Help me pick a studio strobe

The cheapest solution if you truly are on a budget would be just to shoot at ISO 400. The only difference between 100/200/and 400ws is ISO 400/200/and 100.

CosmoKid wrote in post #11137816
Why would you assume the Genesis has colorshift? Have you heard this? Read it here? Don't give a light a bad rap on an assumption.

Problem is I cannot find many reviews. And with bad reviews no one ever has pics showing the bad features. I didn't even find many pics of color tinting with Alien Bees. But people like to criticize Genesis strobes on flickr. Yeah, I know flickr, but those are what google returns for my searches. I wonder what your opinion is as you have several. Do you feel the need for the 400ws strobe or is 200 probably good enough?

tkbslc wrote in post #11139208
The cheapest solution if you truly are on a budget would be just to shoot at ISO 400. The only difference between 100/200/and 400ws is ISO 400/200/and 100.

That will allow me to overpower the sun or other brightly backlit objects? Sometimes I try to take pics in my friend's backyard but sun is too strong and flash cannot compensate. Only if I blow the sky or bg can I get good exposure. So, just set to ISO400 and bg will be okay. I will still retain the bg detail?


I appreciate everyone's advice. I am a novice so perhaps my expectations are unreal. This is why I ask for your thoughts. I understand that I can do it cheaply and maybe it will suffice. But more often than not it leads to frustration and you wind up buying the better equipment you should have in the first place. And maybe I'll use it much more than I think and so I should try to spend a little more. I'm still a bit confused and need to read more but this helps put me on the right track, I hope.

blocks wrote in post #11142065
Do you feel the need for the 400ws strobe or is 200 probably good enough? That will allow me to overpower the sun or other brightly backlit objects?

OK, let's analyze this...

Sunny 16 Rule says 1/ISO f/16 outside in sunlight...1/100 f/16
Previously I wrote that Buff claims of measured power with AB400 (real rating 160 w-s) f/11 + 0.2EV at 10' or GN120. In other words the AB400 could equal the sun out to 7.5' when shooting at f/16. Using 1/200 instead of 1/200, you would have f/11 on the lens, which would allow the AB400 to equal the sun to 11'.

If your flash was twice as powerful as the AB400, the f/11 distance increases to 15'. A flash four times as powerful as the AB400 would reach to 22' at f/11