rp_photo wrote:
A 12V battery/inverter, such as the Vagabond II, is the best option.

Why is this a better option than a generator?

nwprophoto wrote:
Why is this a better option than a generator?

A strobe only requires significant power for a second or two when recycling, with energy needs easily satisfied by a battery/inverter pack that is cheaper, lighter, quieter, and safer than a generator.

OTOH, if using hotlights or strobes with modeling lights, a generator is the only viable option.

Chromalight Studios wrote:
Another option is a few speedlights ganged together.  I made a device that holds 4 speedlights, I call it the quadinator.

I got tired of hauling a Vagabond II and large Softlighter II around, so I tried a similar setup.

The wind resistance of the 4 flash and umbrella setup was nil, even with a heavier stand and the smaller 32" umbrella in the above image.

Since I needed a sandbag, the obvious solution was to go back to using the AB800 but sticking with the smaller modifier, creating a very wind-resistant setup.

How do you keep your setup from blowing over when a model sneezes?

I'm guessing that you use a weight of around 20 lbs, roughly equivalent to a Vagabond II.

FC252 foto wrote:
I have a few questions about shooting outdoors with strobes.

1) With AC strobes / monolights, what power source do you use?
2) Howmany light stands would be optimal to bring along? I have a luggage full of equipments now.
3) How do you prevent electrical wires from showing up in full body shots?
4) Any issues with lens flare & if so, do you bring any flags, gobos, snoots, honey combs?
5) Even with battery powered strobes, how do you clean up after the shoot without any assistants? How fast can you clean up without losing any pieces of equipments such as gels, screws, etc.?
6) Are the model(s) usually patient & wait for you to finish your light setup for each shot?
7) If all speedlights have different guide number, do you get uneven exposure shots? Same goes for different watt-seconds strobes.

I know there's alot of questions. Hopefully I can get some answers from experts. Thanks for reading.

1: We use a Vagabon as our power source, love it.
2: Depends on the look you are trying to achieve so only you can answer that best.
3: Radio Triggers and careful placement of said wiring.
4: No issues, unless we want it for effect. Lens hood helps in some cases.
5:After cleaning up if my wife is not around to assist I catalog everything that was used and do a check when packing, after which I walk the set just as an insurance that nothing was left.
6: Yes they are, sometimes they have no choice if I provided transporation and they sometimes even offer to help.
7: haven't had that issue in awhile. Just carefully mapping things out so it can be avoided.

Simon

rp_photo wrote:
I got tired of hauling a Vagabond II and large Softlighter II around, so I tried a similar setup.

The wind resistance of the 4 flash and umbrella setup was nil, even with a heavier stand and the smaller 32" umbrella in the above image.

Since I needed a sandbag, the obvious solution was to go back to using the AB800 but sticking with the smaller modifier, creating a very wind-resistant setup.

How do you keep your setup from blowing over when a model sneezes?

I'm guessing that you use a weight of around 20 lbs, roughly equivalent to a Vagabond II.

Yes, I basically carry sandbags or put my camera and equipment bags on the legs.  I'm thinking of also rigging some pegs and rope which would weigh less.  That being said, I'm probably going to get at least one of the new AB Max lights just so I can easily overpower the sun when I want to.  They can use cheap inverters (doesn't have to be a vagabond).

Daniel R Lee wrote:
Hi, I'm far from an expert, but here is my 2 pence worth...


1) Sorry, cannot help you there. I shoot with battery powered speedlites and carry three with me at all times.

2) Portability is of the upmost importance to me when shooting on location. I carry two Manfrotto 001B ultra-portable folding lightstands with me at all times (and 3 strobes). If I need another lightstand, I can use a tripod which I also carry in my kit bag (small trolley bag).

3) N/A (see point 1)

4) Ignoring the sun for the moment, the only issue with lens flare is when  lighting past 90 degrees on the horizontal plane. I carry multiples of all the light modifiers you mention, mostly of the DIY variety. Also, you should be using a lens hood at all times to help combat lens flare.

5) Pack-down never takes longer than 5 minutes for me when working without an assistant. Haven’t lost anything yet *touchwood*.

6)Anyone else present during the shoot will have their own pack-down routine. People are usually surprised at how quickly I work.

7)This has been an issue at times for me. I fine-tune light intensity with minor changes of strobe-to-subject distance and ND gels.


If you are in the same boat as myself (fairly new to off-camera flash photography and skint), I recommend the following 3 sources of reading material:

Light: Science & Magic: An Introduction to Photographic Lighting. (YES, an old-fashioned book with pages!)

http://www.strobist.blogspot.com/

http://www.diyphotography.net/


Hope something I have mentioned helps you,

Dan.

I am also a DIY person and a big fan of both storbist & diyphotography websites.

2) I have a Lowel UN-55 stand which folds down to 21" and extends to 8' height. It's nice but kind of flimsy. Also, there's Impact 8' stand which is bigger but a bit stronger inside a tripod bag along with an umbrella. I found out I needed another stand so I had another Impact stand inside my car. Luckily, my car was parked near by. I wanted to bring all 3 but wouldn't fit the tripod bag with umbrella in it too. I was just wondering howmany would be optimal for both portability and more available choices at location.

4) I got flares obove 90 degrees as you said before even with lens hood. I was just wondering which one of snoot, honey comb, gobo, or flag would do a better job so that I don't need to bring all of them along.

5) I packed down everything but inside the car so my car was a mess after the shoot. I don't want to leave the car since I don't want my car & stuff inside the car stolen.

7) I realized this fact after reviewing guide numbers of my speedlites. That's why when I was using Canon 430EX with Vivitar 285HV, I was able to get light intensity adjusted properly. When I added Vivitar 400MZ with Sunpak PF20XD (don't under estimate this little guy. It has optical slave, manual settings, & pre-flash or no pre-flash modes) strobes, their guide numbers are smaller. I guess it will take some time getting used to them.

Chromalight Studios wrote:
Another option is a few speedlights ganged together.  I made a device that holds 4 speedlights, I call it the quadinator.

Wow!!! I am drooling over this setup. Very nice!

Chromalight Studios wrote:

Yes, I basically carry sandbags or put my camera and equipment bags on the legs.  I'm thinking of also rigging some pegs and rope which would weigh less.  That being said, I'm probably going to get at least one of the new AB Max lights just so I can easily overpower the sun when I want to.  They can use cheap inverters (doesn't have to be a vagabond).

I have a buddy who shoots a lot outdoors that got tired of schlepping sandbags..

He put a small hook bolt thru the ground end of the legs of a stand.  (removable)

Then cut a couple inches of bungee cord and attached it to a tent stake on each end.  And pounds 'em into the ground.   It's very secure, and cheap.  And LIGHT. 

B

Arclight Studios  wrote:
1: We use a Vagabon as our power source, love it.
2: Depends on the look you are trying to achieve so only you can answer that best.
3: Radio Triggers and careful placement of said wiring.
4: No issues, unless we want it for effect. Lens hood helps in some cases.
5:After cleaning up if my wife is not around to assist I catalog everything that was used and do a check when packing, after which I walk the set just as an insurance that nothing was left.
6: Yes they are, sometimes they have no choice if I provided transporation and they sometimes even offer to help.
7: haven't had that issue in awhile. Just carefully mapping things out so it can be avoided.

Simon

1) I thought about Vagabon but I don't want to spend it yet. I have an Impact 100w-s monolight with two Smith Victor 45 w-s strobes. I bought a 330 watts APC UPS for computers. It has 7AH battery. I measured the current drawn from battery and I got about 784mA when all 3 strobes are fully charged and occassionally, the current spikes up to 1.7 amps for about 1 sec just to keep the charge. So I should be able to get a few hundred shots with this setup before the battery dies.
2) I guess I wanted 3 at least without breaking my back carrying them.
3) The wirings I was talking about is the AC cord to supply power from vagabon or my UPS to each AC strobes.
6) Yes, it's a good idea that models help pack too...
7) Hmm, great tip. I will start mapping out my equipments.

Stefan Buscaylet wrote:
I'm shooting 100w hotlights on a portable DC battery opperated AC generator.

That would make it an inverter.

martinimages wrote:

I have a buddy who shoots a lot outdoors that got tired of schlepping sandbags..

He put a small hook bolt thru the ground end of the legs of a stand.  (removable)

Then cut a couple inches of bungee cord and attached it to a tent stake on each end.  And pounds 'em into the ground.   It's very secure, and cheap.  And LIGHT. 

B

haha thats a really good idea!!! great for dirt, sand...no good in the city tho LOL!

nwprophoto wrote:

Why is this a better option than a generator?

You want to hike 3+ miles round trip to a waterfall with a generator or with a vagabond?

Karl Yamashita wrote:
You want to hike 3+ miles round trip to a waterfall with a generator or with a vagabond?

I am not going to hike 3 miles with either one so it is a moot point.
I would take a some speedlights.

Karl Yamashita wrote:

You want to hike 3+ miles round trip to a waterfall with a generator or with a vagabond?

That's what interns/assistants are for. Bring an extra generator as backup!

FC252 foto wrote:
Hmm... For simple light setup, I guess KISS would do the trick. What if I want Dave Hill look or Jill Greenberg look on location? Howmany strobes would be sufficient?

1-3 and Amy Dresser's phone number.

I love my vagabond and I usually bring 3 lights with me, I usually only use one but it's nice to have the others. Of course, I don't have to carry it all lol.

Karl Yamashita wrote:

You want to hike 3+ miles round trip to a waterfall with a generator or with a vagabond?

i 've just decided that it's my cardo for the day and do it often enough that it's just part of shooting these days. a vagabond, camera bag and a light or two (+stand(s)) and i'm all set.

Jim Lafferty wrote:
Strobes paired with a DIY Vagabond. If not on a budget -- then of course, Profotos

Multi-speedlight setups are 1) so clumsy (try a beauty dish and/or softbox setup), 2) so underpowered, and 3) so expensive (relatively) they stop making sense pretty quickly.

4 sb900's= a nice profoto setup with more power in terms of cost. The hassle of aa batteries over a vagabond on a long shoot is a deal killer too

FC252 foto wrote:
My APC UPS power supply is even cheaper. It comes with both inverter & 7AH battery. And the battery is sealed lead acid so it wont leak.

Modified sine wave inverters are bad for the circuitry in the strobe.

Jason J Photography wrote:

4 sb900's= a nice profoto setup with more power in terms of cost. The hassle of aa batteries over a vagabond on a long shoot is a deal killer too

Yeah, I wasn't even going there with the AA's -- try high speed recyclers like Quantum Turbos, and at $400/light it's crazy how quickly the "Strobist" way gets out of hand expensive...

rp_photo wrote:
Wind has always been my #1 nemesis when using off-camera lighting outdoors.

It used to be mine as well. I do the strobist route with a hot shoe flash mounted on a stand and triggered with a PW. I was using an umbrella, but I was breaking an umbrella every shoot and a flash every other shoot. So I switched to a small softbox. I'm using this one Photoflex LiteDome and love it. The umbrella caught the wind, but this holds up great in the wind.

FC252 foto wrote:
I have a few questions about shooting outdoors with strobes.

1) With AC strobes / monolights, what power source do you use?
I shoot AlienBees, and use a Vagabond II powerpack... 1500+ images on a charge (1 800w/s light shooting at 1/2 power - used as a fill light).




2) Howmany light stands would be optimal to bring along? I have a luggage full of equipments now.     1 per light!  Oh and don't forget the weights to hold the stands down so the stands don't blow over.


3) How do you prevent electrical wires from showing up in full body shots?   Keep them back away from the model... I shoot over them if I am using 2 lights or just put the light to the side.


4) Any issues with lens flare & if so, do you bring any flags, gobos, snoots, honey combs? Honeycombs - seldom use it, Flag - my hand or hat and a lens shade.


5) Even with battery powered strobes, how do you clean up after the shoot without any assistants? by hand, I can usually finish my clean up BEFORE the model has changed back to her traveling close and packed up all her stuff.

How fast can you clean up without losing any pieces of equipments such as gels, screws, etc.?  5 to 10 min max.


6) Are the model(s) usually patient & wait for you to finish your light setup for each shot?  Sure, why not? It only takes me a few moments to switch lights, plug a 2nd one in, or move it around... what are they going to do, get in my car and drive off because it took me 3 min to set up a new light, heck I wait longer then that for them to change... or take off their clothing.

7) If all speedlights have different guide number, do you get uneven exposure shots? Same goes for different watt-seconds strobes.  I have 3 800w/s lights, I adjust them to different setting to have a key and fill, so different exposures if PERFECT.. I don't want 2 light at the same exposure (most of the time) as it makes for a flat shot.

I know there's alot of questions. Hopefully I can get some answers from experts. Thanks for reading.

Good luck.. Oh look at my port, most if not all of my outdoor work is with 1 light (a few are with 2 or 3 but those are usually group shots, or when I am shooting moonlight strobe effect.)

Jaywellen studios wrote:
I use elinchrom ranger packs, more compact and a little lighter then a vagabond, plus you can control the lights from the battery pack.

I have shot Ranger packs and like my Bee's better as I can control the lights independently and the pack weight difference is NOT that much.. plus the heds on the Bee's are lighter than the Rangers.  Or so my memory tells me.

Big Deal Images wrote:
Another option is a few speedlights ganged together.  I made a device that holds 4 speedlights, I call it the quadinator.

Neat, but dude, that's one expensive light, easily out-pricing a VBII and a AB800.