Playing with off-camera lighting (show your lighting setup)

[Mathew Thompson]

I finally got around to ordering a few off-camera lighting accessories. A few weeks ago, I bought a pair of cheap flash stands and a pair of cheap flash umbrellas. I was all set to order a 25 foot ETTL cable, an optical slave and umbrella holder, but it was all out of stock.

However, I received the last of my kit last week and I've been having fun with off-camera lighting. I finally got a chance to retire my old setup which included a pair of portable lamps with 100 W compact fluorescent bulbs and my 580EX II bounced off the ceiling.

Now, I'm using a Canon 430EZ attached to the ETTL cable and a 580EX II with an optical slave in the PC Port. I'm still using a PVC pipe cage that measures about 2/5 feet wide by about 1.5-2 feet tall. I use a regular piece of poster board that I bought from office depot/max/staples. I punched some holes near the top and ran some cabling through, which is tied to one of the PVC pipes. It hangs down, allowing the item to sit on top of the paper. Sometimes I drape a shower curtain over top the PVC pipes to diffuse the light further.

The attached pictures show my setup. The third picture is raw, straight from the camera. The results speak for itself.

[Bruce Normann]

I'll take some pics when I get my next project underway and post 'em. Right now I just use the flip-down diffusers, plus the Stoffen type omni-bounce diffusers that Nikon includes with their speedlights. I use the same basic three light setup as you.

What umbrella clamps do you have? For some reason, I'm hung up on selecting them. I know it's not as critical as a tripod head (don't get me started...), but there does seem to be a variety of products available.

I'm guessing that the white umbrellas are better than the silver for our purposes.

[Mathew Thompson]

I've been using these from flashzebra:
http://flashzebra.com/brackets/index.shtml

As for umbrellas, shooting through the umbrellas will give you far more diffused light.

Here's some good info on umbrellas:
http://strobist.blogspot.com/2006/03/lighting-101-umbrellas.html
http://strobist.blogspot.com/2008/03/rethinking-umbrella.html

[Bruce Normann]

Thanks for the links,

I just love that Strobist site. I run accross it every year or two, and always come away inspired.

The clamps look good, especially the one with the clamp-style cold shoe: I use a variant (http://www.tiffen.com/displayproduct.html?tablename=stroboframe&itemnum=300-SHO) already from Stroboframe and they work well on my SB-80 and 800 speedlights. I didn't know they had a problem with other mounts (besides shorting the contacts), but I never tried them.


I've been using these from flashzebra:
http://flashzebra.com/brackets/index.shtml

As for umbrellas, shooting through the umbrellas will give you far more diffused light.

Here's some good info on umbrellas:
http://strobist.blogspot.com/2006/03/lighting-101-umbrellas.html
http://strobist.blogspot.com/2008/03/rethinking-umbrella.html

[Mathew Thompson]

What lens are you using? I've been trying to use as long a focal length as I can. My Canon EF 28-135 has been pretty good at 100-135mm. I tried using my Canon EF-S 55-250 at longer focal lengths, but vignetting was far too great and it had a tendency to underexpose. Then again, I was using ETTL before, so manual flash calibration may help.

In the end, I've contemplated getting myself a 100mm prime. My choices include an F/2 and an F/2.8 macro. The macro lens is supposed to have excellent sharpness, but macro, to me, has limited use. I've been leaning toward purchasing the faster F/2 prime, then. Now, I would like to go longer for product and portrait photos, but beyond 100mm, the prices for primes start to go crazy (save for the 135mm f/2.8).

[Bruce Normann]

For this kind of work, I find a macro lens absolutely essential, at least one that will focus down to 1:2 (full-frame). I don't think I could have gotten the side-port memory shot here (http://benchmarkreviews.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=305&Itemid=69&limit=1&limitstart=4), without a mid-tele macro lens. I use the first lens I ever bought for the Nikon system (30 years ago, 6 months before I even owned a body for it...), the Vivitar Series 1 90mm f2.5. It's the grand-daddy of all the current crop of fantastic 90-100mm private label macro lenses. Yes, it's all manual focus and manual aperture stops, but I do all my studio flash work on full manual control anyways. It's easy with digital, and I can adjust each speedlight up or down by 1/3 stop with the push of a button.

The 90-100 mm range is good for getting a decent stand-off distance from the subject, so the light can get in, unobstructed. I assume you are using a non-FF DSLR, otherwise I would suggest the excellent 150mm Sigma. Check out the chromatic aberation numbers (http://www.photozone.de/canon-eos/303-sigma-af-150mm-f28-apo-ex-dg-hsm-macro-test-report--review?start=1), they're world class.

Now that you're using flash, focusing is probably more difficult than when you had the CFLs burning. Maybe you should keep one running, like a modeling light. The 2.8 aperture does hamper manual focusing a bit, but the AF system will do OK with it, I think.

Optically, all the major private label macros are excellent, Sigma, Tokina, Tamron. The Canon is better made physically, so if this is a lifetime purchase it may be worth the extra $$. Speaking of extra $$, my dream macro lens is the Zeiss 100 F2.... $1450, though.

If I'm shooting something large, like a PC case,the 90mm is a bit too long for the larger pieces, so I use my 50mm f1.8 or my 50m f2.8 Micro-Nikkor a lot. Both are easy to use and sharp; one's AF, the other MF. There are always lots of small details to show in a case review though, so the 90mm macro lens always comes out for some of the shots.

Are you near any large photo shops, some offer rentals so you could try the macro for a weekend? Like I said, I haven't been without mine for 30 years, and I can't imagine not having one similar to it. That didn't stop me from buying an 85mm f1.8 MF, and a 105mm f2.5 MF, and a 105mm f4 Micro-Nikkor, and wanting the 105mm F2 DC (and the Zeiss...). Yes, my name is Bruce Normann, and I am a vintage lens adddict.

BTW, I just read your post again and you said you wanted to go a little longer....so maybe the Sigma 150mm would be good for you, even with the cropped sensor DSLR. Just be prepared to swap it out during the case and motherboard articles.

My favorite lens is one of my 180mm 2.8 teles, so I know what you mean about liking longer lenses. I don't think I've ever taken a bad picture with my MF one. I go too fast with my AF one, and its bokeh is not as good, so I don't have as much sucess with it. But I did intimate 1-2 person headshots all day long at my nephew's outdoor wedding last June, and the results blew him away.

Do you think we can get Olin to open up to a 800 pixels wide canvas?

Best Regards, Bruce.


What lens are you using? I've been trying to use as long a focal length as I can. My Canon EF 28-135 has been pretty good at 100-135mm. I tried using my Canon EF-S 55-250 at longer focal lengths, but vignetting was far too great and it had a tendency to underexpose. Then again, I was using ETTL before, so manual flash calibration may help.

In the end, I've contemplated getting myself a 100mm prime. My choices include an F/2 and an F/2.8 macro. The macro lens is supposed to have excellent sharpness, but macro, to me, has limited use. I've been leaning toward purchasing the faster F/2 prime, then. Now, I would like to go longer for product and portrait photos, but beyond 100mm, the prices for primes start to go crazy (save for the 135mm f/2.8).