Ready to start using new strobes with D300, Any Pointers on camera set up please?

[Raretoy]

I recently purchased a studio strobe lighting kit pieced together by myself.
Several strobes, umbrellas, reflectors, etc.
I also purchased the Alien Bees remote flash triggers too.

My questions regard camera settings with strobes vs. the hot lights I was accustomed to using?

White Balance: Can I still set custom white balance with a grey card.
Metering: Will I need to purchase a meter? I have read the meter will then determine the correct aperture setting. So can I assume that if the meter calls for setting aperture to say 5.6 in studio that I am free to go ahead with a 2.8 to get a more desirable portrait effect? Or will that throw off my exposure comepletely?
Shutter speed: With the hot lights I was setting aperture but keeping the D300 on auto shutter speed. Will that even work now with strobes or will the meter tell me where to set shutter speed?

Any tips from those in the know would be greatly appreciated!

[DougAxford]

I'll take a stab at some of these.

Most pros still use flash meters in the studio. Yes, you can use a grey card, Drew's Color Parrot or whatever you please. I use a Kelvin setting of 5300 deg for everything in my studio but that's my setting, yours will not be the same. Once set, it should remain the same unless you paint the walls or go on location where you get bounce effecting the setting.

If your meter reads 5.6 then that means 5.6 NOT 2.8, yes it matters A LOT. Move your lights farther back, add diffusers or turn them down until your reading is 2.8 (or lower ISO on camera). Shutter speed has no effect on exposure UNLESS the ambient light is bright enough to make a difference and as long as you are in your camera's range to make a full sync. Most pros set the shutter at 1/250th for studio work, I prefer 1/125 just to be safe. I'd keep your camera at a set shutter speed and never use auto anything (other than focus) in a studio setting.

As always, there are a multitude of ways of doing everything, many of which are correct given the circumstances. I'm just giving you my way.

BTW, you need to re-set your name as your real name. Most of the forum users here will not respond to posts that are not their real names. This forum is very different from most others. We welcome all new members but ask that you adjust to our style. It really helps keep posts much more friendly and free from BS.

[David_Buzzard]

Custom white balance is even more important with studio strobes, as it will change as you adjust the power settings. You'll also find that colour balances will change with the different reflectors you use, as they might be slightly different shades of white or silver.

I find that it's easier to get proper white balances off of a grey card than a diffusion device that goes over the lens when using strobes. A hand held flash meter is a handy thing to have, but you don't need anything too hectic, as you really just need to get in the ballpark, then you can fine tune the exposure from either the LCD, or a tethered computer.

David Buzzard

[Raretoy]

Very helpful, thanks guys!
So if the 2.8 is preferred over the meters request of say 5.6 ( whole reason I bought the new 2.8 lens ) then basically the meter is telling me the strobes need moved further back or turned down. Correct? Any preference or advantage in moving the lights back vs. turning the strobes power down?

To be sure of successful sync when going cordless do I simply make sure I am at say 1/125th in studio and then proceed or is the d300 sync range variable that I should communicate with the camera a sync range setting before setting shutter?

( I will gladly go by real name. Didnt see the edit function for that when updating profile? )

[David_Buzzard]

If you're using manual flash units, then you have to the shutter speed manually. Just be careful not accidentally set it above the flash sync speed.

You want to avoid shooting wide open with lenses. Two stops down from wide open is best for most high end lenses. It also gives you some extra DOF.

The quality of the light will change as you move them closer or farther from the subject, so you want to adjust them via flash power trimming. The closer a light is to the subject, the more pronounced the shadows will be.

David Buzzard

[DougAxford]

Originally Posted by David_Buzzard

The closer a light is to the subject, the more pronounced the shadows will be.

Well, not necessarily. If you are using a soft box or umbrella many guys want to get the light very close because it 'wraps' the face in a softer light. Easy way to visualize is that if your light is 3' wide and 10' away from subject, it's a way smaller source than if it's 3' away. I remember one of the first seminars I attended and the differences were demonstrated. It's still the same 35 years later. I know some guys that shoot with a softbox one foot from the face - bit close for me.

Hopefully, you've got modeling lights in your units and you can very easily see how the light effects your subject. The disadvantage of having a light very close is that if the subject moves a few inches, your exposure changes more than if the light is farther away.

I agree with David that most of us would want to shoot a portrait at 5.6, not 2.8 in the studio but you may be looking for an effect other than tack sharp for the whole face.

Most decent lights allow you to turn the flash power down to almost nothing. If not, you can put a white or grey cloth (filter) in front of the flash to cut the power. Just be very careful that anything close is not getting hot. Flash tubes can get hot enough to burn anything at close range. Just keep in mind that anything you modify your light with will change your WB. If you're shooting raw, the difference can be adjusted in post very easily. That also will allow you to see what the correct color temp is if you want to set it for shooting jpg.

Keep in mind that many people have to set shutter speed a bit slower with certain wireless units. Some do not sync well in conjunction with certain brands of flash units. Also, lots of guys can sync above the 250th threshold with studio flash, just depends upon your combination and a bit of luck. A quick test will tell. Simply take a series of shots with your set-up with the shutter at 1/60 then go up one click with each shot. When a black band appears at the edge of your image (view on monitor to see full image) then your sync is too high. That's one of the joys of digital - instant answers. Unless your ambient light is high in the studio, you want to keep the shutter speed a bit below the top sync speed to be safe. The flash is stopping the action, not the shutter.

[David_Buzzard]

True that a close light wraps, but don't forget that the intensity of light falls away in an inverse square relationship to distance from the subject. That means that if you have a light 1 foot from your subject, and the light fall off from front to back is 1 stop, then if you move that light to 2 feet from the subject, the light falloff will only be a 1/4 of a stop, thus softening the light. That's why big softboxes give such flat light, you have that wrap around effect from the huge light source, but at a farther distance to subject, which also flattens it out.

Keep in mind that all this scientific hokum is no substitute for putting some models under the lights and moving them around until it looks cool.

Don't sweat the sync speed too much, as if you have the room lights off in the studio, the flash exposure will by far over power any ambient light. You only need to use the max sync speed when balancing flash to ambient light, like when you're working outdoors.

David Buzzard