Strobe help

So, I don't really know anything about strobes... never used them however I want to get atleast 2 to pair with my 430exII... How do most strobes work? Are they all pretty much the same?... I guess my biggest concern is whether I need a power supply separate from the strobe itself and if they need to be triggered or do they sense the flash? I'm completely new to flash photography.

So, I don't really know anything about strobes... never used them however I want to get at least 2 to pair with my 430exII...

Am I correct in assuming that you are referring to studio strobes?

How do most strobes work?

If I am correct in my assumpton, most strobes (except for some fairly expensive models) are powered off a/c current. The exposure is manual and not controlled through the camera TTL or ETTL system. A flash meter is a great help when using studio strobes but, you can work around it. Studio strobes have modeling lights which will provide WYSIWYG (what you see is what you get) lighting and that is a VERY IMPORTANT facet. They can be fired by a sync cord connected to your camera, by a radio controlled remote trigger or by an infrared trigger (I use a Yin-Yan trigger which I purchased years ago on eBay for twenty bucks or so). Studio strobes also most often have built-in optical slaves which will sense the light from another strobe and fire the unit. However, a problem with using a flash like the 430EX (and, I believe, almost all TTL or ETTL flashes) to trigger your studio strobe is that the 430EX (type) uses a pre-flash to determine exposure. That pre-flash will trigger the studio strobe and your shutter will not be open when it fires.

The studio strobes are usually more powerful than hotshoe flashes, can most often accept modifiers such as umbrellas and softboxes without adapters and can fit on stands without adapters.

There are basically two types of studio strobes, monolights and power pack units. Monolights are self contained with a built in power supply. They do not need a power pack. Power pack setups are basically flash heads which must be connected to a power supply to be used. The power supply is heavy, often VERY HEAVY for high powered units. You can control the power of the various flash heads from the power supply.

There are advantages to both types but, I like to work with monolights since each flash head is powered by its own cord and you don't need a heavy power pack or cords running to the pack. On the other hand, the flash heads of a power pack unit are much lighter in weight than monolights of the same power.

Monolights seem to be the most popular with today's photographers. But, as a result, you can often get a used power pack setup from eBay at quite a low price. Power packs have limits as to how many and the total power of the flash heads used. If a person opts to purchase a power pack setup on eBay, he must be aware that since the power pack is very heavy; shipping costs might erase any savings in buying a power pack over a used monolight setup.

There are a plethora of studio type strobes available and run the gamut from quite cheap Chinese imports to quite expensive name brand units. While the cheaper Chinese imports are probably sufficient for the casual photographer; I recommend getting name brand strobes because the established manufacturers will most often support their strobes for a long time. The original White Lightning WL5,000 and WL10,000 units are still supported with parts and they have not been produced for twenty years or more. I recently broke a flash tube (my own fault) in one of my German made Multiblitz monolights. I was able to purchase a replacement tube and the unit is still flashing. If I couldn't find a replacement (which might or might not be a problem with Chinese models) the unit would be trash...

By the way, IMO, the studio strobe beats the pants off the hotshoe flash jury-rigged for portraiture.

Here are some links which might help:

LIGHTING / PORTRAIT EQUIPMENT INFORMATION

AlienBees
http://davidweikel.com​/E20_Page/alienbees/be​es.shtml

Backgrounds by Maheu
http://www.backgrounds​bymaheu.com/gal_new.ph​p#

Backgrounds, Owen’s Originals
http://www.owens-originals.com/

Backdrops by Aura
http://www.aurabackdro​ps.com …p?shop=1&cat=1&​cart=18898

Backgrounds by Cole and Company
http://www.coleandcomp​any.com/Default.htm

Backgrounds B&H
http://www.bhphotovide​o.com …raphy%20backgro​unds&Q=&O=

Balcar
http://www.balcar.com/​accueilP.asp?l=3

Bowens International
http://www.bowensinter​national.com/

Britek Lighting
http://www.briteklight​.com/

Broncolor
http://www.bron.ch/bc_​home_en/index.php

Canon 420ex power sources
http://www.burren.cx/p​hoto/flash_power.html

Chimera
http://www.chimeraligh​ting.com

Diffuser made from foam
http://www.smugmug.com​/gallery/1427850

DIY Guide to Cheap Lighting
http://www.photoquack.​de/tutorials/diylights​.htm

Dyna-Lite
http://www.dynalite.co​m/

Elinchrom
http://www.elinchrom.c​om/

Equipment selection
http://www.photo.net/l​earn/studiolighting/

Flip-it Adjustable Reflector System
http://www.joedembphot​ography.com/flipit/

Flash Sync Cords
http://www.paramountco​rds.com/

Gary Fong Dome Diffuser
http://www.garyfong.co​m/newsplash.html

Guided Tour of a moonlight – general description of a moonlights controls
http://webs.lanset.com​/rcochran/flash/monoli​ght.html

Hensel Studioteknik
http://www.hensel-studiotechnik.de/engli​sh/index.html

Home Made Diffusers
http://home.comcast.ne​t …smit/bounceflas​htoys.html

Low Budget Umbrella Flash for Dummies
http://webs.lanset.com​/rcochran/flash/defaul​t.htm

Lumiquest Accessories
http://www.lumiquest.c​om/

Multiblitz
http://www.multiblitz.​com/index_frameset.php​?lang=en

Novatron
http://www.novatron.co​m/ns/index.php

Photoflex
http://www.photoflex.c​om/photoflex/index.htm​l

Photogenic
http://www.photogenicp​ro.com/

Pocket Wizard
http://www.pocketwizar​d.com/HTML/cables2.asp

Profoto
http://www.profoto.com​/default.php
PVC Lighting Systems
http://webs.lanset.com​/rcochran/flash/defaul​t.htm

Simple PVC Background Support
http://www.nikonians.o​rg …um/DCForumID49/​15188.html

Rosco – filters and gels etc.
http://www.rosco.com/u​s/index.asp

Smith-Victor
http://www.smithvictor​.com/

Speedotron
http://www.speedotron.​com/

Sto-Fen Bounce Flash Products
http://www.stofen.com/

Tent, Lighting, How to build one
http://www.pbase.com/w​lhuber/light_box_light​_tent

Versalight
http://www.jtlcorp.com​/blue/Versalight.html

Visatek Light Shapers
http://www.bron.ch/vt_​pd_lg_sc_en/index.php

White Lightning – Paul C. Buff
http://www.white-lightning.com/

WOW!! Thanks for all the help!!! Gonna read up on all those sites.

I'm definitely looking for something more so that drives off of a primary flash such as my 430EXII.. I have played with my flash in every way to understand it 100% for any situation so i'm very comfortable using it wireless in manual mode. Also, there's no prefire for my 430EXII it has a red sensor that determines metering etc. So I am thinking that will not be a problem. I'm hoping to get something i'd be able to use with it's own power supply and preferably not a HEAVY one. However these would be used in doors more often then not.

adollarwodbnice wrote in post #11838697
I'm definitely looking for something more so that drives off of a primary flash such as my 430EXII.. I have played with my flash in every way to understand it 100% for any situation so i'm very comfortable using it wireless in manual mode. Also, there's no prefire for my 430EXII it has a red sensor that determines metering etc. So I am thinking that will not be a problem. I'm hoping to get something i'd be able to use with it's own power supply and preferably not a HEAVY one. However these would be used in doors more often then not.

I think you still have a LOT to learn about your Speedlite.

If you use the Speedlite in anything but a full manual mode, it definitely fires a pre-flash so that the camera can determine how much power is needed to illuminate a scene.

The "red sensor" (the red plastic window) you refer to is not a light metering sensor at all. The red window is the AF (AutoFocus) Assist Beam Emitter.

The Speedlite does nothing at all on its own to "determine metering". It works in concert with the camera (in ETTL mode, not in manual mode) to determine power level required for exposure, but there is no stand-alone metering done by the Speedlite.

^^^^^^ what he said..

Yongnuo YN560 can be used a s a slave flash that is triggered optically by the flash from 430EX II. I have one and it works. I however use both of them in manual mode.

There is a flash before the speedlite shoots? Unless it's so quick it is almost at the exact same time as it flashes for the shot there is definitely not one...

adollarwodbnice wrote in post #11885244
There is a flash before the speedlite shoots? Unless it's so quick it is almost at the exact same time as it flashes for the shot there is definitely not one...

It is often hard to see the pre-flash, but unless you're using a Canon Speedlite in purely manual mode (both camera and the flash unit), there is definitely a pre-flash before the main burst.