Why 1/125 is the most commonly used for studio shoot?

[danielyamseng]

Most people shoot at 1/125 with studio light. I thought it's the camera max sync speed that limit the speed, but why 1/125 is the commonly use for studio shoot even though a modern studio light was used?

[apersson850]

They often have quite a long flash duration, compared to a Speedlite type flash gun.

[danielyamseng]

Longer flash duration than speedlite but still shorter than camera shutter speed.

Thus, let say if I shoot at camera max sync speed, should it be a problem?

[gonzogolf]

As long as you aren't getting a black band indicating your shutter speed it too high you will be fine. Do a test shooting right up to the max sync speed of your camera to check. Some lights might not get you to full sync speed. Sync speed in the studio is kind of irrelevant though beyond the need to sync because unless you have very bright ambient conditions your exposures will be controlled by the aperture and the light you get from the short duration flashes.

[dustyporch]

I use 1/125 in the studio, and the things everyone posted above is true...

My camera's max sync is 1/200 which works with my triggers and studio lights. However, when the trigger batteries start to go off a bit, I sometimes see the black bar. If I use 1/125, then I have no problems (until the batteries go dead enough that they stop working!)

[queenbee288]

I use 1/160.

[bobbyz]

I prefer to shoot at the sync speed of my camera. My ABs strobes and cybersync triggers can handle /320 no problems.

Some cheaper triggers limit you what the max sync speed they can do.

Some studio strobes also limit you to the max. sync speed.

Since in studio env. ambient light is not an issue you can use 1/60 or 1/250 and it wouldn't make any difference.

[Benji]

A shutter speed of 1/125 (or thereabouts) will not allow any ambient light to affect your exposure.

I use a 500 watt "garage light" above my fill light (which is flash) to close the pupils of my subject's eyes so they will have lots of color in them. But at f/8.0 and 1/125 it has absolutely no effect whatsoever in the color balancing of the image. I attempted one time to figure out how slow of a shutter speed I would need for it to affect the exposure. If I remember correctly it would take a shutter speed of 12 seconds long using f/8.0 as my aperture (at IS0 100.)

Benji

[vadim_c]

Longer flash duration than speedlite but still shorter than camera shutter speed.

Thus, let say if I shoot at camera max sync speed, should it be a problem?
Photogenics StudioMax for example has flash duration 1/125 sec.
If the flash duration is exactly 1/250 technically there still could be overlap as the flash cannot fire the same instant the curtains open fully, there is always some delay.
Also cheaper radiotriggers are unable to synch at 1/250 when the batteries are low.

And finally setting the shutter speed in studio at 1/250 does not give you any advantage over 1/125 as most often the aperture usually is F8.0 and up so why bother.

[mmahoney]

Studio photographers are notoriously lazy .. they never want to leave the studio, never want to move their lights, etc., etc.

So they just turned their shutter speeds to 125, and didn't have the energy to go any faster. Or, another story has it that they are so stunned that they wanted an easy number to remember, as easy as "1,2,3", and they rounded up a little.

[mellofelow]

125 is good if you want the background to be in focus. But to be a little creative, to shoot at f2 or f2.8 with fast prime, it's way too slow... even at max sync.

[gonzogolf]

125 is good if you want the background to be in focus. But to be a little creative, to shoot at f2 or f2.8 with fast prime, it's way too slow... even at max sync.

What does aperture have to do with shutter speed in a studio situation? I understand your point outside in bright ambient, but not in a studio where you can control the light output to fit the desired aperture regardless of shutter speed.

[mellofelow]

You're right... to shoot open, I had to dial the strobes way down, or distance the lights. However, that introduces light quality issues and dialing in combination with other strobes.

I'm fairly noob on this so it maybe just my experience.

[PCthug]

All mine are at 1/200, and i seem to use an aperture of f8, 9/10 times.

[Wilt]

Most people shoot at 1/125 with studio light. I thought it's the camera max sync speed that limit the speed, but why 1/125 is the commonly use for studio shoot even though a modern studio light was used?

Lostsa shooters with 135 format camera experience, where 1/125 was a common ceiling to max X-sync shutter speed for a very long time.

[noodle_snacks]

125 is good if you want the background to be in focus. But to be a little creative, to shoot at f2 or f2.8 with fast prime, it's way too slow... even at max sync.

Shooting wide open all the time doesn't make you creative.

[Chris&jess]

I've been shooting at 1/250
Chris

[Gatorboy]

All mine are at 1/200, and i seem to use an aperture of f8, 9/10 times.

You could shoot at 1/30 and you would still be using the same aperture.

When in the studio and overpowering the ambient like crazy, shutter speed is a non-factor ... unless you get down to really slow shutter speeds, allowing ambient to creep in.

[PCthug]

You could shoot at 1/30 and you would still be using the same aperture.

When in the studio and overpowering the ambient like crazy, shutter speed is a non-factor ... unless you get down to really slow shutter speeds, allowing ambient to creep in.

Ah! I forgot to mention, most the time i try to get the room as dark as possibly so i control ALL the light, and therefore there isnt much ambient light at all. This is just due to the type of photos i shoot.
That still doesnt explain why 1/125 is the prefered SS.
I ahve seen some of my friends who shoots mainly 1/125 and they appear blured due to camera shake. In fact he took some of falling petals and they had motion blur in them.

I am also very new to this.

[Gatorboy]

That still doesnt explain why 1/125 is the prefered SS.
I ahve seen some of my friends who shoots mainly 1/125 and they appear blured due to camera shake. In fact he took some of falling petals and they had motion blur in them.

I'm not 100% sure 1/125 is the most popular setting -- but what does it really matter?

Camera shake? The movement (blur) you see is caused by the duration of the flash, not the shutter speed. If you have your shutter speed at 1/60, but your flash/strobe fires at 1/10,000 sec. You can freeze a drop of water falling (no pun intended).

[PCthug]

I'm not 100% sure 1/125 is the most popular setting -- but what does it really matter?

Camera shake? The movement (blur) you see is caused by the duration of the flash, not the shutter speed. If you have your shutter speed at 1/60, but your flash/strobe fires at 1/10,000 sec. You can freeze a drop of water falling (no pun intended).

Yes i know what your saying (as that is how some photograph lightening strikes), but if you have ambient light then you will get motion blur regardless how fast your flash is, and it will depend on first or second curtain flash, what is captured.
I am not sure what the speed of his flash is, it is also fixed and cannot be adjusted.

[vadim_c]

I'm not 100% .... If you have your shutter speed at 1/60, but your flash/strobe fires at 1/10,000 sec. You can freeze a drop of water falling (no pun intended).
He has pretty good strobes :-)

[Player9]

I shoot in my basement, which has recessed floodlights. If I take a test shot with the strobes off at my usual manual settings (1/125, f/8, ISO 100) the image on the LCD is completely black, even if all the lights are on. The room lights do not register at all. Based upon this, it would seem to me that the shutter speed is mostly irelevant, and that the exposure is, in most cases, going to be wholly a function of the strobe setting, the lens aperture, and the ISO.

[Bumgardnern]

I'm not sure that 1/125 is themost common shutter speed. I have assisted a lot of photographers in tjepast few years over a span of hundreds of shoots and have not noticed 1/125 being the most common shutter speed.

[eduardofrances]

Most photographers use the max sync speed their camera can give in order to kill any ambient light that might be there, some people shoot at 1/125th or 1/160th because their radio trigger can't sync at full speed (Cactus triggers, PW with certain Canon cameras, etc.).

If there's no ambient lighting the shutter speed is irrelevant, in the case of studio photography -where you turn off the ambient lighting or shade it off with curtains- 1/60 to 1/200 is the same thing.

The max sync speed is different from brand to brand and even from model to model, Pentax digital SLR's have a max sync speed of 1/180th so does the Nikon D100, the 5D and 5D MKII, Rebels and Nikon D80, D90 have a max sync speed of 1/200th -but it seems many people have problems syncing the 5D and 5D MKII at 1/200 with PW plus II some suggest using Cybersyncs or Quantum radio triggers-

[PixelMagic]

Actually the 5D and 5D II have a maximum sync speed of 1/200.... The 30D, 40D, and 50D have a max sync speed of 1/250. I use CyberSync triggers and have not had any problems attaining max sync speed.