raceshooter
Member
This can be a real concern if the equipment is prone to failure from quality issues or from getting banged around. In some cases, a backup head is the least costly method of mitigating a potential problem. It all depends....
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Best studio strobes, price no object!
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BadtzMaru
Senior Member
That would not be contrary it wouldn't comply with the request. Assume the question was asked a bit different and it wouldn't seem like a 'price no object' issue. The nature of the initial question was more like it was looking for information, not flaunting a budget (or lack thereof).
virtuamike
Senior Member
Haha only 30k?
It's very nice stuff and they make some one-of-a-kind modifiers, but I'm not sure I'd want to go all Broncolor (this after I plunked down a few hundred on Broncolor mount adapters).
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Ramen is how I afford my glass
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virtuamike
Senior Member
You really should try to be more specific about what you want to do with your light and how you work. Broncolor makes some great modifiers that'll work for both general and specific situations (ie - the giant lightbanks, their para reflectors, the fiber optic kit) but not everyone likes working with digital controls (awesome control for product but not the most fluid workflow). Profoto has an extremely adaptable mount design but they don't have all the modifiers that Broncolor makes. Or maybe the modifiers don't matter because you're going 3rd party - we don't know. Are you looking exclusively for a studio setup? Is portability important to you? What are your power output needs? What are your flash duration needs? Do you like packs and heads or do you prefer monolights?
I believe in good fits, but I don't believe in "the best".
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Ramen is how I afford my glass
http://www.blindmike.com
I'm currious to know what makes digital not the most fluid workflow. Could you explain.
virtuamike
Senior Member
The same as adjusting camera settings through dials and switches vs hunting through a menu and pushing buttons. Some of us prefer tactile feedback so we don't have to look or wait.
It's a personal preference thing.
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Ramen is how I afford my glass
http://www.blindmike.com
There are no menus for power adjustment with Broncolor. It's straight forward up or down with 2 buttons per head and you can even go by sound to check how many 1/10th of a stop you are changing. You don't need a light meter to check your light again because it's precise and you can go back to your previous setting in no time as well. Menus are for extra fonctions like color temp, flash duration, modeling light adjustments, ping pong... features a lot of packs don't even have an option for.
virtuamike
Senior Member
Yes, I know it's 1/10th per button press. For product I like having the fine adjustment, but when shooting people I don't find myself needing or working in 1/10th increments. I'd rather quickly turn a knob up or down and go by feel rather than counting beeps.
I'm being nit picky =(
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Ramen is how I afford my glass
http://www.blindmike.com
photoshutter
Leading Member
Jim Salvas
Veteran Member
Broncolor is a good test of the "price no object" approach. Just one of their 600ws monolights sells for almost $2,000 in the U.S. and that doesn't include a reflector, which costs about $200 more.
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Jim
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My eBay Photography Guide: http://camerajim.com
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Jim
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My eBay Photography Guide: http://camerajim.com
tyoung
Veteran Member
As with cameras, lenses or just about anything else, what's best depends a lot on how (and where) you intend to be using it. Some systems focus on a wide range of light shaping tools that will be much more important to some specialties than others. Some focus on ease of transport and use in remote locations. Some focus on overall durability, or power, or speed, color consistency, etc.
You could spend a whole lot of money on an exotic system that while it may be of the highest quality, wind up being difficult to service due to your own geographic location. A higher price tag can mean more bells & whistles, but also more that can go wrong.
If you're at all close to a larger city, I'd suggest you look into what systems are available for rental in your area. It's generally not too expensive to rent a fairly extensive kit and doing so would give you a chance to gain a lot of close familiarity with a range of competing systems. Try out the Speedotrons and the Profoto's. The Balcar's and the Bee's. The experience gained there will make it a lot easier to make a decision that you'll be happy living with over the long term.
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'Here, look at the monkey. Look at the silly monkey!'
Tom Young
http://www.pbase.com/tyoung/
I like your question, everyone should be knowledgeable about the best when it comes to tools that you depend on to perform as expected and that will last.
I have been using Balcar for a long time now, also have an old Speedotron pack and heads. I've used AB's, White Lightning, Hensels and even Novatron. The best IMO depends on current/perceived future needs balanced by specifications of the equipment. Manufacturers are usually honest about their specs.
For me, that means repeatable color temperature across 5-7 stops of output, 1/10 stop output control per head, fast recycle times and features like audible beeps when recycle is complete. The best that I could afford based on the above were the Balcar Source packs that I have purchased from E bay or Calumet Used. I have four of them, two 3200s, one 6400 and one 1600, all Asymetrical. All of these have been rock solid for me. With Calumet no longer the official US distributor for Balcar, their offerings are not as wide as the once were, but their is a Canadian distributor who's prices seem about right.
Buying the best For You used can save you usually about 50%.
zoomin
I have been using Balcar for a long time now, also have an old Speedotron pack and heads. I've used AB's, White Lightning, Hensels and even Novatron. The best IMO depends on current/perceived future needs balanced by specifications of the equipment. Manufacturers are usually honest about their specs.
For me, that means repeatable color temperature across 5-7 stops of output, 1/10 stop output control per head, fast recycle times and features like audible beeps when recycle is complete. The best that I could afford based on the above were the Balcar Source packs that I have purchased from E bay or Calumet Used. I have four of them, two 3200s, one 6400 and one 1600, all Asymetrical. All of these have been rock solid for me. With Calumet no longer the official US distributor for Balcar, their offerings are not as wide as the once were, but their is a Canadian distributor who's prices seem about right.
Buying the best For You used can save you usually about 50%.
zoomin
David Phipps
Senior Member
For someone who wants the best and has all this money to throw at it, you sure are light on info. what will you be doing with these lights? Is fast recycle time important? is accuracy to .1 stop repeatably important? or is .2-.3 stops acceptable for what you shoot? Do you need built like a tank reliability for dragging around to locations under less then ideal situations, or if you have to choose is the .1 stop accuracy more important then heavy usage reliability? these are the types of info we need to give you an answer.
Like if I said what is the best car I can buy money no object. am I asking for the best and quietest ride or am I Nascar racing, no wait Indy racing, oh wait drag racing. see how "what is the best" changes depending on your needs?
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I shot the White Album and other untruths by,
David Phipps
Like if I said what is the best car I can buy money no object. am I asking for the best and quietest ride or am I Nascar racing, no wait Indy racing, oh wait drag racing. see how "what is the best" changes depending on your needs?
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I shot the White Album and other untruths by,
David Phipps
In which case your choice is a very easy one.
Choose A: I don't mind paying as much for modifiers as I would for a monolight from cheaper companies and get the BEST - Broncolor
Or B: I want the very best pro choice gear without being silly - Profoto.
There really are only these two choices if you want top of the top. If you have a good look around the internet you'll very quickly find that it's these two brands that are compared side by side as the two heavy weight champs.
The most reputable review that I could find from a seasoned pro after doing an extreme amount of research (which i can't put my hand on right now sorry) Basically gave the edge to Broncolor (as to be expected) and found profoto a hairs width from it's glory. He noted that the tune changed quite dramatically across the other brands he tested. He wasn't saying the other brands weren't competent, they just weren't quite the pedigree you expect of these two brands.
If you've got the money and don't want to split hairs, then either Broncolor or profoto will definately serve you well and I'm sure anyone that uses either system will agree. They offer everything you could hope for in a lighting system whereas when you drop it down just a notch, you'll find a variable plethora of compromise.
Goodluck with your purchase.
Bevels.
Michael J OConnell
Active member
Compact series monolights. Very well built, simple to use, consistent output, lots of light modifiers. I have three 300s for my small studio and I could easily blow out the room with their power. If you are looking for digital readouts, remote settings, and other bells and whistles you will need to look at another product.
The only downside is that you have to manually bleed the strobe when reducing the setting, but that is a very minor inconvenience. Mine are 1 1/2 years old, so things may have changed a bit.
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Michael -
'Beauty is through the lens of the beholder'
The only downside is that you have to manually bleed the strobe when reducing the setting, but that is a very minor inconvenience. Mine are 1 1/2 years old, so things may have changed a bit.
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Michael -
'Beauty is through the lens of the beholder'
christianhough
Senior Member
If money was no object, then I would be looking at Bron stuff. It's the dogs b*llocks!
Christian
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Christian
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T
Todd Ka
Guest
Check out Photogenic's Solair constant color monolights.
Your grandfather wasn't a photographer.
The original question was dumb, unfortunatley, but common among those who don't know much.
There is no best.
There is really good for this purpose, and really good for that purpose, and really good for a different purpose all together.
WAnt to shoot semi--trailers? Babies and little kids, with and without parents, up to ten people at a time? Dining room tables set for eight people? A group of senior executives at a plastics company? A model portraying the idea of emerging from depression?
Speedotron Black last forever. They weigh a ton.
Dynalites -- depends on the model, and whether or not built-in pocket wizard circuits matter to you.
Alien Bees -- not to good if you intend to kick them around the studio, but if you use common sense, their light is as good as any other manufacturer's light.
Power? Speedo Black again, but so what? Whether this is useful depends on the subject, and the camera used. 8x10 view cameras need more light than a Rebel XT.
A smart question, insatead of a rich-guy-bragging without thinking question would have sorted out monolights vs packs and heads, too.
A million photographers, day after day, week after week, year after year, love Normans and love Bowens.
And then there are Profoto and Acute. Comets, too, although I htink of them as bargain Dynalites.
Other beginners think tenth of a stop varible switches matter, but most of us who do this stuff seriously move the light stand a few inches, so a few power levels, and full, quarter and half power variations between heads on a power pack works just fine.
Me? I've never been in a situation where a Dynalite 1000 and Dynalite 500 and four Dynalite heads would not do the job, except a few times when I added a Courtney 4000
Today? A Dynalite 1000 pack with the Pocket Wizard receiver, plus four Dyna-lite blower heads can photograph almost anything in a studio the size of a two car garage.
Buy a 2000 Power Pack if you need to light a semi-trailer.
What makes the Dynalite really good is that they dob't weigh much, and last forever, and the heads are small. and thus are great for travel.
Mine have been in all four corners of the USA -- telephone company ads in Washington, Canadian food in Arizona and California, Canadian beer, and some grocery stores and restaurants in Florida, and they just happened to be in the car when I went to Maine after shooting a man with a jar of mustard in New York City. Come to think of it, I've never taken a flash-based assignment in Maine.
And ten Canadian provinces.
But gee, you could spend more money and hire a sherpa to carry Blsacklines, assumingyou ever took them on location.
Don't forget a meter. While a Sekonic L358 will do anything almost anyone needs to measure flash, Sekonic has a more expensive model that is really complicated to use, and under rare circumstance for most -- pretty frequently for a few photogrpahers -- works well.
The original question was dumb, unfortunatley, but common among those who don't know much.
There is no best.
There is really good for this purpose, and really good for that purpose, and really good for a different purpose all together.
WAnt to shoot semi--trailers? Babies and little kids, with and without parents, up to ten people at a time? Dining room tables set for eight people? A group of senior executives at a plastics company? A model portraying the idea of emerging from depression?
Speedotron Black last forever. They weigh a ton.
Dynalites -- depends on the model, and whether or not built-in pocket wizard circuits matter to you.
Alien Bees -- not to good if you intend to kick them around the studio, but if you use common sense, their light is as good as any other manufacturer's light.
Power? Speedo Black again, but so what? Whether this is useful depends on the subject, and the camera used. 8x10 view cameras need more light than a Rebel XT.
A smart question, insatead of a rich-guy-bragging without thinking question would have sorted out monolights vs packs and heads, too.
A million photographers, day after day, week after week, year after year, love Normans and love Bowens.
And then there are Profoto and Acute. Comets, too, although I htink of them as bargain Dynalites.
Other beginners think tenth of a stop varible switches matter, but most of us who do this stuff seriously move the light stand a few inches, so a few power levels, and full, quarter and half power variations between heads on a power pack works just fine.
Me? I've never been in a situation where a Dynalite 1000 and Dynalite 500 and four Dynalite heads would not do the job, except a few times when I added a Courtney 4000
Today? A Dynalite 1000 pack with the Pocket Wizard receiver, plus four Dyna-lite blower heads can photograph almost anything in a studio the size of a two car garage.
Buy a 2000 Power Pack if you need to light a semi-trailer.
What makes the Dynalite really good is that they dob't weigh much, and last forever, and the heads are small. and thus are great for travel.
Mine have been in all four corners of the USA -- telephone company ads in Washington, Canadian food in Arizona and California, Canadian beer, and some grocery stores and restaurants in Florida, and they just happened to be in the car when I went to Maine after shooting a man with a jar of mustard in New York City. Come to think of it, I've never taken a flash-based assignment in Maine.
And ten Canadian provinces.
But gee, you could spend more money and hire a sherpa to carry Blsacklines, assumingyou ever took them on location.
Don't forget a meter. While a Sekonic L358 will do anything almost anyone needs to measure flash, Sekonic has a more expensive model that is really complicated to use, and under rare circumstance for most -- pretty frequently for a few photogrpahers -- works well.
Ellis Vener
Forum Pro
packs and heads: Broncolor Grafit wiht Pulso P4 heads or Profoto D4
softboxes: Chimera or Plume Wafer, various sizes
specialty lighting tools: Elinchrom octa-Lite, Broncolor Hazy, Broncolor Satallite
grip gear; Manfrotto Avenger
meter: Sekonic L-778
radio triggers: Pocketwizard MultiMAX
cases: Zarges, Lightware or Tenba Aircase
softboxes: Chimera or Plume Wafer, various sizes
specialty lighting tools: Elinchrom octa-Lite, Broncolor Hazy, Broncolor Satallite
grip gear; Manfrotto Avenger
meter: Sekonic L-778
radio triggers: Pocketwizard MultiMAX
cases: Zarges, Lightware or Tenba Aircase
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