Off-Camera Strobe on A Budget
Once you get the strobe away from the lens images get much more interesting. Light becomes a natural illumination source, more diffused, and full of life.
Some good examples of the technique are available on the Flickr Strobist photo pool. Here you will see the off-camera lighting technique demonstrated with updates made to the image pool every day. The images at the top of this page were also taken by this technique.
In order to accomplish this technique yourself you need...
- strobe that can be remotely triggered (most can)
- method of triggering the strobe when the camera takes an exposure
- mounting support for the strobe to position it near the subject
- light modifier to make the light soft and diffused (optional, but very useful)
Strobes:
Camera strobes come in all shapes and sizes, but for off-camera lighting you need a strobe that allows you to adjust its power (light output). Only some strobes have this ability (although its now more common). Producing an exhaustive list of strobes would be difficult, but for the sake of our discussion the list below is a good sampling of inexpensive equipment that works very well. I use both of these models on a regular basis and have really grown to like them. They are simple in features, but workhorses that will not break easily under heavy use.
Nikon SB-28, Good all around strobe with a very easy power adjustment and decent light output. You will see these used all over the flickr strobist group. You can pick one up for about $80 on Ebay. Don’t worry if your camera is not a “Nikon” I use a canon SLR and this strobe works fine for me.
Vivitar 285/385, This is an older model strobe with a knob power adjustment, but its built very tough. I have had mine fall off a light stand 6ft onto pavement twice without it breaking. These are about $50 on Ebay. I have been extremely happy with my vivitar strobe and will be purchasing many more in the future. Vivitar has been making strobes a long time and it shows in there great design.
Strobe Triggers: Three Main Forms
Optical
The small optical trigger can be used to trigger one flash from another. This is a really inexpensive way to fire a big external flash with your on-camera flash. This technique works well, but you have to be careful about how the flash sensor is aimed. It must be able to “see” the main driving flash. It is worth noting however that a simple point and shoot camera can be used to take amazing pictures using one of these. You simply set-up your external flash and trigger it with the flash in the camera. There is a very impressive image on the Flickr Strobist group that used this technique.
Wired
A wire can be used to connect your speedlight to a digital camera assuming your camera has what is called a “hot shoe”. This is a very inexpensive and reliable way to trigger your light. This does have the obviously annoying of hauling around a cable, but works great for quick setups. of the main advantages of a wire is that the strobe will work as if it was still connected to the camera avoiding some problems that wireless triggers have (see below).
Hot Shoe Adaptor Port
Wireless
Wireless triggering is really the way to go. It allows you to quickly setup and modify lighting setups while shooting at a location, and eliminates the problem of the wire appearing in a shot. This method also requires a camera with a hotshoe.
There are two options here for wireless triggers. One is a relatively cheap ($20ish) TTL trigger and the other is a more professional version providing better flexibility .
The Cheap Option: Simple PT-04 Flash Triggers
Pros: Cheap, easy to use, indispensable tool that helps produce great images (including those at the top of this page)
Cons:
These have two drawbacks, sync speed, and a lack of ETTL capability. The slow sync means that the trigger is slightly delayed in its operation. This results in having to use a shutter speed that is slower than 250th of a second. This sounds troublesome, but I have not found the speed to be too much of a problem in my own work. The lack of ETTL means that you will not have the strobe(s) auto adjusting their respective light output in response to the cameras light reading. This does sometimes have you running around adjusting flashes, but isn’t bad for a beginner as it leads to a better understanding of exposure.
The Reliable Option: a wireless transceiver called a “Pocketwizard”
Pros: Oh let me count them...automatic light adjustment, fast sync, general awesomeness.
Cons: higher price
These things are incredible! They allow you to wirelessly trigger your strobes at high shutter speeds and long distances. The devices allow the strobe to act as if it were still connected to the camera. This means that the smart ETTL features work. Auto light metering, high shutter speeds and more artistic flexibility.
Support
There are many options for stands, I went with one of the cheapest options I could find, but in hindsight stands are pretty important. As you progress in your lighting skills you can easily have several hundred dollars ontop of a lighting stand and sturdier is often better. Manfrotto makes a good light stand that is built like a tank.
Manfrotto 367B (about $75)
The top of the stand requires an adaptor that will hold both the strobe and umbrella in place . These too can be really complicated, but basic ones work just fine.
Umbrella
Yes, just like the kind you would use on a rainy day except you will use it to reflect, diffuse, or block light. Photographic umbrellas come in two basic types.
reflective
Reflective umbrellas are have a shiny side covered in either silver or gold foil. Silver provides a crisp white light while gold gives warmth to the subject. This can be useful if you are shooting a subject with a warm sunset background.
shoot-through
These are white translucent umbrellas that create soft diffused light much like a photographic soft box. They are slightly less diffused than a reflective umbrella, but more diffused than a softbox. This makes them a good trade-off. I always carry two of these in my bag.
