Clinical photography

[mtonsbeek]

Being a total 'studio flash virgin' I am hoping to get advice from the abundance of experience on this forum.

I am a dentist in the UK and have been using clinical photography of teeth/molars of my patients in my surgery for many years. Now however, due to different treatment options, I need to standardise portrait shots to a very high degree and need to eliminate shadows completely in a totally reproducable routine.

Fixing the position of the tripod mounted camera and of the patient in front of a screen is quite straight forward. The lighting however is quite another matter so advice would be hugely appreciated.

The only reference source I have is a colleague who uses 2 Elinchrom 100XF (may be out dated anyway) wich seems kind of OK from the results I have seen but although my colleague is a fantastic clinician, he is not a great photographer.

What would be the best way to set this up in a relatively small room (approx 3 x4 m) with very little ceiling height (not sure if this is relevant)?

Many thanks in advance,
Maarten

[Curtis N]

I would suggest a macro lens and a macro ringlight, both of which you already own. Also, I wouldn't use a tripod but crop each photo for a standard composition.

Perhaps there is something about your goals that I don't understand. Samples would be helpful.

[mtonsbeek]

I would suggest a macro lens and a macro ringlight, both of which you already own. Also, I wouldn't use a tripod but crop each photo for a standard composition.

Perhaps there is something about your goals that I don't understand. Samples would be helpful.

Curtis, thank you for your response.
In order to explain further what I am trying to achieve, please have a look at this website: www.oralift.com. The facial changes in the before and after shots are only comparable if the photo sessions are standardised. With the shots of the lady on the home page this has been achieved. The clinician who has been pioneering this technique has gone through learning curve and started off with ring flash and but has rejected it because of the harshness of the contrast.

As far as the tripod is concerned, if I place my patient and my tripod in exactly the same spot and let my patient look at the same mark on the wall, then I will not have to crop. It is all about analysing sometimes very subtle facial changes.

[Curtis N]

The catchlights in the eyes tell the story. One light on either side of the camera, slightly above subject height, identical modifiers and power levels.

Any enty-level strobe will work, along with umbrellas or softboxes. Check out the Elinchrom D-Lites.

Oh... and please send my wife one of those Oralift things.

[mtonsbeek]

The catchlights in the eyes tell the story. One light on either side of the camera, slightly above subject height, identical modifiers and power levels.

Any enty-level strobe will work, along with umbrellas or softboxes. Check out the Elinchrom D-Lites.

Oh... and please send my wife one of those Oralift things.

Thank you for your advice but I am sorry to say I have some further questions.
I had a look at the Elinchrom D-Lites and am wondering if the softbox design has advantages compared to the umbrella design. It looks more compact possibly but does it diffuse as well?
Also, most kits on offer seem to have either one unit bigger or more powerful than the other. If I want to have a most even lighting I suppose 2 identical units would possibly be preferential?

Would you combine an Elinchrom D-Lite kit with the Elinchrom Prolinca I/R Transmitter to trigger the units wirelessly?

My wife was the one who sent me on this course. Interesting stuff!

[Curtis N]

Whether you have two identical lights, or lights of different power levels, it's not hard to adjust them to the same output. Having identical lights would be preferred, though.

Softboxes and umbrellas take up about the same amount of room. Softboxes usually provide more even and controlled lighting and are more efficient. Umbrellas are quicker to setup, disassemble and transport. If you will be leaving your "studio" set up all the time, I would suggest softboxes.

All studio monolights come with PC cords to plug into your camera and have built-in slave sensors. So you just need one cord to one light. An IR transmitter would eliminate that cord and the potential trip hazard associated with it. If you're unsure, you can always add that later. Your 580EX, in manual mode at low power and aimed at the ceiling, would provide the same functionality.

[mtonsbeek]

Curtis, thank you so much for the advice. It is really appreciated!

As I will not be able to leave everything set up, I will opt for the brollies I think.
The 2 x 400W Bowens Gemini kit looks tempting as the extra cost over the lower powered unist is not that much. I would imagine you cannot have too much power, you can always turn it down a bit if needed.

[Curtis N]

That kit should work fine for you. You'll get f/8 light with those things at 1/8 to 1/4 power.