Photo Studio Strobe
Posted on Thursday, May 27, 2010 in Photography
Can you use aperture to get low key photos?
Can you take a meter reading in studio with a light meter then only change the aperture setting suggested (smaller) to get low(er) key photos without changing strobe strength?
Thank you very much! So heres a scenario:
I've got two umbrellas set at 45 degrees to my model. I fire both (dont worry about ratio's for now) using my Seikonic L358 and it tells me to use a aperture of f11 (for 1/250 - max sync). Doing this I find that the shot is perfectly exposed, but high key (nice and bright). So what would the right procedure be to turn this into a low(er) key shot?
- Do I decrease the power on my stobes, keeping the same aperture/shutter speed?
- Do I move my umbrellas back (which affects light fall off)?
My first inclination would be to decrease the power on the strobes. My old kit strobes had graduated settings of 1/4 1/2 and full. I always shot on 1/4 and I was still up around f/10 or smaller. I was not given that option really, but I would have taken it. I did move the strobes back, and it did work some. I ended up dropping down to f/16 and moving my subject further away from the background so the smaller aperture didn't try to bring it into focus. Turning the strobes down would have been way easier. I can do that now with my new kit, so that problem is solved.
I much prefer to do low key pictures with one strobe or one constant light with or without an additional reflector. It makes a nice warm portrait, the background is well out of focus. Its a very intimate kind of portrait. If you can swing a decent shot at f/4 or less and 1/100 sec, it really makes for a nice look. Good Luck.
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Product Shot Tutorial with Studio Strobes and an SB-800
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