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I am looking into starting a home studio and am wondering about lighting. My "studio" as of now, is going to have to be portable, and set up/ taken down each day. I will be shooting mostly portraits (mainly of babies and kids) and so I'm wondering if I should be getting continuous lights (tungsten) or strobes? I come from a video/film background and so I am more comfortable with continuous lighting but am wondering for portraits which is better.

Thanks so much!

Kim,
You'll definitely want a good set of strobes. I'd suggest a set of Alien Bees. The AB's aren't terribly expensive, and if you're studio isn't going to be a huge space, the "DigiBee" kit (which is 2 400ws strobes and all the other stuff you'll need) will provide more than enough light. The power is adjustable, so they'll give lots of flexibility.

I started out my little studio using tungsten continuous lighting but after only a short time the room became uncomfortably hot and everyone started sweating.

Just my 2cents

Roger

Hi Roger,
Thanks so much for the reply. I've seen the Alien Bees around and I'll have to take a look at their kits.
Here is something that I found online:
http://cgi.ebay.com/PRO-3-LIGHT-STROBES-400-W-S-MUSLINS-SUPPORT-NEW_W0QQitemZ200096051059QQihZ010QQcategoryZ30087QQtcZphotoQQcmdZViewItem
Does it seem like a good deal? I'm not sure if 400WS per 3 lights is okay for portraits or not...

Hi, Kim. I've spent the year on David Hobby's strobist website, as 'spelunkerd' on the associated discussion group. I ended up getting two Alien Bee B800 monolights to go with my little speedlights. I have Wescott umbrellas and two softboxes, one of the new giant AB folding softbox, a small softbox for my speedlight, and pocketwizards. I got some lightstands and umbrella clamps all by Bogen, and I bought all the non AB equipment from B&H. I don't use my Muslin backdrop very often because I find it confining, and a little boring compared to natural scenic backdrops. I didn't do the kit thing, though you can save money by getting stuff all at once.

I sure like my Alien Bees, though professionals describe them as not as durable as much more expensive equipment. Some complain about the lack of power to the modeling lights, but I don't notice that at all. I find the quality and consistency of light to be excellent. Paul Buff also sells White Lightning from the same company, which has similar electronics, based around a more durable chassis. If you move up to top line equipment expect to pay a lot more. I know you are interested in professional work, and AB's may limit you there. But for my effort these lights are great and I would certainly buy them again. When I made the above comment on a different website, a professional chirped in that AB's now dominate the market, even in the professional arena because of cost issues. When you order photo lighting equipment, make sure they state that it is photography equipment so there will be no duty beyond GST. Let me know if you have specific questions about the above equipment.

Dave

Kim,

For the price that doesn't look like a bad setup. The 2 main strobes give 360ws (180ws each) which should be enough for a small studio space, and you get pretty much everything else you'd need to get up and running.

My only concern is it doesn't say who made the strobes and the warranty doesn't cover the flash tubes. So if a flash tube stops working they aren't going to fix it, and if the manufacturer is some off the wall unknown company, repair and accessories could be expensive compared to a well known manufacturer like Norman, Novatron, or Alien Bees.

Perhaps you could call or email the company that listed the kit on eBay and see if they will give you more details about the equipment--specifically the strobes and then do some research on them.

If they're unwilling to provide details, or the strobes are super generic, I'd steer clear. Just my opinion.

Have you browsed the studio lighting section on Adorama or B&H Photo?

Good luck,
Roger

Hi Kim! It's been a really (really) long time since I visited this site, but I think I remember you! If you haven't gotten any lights yet, I have to back up the people who recommend the Alien Bees. I started with on AB800, and now I have four. Give them a call, their customer service is excellent, and you can actually talk to a person. They can help you if you don't know exactly what you want, and they don't work on comission, so no hard-sell. You can only buy them from their site. Alienbees.com.

Art M.	Salvador María L.	Alfons R.	Rob G.	Art M.	roger b.	Ian C.	Bruce M.

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