How much strobe power do I need?

RichNY wrote in post #6074816
The amount of power you will need for strobing a gym is going to be greatly dependent on how far away you mount the strobes.

Right, what I had in mind was something temporary/portable/fle​xible (enough power) so I could travel to different gyms. I rarely shoot at the same place more than once or twice a year.

One big thing to consider is the flash duration when shooting sports. This is probably the most commonly used setup for shooting sports photography in gyms: http://www.dynalite.co​m/sportspkg.shtml

I began to realize this as I read the specs on many of the lights. With many of them, the duration is so long that it would virtually defeat the purpose of using strobes. It's not going to do anyone any good if the subject is well lit, but motion blurred. I wouldn't even consider anything with a longer duration than 1/1000 at whatever power level I need.

I'm also beginning to realize that to get what I would really like to have I may have to save pennies for a little while longer.

Thank you for the link!

Hey Jeff,

Unfortunately that is the conclusion that many come to, and it's worth making the right choice rather than getting something that won't do the job. Your requirements made it difficult to get away with a low power inexpensive solution.

TMR Design wrote in post #6075923
Hey Jeff,

Unfortunately that is the conclusion that many come to, and it's worth making the right choice rather than getting something that won't do the job. Your requirements made it difficult to get away with a low power inexpensive solution.

I'm not surprised. If I can get to a point where I'm making decent money doing this, I'll consider buying whatever it takes. Right now I'm not very close to that. Ironically, if I just owned them and had the capability to strobe games I would be able to get more work. But I am not in a position to invest thousands so that I might be able to make it back.

For something like this I would only buy it if I can justify it by making money with it. With cameras and lenses though, I'm not so picky. I'll buy those just because I want them.

I wish I was better at estimating distance. I might have some useful information.

I shoot drag racing pictures and a lot of the action is after dark. A couple of years ago, I started using Novatrons without modifiers to light things up. My current setup is two heads with a 1600 WS power pack. I split the power evenly so there is 800 WS going to each head. Depending on which side of the track they are on and the color of the car (yes, it does matter) I've been shooting at between f/7.1 and f/10 at ISO 500 with a base exposure of f/8 if the pack is set to full power. I like the depth of field since the place isn't too well lit and I've been known to get a little imprecise focusing from time to time. I actually started doing this with a 600 WS pack and I moved up. You'll be surprised at how quickly you will learn what the light intensity is in various places and with various tones. I don't know if this relates well to an enclosed gym, where the stray light will be bounced rather than shot off into space, but it is some real world experience that may give you a starting point.

I should also add that the reason I use Novatron pack and head units is because that is what I had. It works well enough for me, but other than that, I have no particular endorsement for brand.

Jim M wrote in post #6076409
I wish I was better at estimating distance. I might have some useful information.
.

If you have a shot where the EXIF information is available, we can estimate the shooting distance simply if there is someone of known (approx) size in the photo to scale the overall photo, because then the FL of the lens can be used to determine the shooting distance!

I shoot in small town gyms with 2 Novatron 400ws heads pointed at the ceiling using either a 20D or 5D @ 800-1250 ISO. Typical settings are 200th@f6.3, camera set to Manual. Lens is usually Canon 28-70 2.8, Sigma 15-30 2.8, sometimes Canon 70-200 2.8 IS. Usually wider angle for boys than girls.
The two examples are w/ the 5D @1250 ISO, 200th@7.1 with the 28-70
They have been cropped quite a bit but are crisp

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susymike wrote in post #6588158
I shoot in small town gyms with 2 Novatron 400ws heads pointed at the ceiling using either a 20D or 5D @ 800-1250 ISO. Typical settings are 200th@f6.3, camera set to Manual.

Why the restrictive aperture setting? Couldn't you be iso 200ish at the same lighting using f/2.8 instead?

You can use soemthing like 285HV to light basketball game. Look here at what Dave does.

http://www.davehoffman​nphoto.com …follow-the-bouncing-ball/

susymike wrote in post #6588158
Sigma 15-30 2.8

Sigma makes a 15-30mm 2.8 version?
I have the same lens .. but it's a 3.5/4.5 ..

Hermes wrote in post #6070113
I've tried to do the same and it really is futile. New photographers seem to be stuck in the 'more is better' mindset and completely unwilling to accept that buying higher-powered lights will often rob you of useful, lower power settings and gain you only impractical, higher ones.

ND gels can solve that pretty quickly...

transcend wrote in post #6603498
ND gels can solve that pretty quickly...

ND gels will also cut your modelling light down to near-useless levels, not to mention enclosing the bulb thereby absorbing light and generating huge amounts of heat which can and will cause the head to overheat.

Then there's the issue of trying to evenly gel octabanks, umbrellas, beauty dishes, strip-boxes and all the other modifiers that are the staple of portrait & fashion photographers. Neither Rosco or Lee make gel-rolls big enough to cover the majority of my large modifiers even if I did want to spend huge amounts of time (not to mention money) constantly fitting and swapping gels to lower their output - if you have an easy solution then I and studio photographers everywhere would be glad to hear it.

You don't gel the modifier, you gel the head.

Ps: I shoot in studio all the time.

transcend wrote in post #6609225
You don't gel the modifier, you gel the head.

Ps: I shoot in studio all the time.

care to elaborate? how, for example, would I gel an Elinchrom octa or a beauty dish with out totally screwing up the light distribution?

Hermes wrote in post #6609833
care to elaborate? how, for example, ...

Ditto. I shoot products in the studio all the time, and I've never found a good easy solution to use gels on strobes while also using modifiers.

Use a clip on/clide on etc diffuser holder. There are some 7" Speedo models that work with the 7" elinchrom reflector quite well. (They make various sizes for different reflectors.) This works quite well with an umbrella or any other modifier where you will be using a reflector.

Here is a good example.
http://www.vistek.ca …edotron-7-gel-holder.aspx

For softboxes, I have used and seen others use multiple internal baffles in the box to reduce light output in certain situations. Profoto and many others make fullsized, specialty diffusers to add to their own softboxes. Profoto even makes a 7' (yes foot) diffuser to add to their large boxes. For a beatydish etc, there would definitely be a problem. I have to use mine at close to minimum output most of the time (Rangers).

Although I agree that clearly, if you have a 2400w light in a 8'x10' room, you are going to have a problem almost every time. Most companies DO offers options however.