Strobe vs. Always on flash

I was wondering if there is any actual difference in the final product on weather you use an always on light or a strobe at the moment of the shot?

That would have to be one bright "always on" light.

Strobe vs. continuous lighting?

Assuming that either one can be controlled with adjustable power and used with the same modifiers, then there are two differences in the way they affect the exposure.

The first difference is color temperature. Most strobes are designed to resemble daylight, while each type of continuous light (tungsten, fluorescent, sodium vapor, etc.) has a different color spectrum. Gels can be used to a certain extent, to alter the color temperature of any light source.

The second difference is in the motion-stopping ability of flash. If flash is the only significant light source then the effective shutter speed is the duration of the flash itself.

The biggest differences between continuous lighting and flash have to do with their practical application. Flash provides a very large amount of light in a very short period of time, which is ideal for still photography. Even a hotshoe flash unit can provide more light than thousands of watts of continuous light, at shutter speeds suitable for breathing subjects. With skillful use, a couple hotshoe flash units can obliterate the ambient light in a basketball gym.

aram535 wrote in post #5820761
I was wondering if there is any actual difference in the final product on weather you use an always on light or a strobe at the moment of the shot?

If you're asking if there's a difference between a photo shot with continuous lighting and one shot with a strobe or flash, there could be if the subject is moving. But if not, then it'll be very difficult to tell them apart as long as both pictures have been color balanced for the lighting used.

Sorry guys, I meant in studio lighting.

Here is the underlying question:

I'm doing all DIY lighting with fluorescent lights. Each housing will have 1-4 bulbs with a power gain control in the back so that I can control its intensity. It will have a reflector inside and a diffuser in front.

So will this setup give me the same result as having 580 + 430 + 430 all synced? Assuming that I can control the output of the DIY lights to the same levels.

If you ever want to go portable, shooting with 580 + 430 + 430 will be a big bonus. Also, if you don't want to shoot fully manual, having the strobes means you'll be able to shoot with ETTL(II), which could be another advantage.

Other than that, the main advantage with shooting with continuous lighting, is that there are no restrictions on shutter speed, and no waiting for the flash(es) to recycle.

Excellent. Thank you very much.

I already have a 430 and plan on getting a 580 in the next 3-6 months but that's not enough for a studio setup. So I was hoping to be able to use some of my DIY boxes that I already have (the smaller ones) and can build out the larger ones cheap now.

No worries. To give you an idea - my 150W studio strobes have a lower guide number than the 580 or 430 (guide number of 30), so you'd be fine with them - alternatively, if you are going to shoot manual, you could always fill in with a couple of cheapo Vivitar or Sunpak flashes.

Your DIY project sounds similar to the Westcott Spyderlites and should work fine within their power range. I would think they would be low power which will require higher ISO and lower f-stops. But as you can see from the link, Westcott sells them for quite a high price.

When you indicate "that's not enough for a studio setup" do you mean gross light output for photography?

If so, the gross lighting power of only one 430EX or 580EX will far eclipse piles of the florescent modules you describe.

The only real advantage of the florescent modules will be that you may be able to have more light sources, so you will have more control on where you put the light. It will not be a gross lighting power advantage.

If you are taking images of things that do not move the florescent modules will be fine.

Enjoy! Lon

aram535 wrote in post #5827019
I already have a 430 and plan on getting a 580 in the next 3-6 months but that's not enough for a studio setup.

I agree with Lon. It depends on the size of your subject, but those two units plus a couple umbrellas will outblast thousands of watts of continuous light (at practical shutter speeds for portraits).

I have a couple 640 wattsecond strobes but often do headshots with two hotshoe flash units instead, because they're more portable and don't require power cords for people to trip over.

1-2 human subjects (4' to 6'2") will be the subjects. In my setup, 6'x10' area, I would have wanted 3 light sources. Top-Right, Left (both on subject) and background.

I'll try your method with my current 430 but from the tests that I did didn't look like the 430 had enough to light from the top-right and bounce back off of the reflector on left. They flash was about 10" right of the camera, about 4" higher. Subject was inline with lens.

Reflector was 1' left of subject (camera perspective). The fill didn't really fill much. I can't increase the flash power as it would wash out right side of the face.

aram535 wrote in post #5834636
Reflector was 1' left of subject (camera perspective). The fill didn't really fill much. I can't increase the flash power as it would wash out right side of the face.

My hunch is that you need to keep experimenting with light and reflector placement and possibly the light modifiers. Switching to a different kind of light won't solve the problem you describe.

The problem (and hence the solution) could lie in the relative distance the light needs to travel - i.e. distance from light to subject vs. total distance from light to reflector to subject. The further away you place the light, the more similar those two distances are.

All photons obey the same laws of physics, whether they come from a small flash unit, a studio strobe, or a tungsten bulb.

You're right. I was trying to take shortcuts and being rigid in my setup. I'll start moving things around and continue testing until I get more used to what setup provides what lighting.