Have a question on what lighting route to go? Need some advice

[BBrat]

I am thinking of getting into portriat photography. First I must state its just for hobby and not so much bussiness, but I wouldnt mind if it took off at some point?

my question,

I have 3-580EXII and was wondering if I was better off just getting some stands, brackets, umbrella's, soft box'es etc and use the 3 flashes, or would I be better off suited buying a 2-3 light system like the Genesis 200 or 400 (doesnt have to be the genesis) and go from there?

I figure to spend up to 800.00-ish give or take? I would mostly use either system indoors (but wouldnt mind if outdoor was possible) shooting babies and children (have a bunch of friends asking if I would shoot their children) and move on up if it progresses.

I need your advice/help.:)

Thanks

[tim]

You might be best off using the speedlites for that. If you think you'll be using them enough to get close to burning them out get studio strobes. Strobes give you more power and more control.

[Titus213]

While your 580EX II flash units are terrific they may be limited in outdoor use in full auto mode. The Canon wireless system has issues with bright sun. Indoors they are generally fine with enough surfaces to bounce the command light they issue.

Manual mode they would work great with radio triggers.

I'd get some stands and umbrellas and give them a go.

[staffer]

It depends how serious you are. The speedlights will probably do for casual shooting but if you want to really discover portraiture (or to be more specific, lighting for portraiture) you will want to invest in at least some monoblocs.
Studio strobes will allow you to discover a variety of reflectors, umbrellas, soft boxes, snoots, grids etc., all of which will allow you to finesse the light you are producing. And although light modifiers are available for shoe-mount flashes, there are limitations. The recycling time will be faster, you have modelling lights and more power (generally) when you need it. In short, you have more control.
Speedlights are great when you need portability, a small package, light weight and convenience. You can get marvelous results but the speedlight option will not give you the power and versastility of studio strobes.

[jr_senator]

I would be interested in hearing some suggested strobe setups for $800ish. Seems to me the OP is better off with his 580EXIIs than a cheepy strobe setup.

[2112]

I would be interested in hearing some suggested strobe setups for $800ish. Seems to me the OP is better off with his 580EXIIs than a cheepy strobe setup.

I would recommend the Alienbees "Digibee" package. Its $599 for a 2 light setup. I would probably pay the extra $55 to make one of them a B800 though, then use the 400 as the fill light. So thats about $655 plus shipping. With the rest, I would get the Cyber Syncs if you need them or get a softbox if you dont.

http://www.alienbees.com/digi.html

[staffer]

Elinchrom has a 2 light kit for $760.00 at B&H

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/478440-REG/Elinchrom_EL_20811KIT_D_Lite2_Two_Monolight_Kit.ht ml

[BBrat]

I would be interested in hearing some suggested strobe setups for $800ish. Seems to me the OP is better off with his 580EXIIs than a cheepy strobe setup.

Calumet Genesis 200 or 400 series 2 light kit seem to be popular and get good reviews from POTN users.

[Pucky]

i was in the same situation a couple weeks ago but all i have is a single 430 speedlite. i decided to go with strobes over more speedlites.

i was set on picking up the Genesis 400 kit until i spoke to a pro photographer that suggested something with a fast recycle time since i'll be shooting fashion models. i ended up picking an Elinchrom d-lite2 kit.

i'm completely satisfied. recycle time is as fast as i need and i couldn't imagine having to shoot with a recycle. power hasn't been an issue either.

if you don't need the recycle time, then go for the Genesis.

[staffer]

I'm not familiar with the Genesis lights but they accept Elinchrom speedrings so I assume they also accept the reflectors. Might be a good choice. Either way, you won't regret buying monolights.

[BBrat]

I'm going to checkout all the lighting kits recommended and hopefully reach a decision. There are alot of great suggestions, and I thank all of you.

Keep the suggestions coming while I am deciding.

[Hermes]

IMO the money would be best spent on some good quality stands, umbrellas, rechargables, radio triggers, e.t.c. for your 580ex's. That way if you do eventually decide to shoot portraits professionally you'll be able to buy some decent studio strobes and you'll have everything you need to use them properly.

If you go the studio strobe kit route now, you'll end up blowing your entire budget on entry level gear (flimsy stands, cheap softboxes, strobes with limited features, e.t.c.). If you then take to portraiture you'll soon find yourself wanting to upgrade all that stuff and having to spend the money all over again.

There is very little you can't do with hotshoe flashes. They don't need reflectors as they have built in Fresnel lenses, you can make snoots and honeycomb grids for next to nothing, you can get a huge range of gels for them without spending a small fortune and they can use the same umbrellas and softboxes that studio strobes can. On top of that they are lightweight and completely portable. Their main limitations are their power and their recycle times but that's really not something that should worry you until you have your own studio and are being paid for your time.

[2112]

Calumet Genesis 200 or 400 series 2 light kit seem to be popular and get good reviews from POTN users.

As Pucky said, recycle times on the Genesis isnt good. I owned them for a few weeks and agree, almost a full 3 seconds recycle time. You will also be ordering other manufacturer's accessories too. I thought the Elinchrom stuff was too pricey to be honest. So if you ordered the D-Lite like from Elinchrom, still have the expensive accessories.

I would go with the Alienbees. Great price, well made and tons of accessories at a good price. You also get 2 months to try them out too.

[doidinho]

I would get 2 stands, 2 umbrellas, and a reflector to start out with. I assume you have some sort of triggering for your three light setup. If you have a tripod you could use that as your third stand; if not you could be creative and find place to place the third flash in most situations.

Getting decent stuff this would set you back around $250 USD +/- and give you a very decent portrait setup. Even if you decide to move into strobes you will still want all the small light stuff for the times when you don't want to lug a ton of stuff around. I have found the light from shoe mount flashes to be very nice. Provided you are not shooting at a high speed, large groups, or in strong sunlight this would serve you very well and allow you to identify the specific requirements of the studio strobe that will serve you best if you decide you want to go that route, and if you decide you want to move into studio lights later you will still have the budget to do so.

[staffer]

If I may chime in again... I use speedlights/quantums on location a lot, primarily since I've been lugging monolights and powerpacks around on assignments for 20 years now and I like the one case solution with the little flashes. I sometimes use them in the studio but I mainly use the monolights. If I was starting out, the lack of a modeling light would probably discourage me from using shoe-mount strobes. I don't know many seasoned pros who (in a studio setting) simply plunk down a light and aim it at the subject hoping for the best. The light needs to be finessed. Achieving proper short, broad or butterfly light without a modelling light will be hit or miss. You can do it with shoe-mount units, absolutely, but it will be easier with monolights. As someone starting out who wants to learn how to light properly, I believe units with modelling lights would be a better choice.
You can pump a shoe-mount into an umbrella or a couple into a light panel for a bigger source, but a 4'x3' softbox fits better on a monolight. If you were doing a lot of environmental portraits and had to travel light, small strobes would make sense. Joe McNally has surely demonstrated this advantage, but as far as I know, he uses monolights in the studio.
As well, waiting for those 580's to recycle when you're in a groove will get very frustrating. I bought a Broncolor mobilite kit when they first came out and even though the heads ran off a battery pack, they were slow to recycle and were a constant source of frustration.
Portraits are not created using only umbrellas all the time. The quality of light is extremely important in portraiture and that is achieved through a variety of modifiers. They can be expensive, but you can pick those up along the way as you improve.
I will admit however, in my first year as a poor student, I used a dinky little shoe-mount I picked up for $25 and a dollar store umbrella painted silver to take a portrait of my grandfather. Getting into the studio, I was amazed at the quality and variety of light I could get from the studio equipment, my little flash didn't quite cut it.

[bobbyz]

staffer, well said.