequently use my Einsteins at or near full power when I'm using them to light a seamless white background so as to blow it out. And I generally shoot at f/8, sometimes f/11.

I suppose there might be setups where they're too much, and I suppose there might be styles where such setups are common...but they're rather different from mine.

But, of course, the Einsteins are awesome.

(Sadly, there was an incident late yesterday afternoon...a stand tipped and one of the un-modified Einstein fell flat on the Pyrex cover. It'll need to meet its maker for resurrection, but I'm sure I'll be out of pocket well under $100, and that'll include the loaner. PCB service is awesome -- it's worth buying their gear just for how well they take care of you!)

Cheers,

b&
 
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#11
Lumens, not watts! Efficiency of different lighting types is hugely different. You might need 1500 watts with a incandescent setup but only 400 watts with a efficient LED light setup.
Of course, the wattage needed depends on distance and size of the lighted area.
 
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#12
Mt Spokane Photography said:
Lumens, not watts!
Click to expand...

To get an exposure you need lms/m2, lumen-seconds/square meter. Good thing: flashtubes have about 40lm/w and a flash duration shorter then the sync time, so all strobes set to say 100Ws produce the same 4000lms, about the same as four 30W CFLs in one second (or a 650W halogen during a 1/5s exposure)
 
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#16
neuroanatomist said:
TrumpetPower! said:
What you want is a couple B800s. But if you can spring the extra $80 / head for the B1600s, you won't regret it.
Click to expand...
Are you sure? The B1600 has a 640 Ws max like the Einstein, but only a 6-stop (vs. the Einstein's 9-stop) range.
Click to expand...
+1 The ability of the Einstein to dial right down to something like 2.5 w/s can be incredibly useful.

-PW
 
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#18
Wrong question.

W/S has little to do with what you want. It is more about light modifiers, distance and what kind of light you want. What is the distance from the subject? Are you shooting head shots, or will you be doing full body?

It also depends if you ever want to shoot at lower apertures.

You can have some strobes that are rated at higher WS and put out less power than a lesser one.

Also, what are you looking for recycle time.
 
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#19
u should think about getting lights that range from 375 to 750. 500 w/s would be a nice compromise. 375 will work best at very close distances. the 750's will work from most any distance and allow you to go to f16 if u want to do that (which u probably won't). i have a couple of 375's and mostly 750's in my relatively small studio (15' x 20'). i use bowens professional lights and i like them.
 
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#20
Maui5150 said:
Wrong question.

W/S has little to do with what you want. It is more about light modifiers, distance and what kind of light you want. What is the distance from the subject? Are you shooting head shots, or will you be doing full body?

It also depends if you ever want to shoot at lower apertures.

You can have some strobes that are rated at higher WS and put out less power than a lesser one.

Also, what are you looking for recycle time.
Click to expand...

Of course!
 
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