Newbie w/Studio Lighting

I was fortunate to be able to play with some studio lights this past winter and now am going in with another photographer with a studio.

I have to buy my own lights. Can anyone give me some guidance on what to buy? The lights that I did use were AB400's.

Is there anything like the AB400's that there is significant price difference? Any suggestions or help would be MUCH appreciated.

Thank you for your time.

Links would also be helpful! =)

http://www.alienbees.c​om/b400.html
160 True Ws on the AB400
B400 $224.95
One light no stands no modifier

http://www.calumetphot​o.com/item/CF0502K1/
200ws calumet
$359.99
two lights two stands two modifiers


http://www.adorama.com …aign=Other&utm_​term=Other
200ws elinchrom
$719.90
two lights two stands two modifiers nice bags to carry your stuff.


both have more ws than the AB

Has anyone on this forum used these...

http://www.calumetphot​o.com/item/CF0502K1/
200ws calumet
$359.99
two lights two stands two modifiers

Any problems?

Lots of people use the Calumets. I've used them before, too...they're good lights, just rather large. They have an Elinchrom mount, so you can upgrade to Elinchrom lights later without having to buy new modifiers.

If you are considering the alien bees, the 800 is only slightly more expensive than the 400, certainly worth the cost of the upgrade.

How big is the studio you are going in on? That could help determine the lights you put in it. While a B800 is a nice light it can be too powerful in many places. While you can turn them down it's not always the best way to use them.

Are the lights going to be used exclusively in the studio? And if not, what type of conditions will they be used in outside the studio?

And what type of photography will you be doing in the studio? Single head shots, couples, families, high school marching bands?

And after all that I can say I've used the Alien Bees and they are OK. I've used Elinchroms and they are better. I've not used the Genesis lights but they are quite popular on the forums.

toxic wrote in post #10816993
Lots of people use the Calumets. I've used them before, too...they're good lights, just rather large. They have an Elinchrom mount, so you can upgrade to Elinchrom lights later without having to buy new modifiers.

I have played around with them too. They did not seem too large to me. I am using BRXi 500 though. I like that they are digital and dont use the slider to select power

gonzogolf wrote in post #10817004
If you are considering the alien bees, the 800 is only slightly more expensive than the 400, certainly worth the cost of the upgrade.

yeah I should have put that link in good point.

Titus213 wrote in post #10817135
How big is the studio you are going in on? That could help determine the lights you put in it. While a B800 is a nice light it can be too powerful in many places. While you can turn them down it's not always the best way to use them.

Are the lights going to be used exclusively in the studio? And if not, what type of conditions will they be used in outside the studio?

And what type of photography will you be doing in the studio? Single head shots, couples, families, high school marching bands?

And after all that I can say I've used the Alien Bees and they are OK. I've used Elinchroms and they are better. I've not used the Genesis lights but they are quite popular on the forums.

good questions.

Are the lights going to be used exclusively in the studio? And if not, what type of conditions will they be used in outside the studio?
Most of the time in the studio - I never have used and don't plan to ever use studio lights with the horses.

And what type of photography will you be doing in the studio? Single head shots, couples, families, high school marching bands?
It will mostly be Single Head Shots, Senior Portraits, Couples, Babies and maybe some families.

Thanks for the suggestions and help!

One other question - budget?

Have you looked at the Einstein lights from Alien Bees? They are said to be adjustable from 2.5WS to 640WS while maintaining color consistency. They are a bit more money than the AB lights.

And they are also back ordered.

Titus213 wrote in post #10817700
One other question - budget?

Have you looked at the Einstein lights from Alien Bees? They are said to be adjustable from 2.5WS to 640WS while maintaining color consistency. They are a bit more money than the AB lights.

And they are also back ordered.

Wait til V2 comes out, or at least the updated version if you can.

The color consistency is a bit of a selling point with me. The AB400 may have problems if it turned down.

I just got this kit, http://www.bhphotovide​o.com …ite_IT_400Ws_2_​Light.html not long ago and love it! I really didn't see anything else that has the quality of this kit for the price. The wireless triggers are icing on the cake! This is basically the same as the 200 w/s elinchroms just one more stop of light ( could be good or bad depending on how you use it)

ElTigreBlanco wrote in post #10817770
I just got this kit, http://www.bhphotovide​o.com …ite_IT_400Ws_2_​Light.html not long ago and love it! I really didn't see anything else that has the quality of this kit for the price. The wireless triggers are icing on the cake! This is basically the same as the 200 w/s elinchroms just one more stop of light ( could be good or bad depending on how you use it)

Yeah having the wireless trigger ready to go in the kit is really nice

I have the Genesis 200 single light kit.....I like it a lot. Yeah they seem sorta heavy if you plan on shooting on location.

Theres a lot of reasonably priced accessories you can get for it like barndoors, grids, snoots, etc.

Heres the $70 dollar 60" octobox I plan on getting for it http://www.amazon.com …ing-Calumet/dp/B003EWO1CO

If youre willing to spend the money the D-Lite 4 or D-lite 2 two light kit linked above would be very good too.