How much flash power do i need for outdoor portraits?

[bertoo87]

Hey there.

Im in the market for a battery powered strobe for outdoor use. but i wonder how much flash power i really need for getting my model as bright as the background on a sunny day... i want to use modifiers like a 48" Octa and sizes below that. Distance to Model around 5-6 feet.

Strobes i layed my eyes on: Jinbei Freelander FLII-500, Jinbei 600, Godox AD600BM

i know more is always better but would the FLII-500 be sufficient since the price point is very attractive to me and my wallet ^^

 

[Sailor Blue]

Start with the sunny 16 and shady 8 rules.

ISO100, 1/100sec, and f/16 in direct sun light, f/8 in open shade.

If the subject has their back turned to the sun they are providing their own shade so expect the subject exposure to be around f/8. All you need to do is add enough light to increase the exposure of the subject by about 2 stops. A hot-shoe flash can easily do that if a diffuser isn't used. A 300Ws strobe in your 43" octabox should be sufficient but with the new 500-600Ws battery powered strobes you have enough power variability that using them is a good choice.

 

[Teila Day]

Hey there.

Im in the market for a battery powered strobe for outdoor use. but i wonder how much flash power i really need for getting my model as bright as the background on a sunny day... i want to use modifiers like a 48" Octa and sizes below that. Distance to Model around 5-6 feet.

Strobes i layed my eyes on: Jinbei Freelander FLII-500, Jinbei 600, Godox AD600BM

i know more is always better but would the FLII-500 be sufficient since the price point is very attractive to me and my wallet ^^

If you're only ever going to be practically in your model or subject's face when you shoot outdoors then you'll be fine with less than that, but I highly doubt if you'll only want to do that. Shooting outdoors, stopped down between f/8 and f/10 at ISO 100 and moving further away form the model (say, if you use longer focal lengths but want a good bit of background in the shot) requires a lot of power; especially If you plan on freezing hair or water droplets splashing on your subject/model, then you will need a good bit more power especially if your shutter speed is going to be 1/800th or more, which is faster than a lot of strobes when you turn up the power.

What doesn't make a difference in the studio can make a huge difference shooting outdoors in the sunlight.

 

[BAK]

The Jinbei Freelander FLII-500 will work fine.

BAK

 

[Jacques Cornell]

Hey there.

Im in the market for a battery powered strobe for outdoor use. but i wonder how much flash power i really need for getting my model as bright as the background on a sunny day... i want to use modifiers like a 48" Octa and sizes below that. Distance to Model around 5-6 feet.

Strobes i layed my eyes on: Jinbei Freelander FLII-500, Jinbei 600, Godox AD600BM

i know more is always better but would the FLII-500 be sufficient since the price point is very attractive to me and my wallet ^^

At 5-6 feet, you'd probably be fine with a Godox AD360 MkII with HSS and a faster shutter speed. My original AD360 (no HSS) worked for me (barely) at about 15 feet in an undiffused silver octa.

 

[BAK]

My comment on one flash being OK should not be considered as indicating the others will not work. I just skipped them.
BAK

 

[MikeInOr]

I shot a wedding for some friends a year or so ago in harsh afternoon sun. With a Metz 58 and a Sigma 610, both direct direct flash, I wish I had more flash power to over power the sun. The facial shadows were much less than no flash at all but I could have used more flash power especially for the group shots where the flash power is dispersed over a wider field of view.