I did a portrait shoot the other day for a client. My set up for these particular shots consisted of a single Alien Bees 400 flash unit with their giant soft box, a Canon EOS 5D with a Canon 100 f/2.8 Macro lens. I took the shot at 1/200 with the flash, and had the aperture set at f/7.1 and the ISO at 400. I focused on the people in front, as is apparent by the shots. However, the exposure was at full power for the flash, and dead on. So changing the aperture to increase DOF would have resulted in an underexposed photo. So what is my problem then? Am I simply lacking in flash power? Should I get a more powerful flash unit? I really don't want to go above ISO 400. Actually, I'd be more comfortable at ISO 100, but that obviously wasn't possible. But not having the proper DOF to maintain focus throughout the ranks is not very good either. Does anyone have an idea on how to correct this problem in the future?
In my opinion you need light sources. You can get by with 2 lights and a reflector but a 3-light sources would be your best setup. It will give you more options without having to go to a higher ISO, do away with the deep shadows, separate you subjects from the background, and give you more flexibility over TV and AV for better DOF and focus control.
Ideally you should focus 2/3 into your photograph. You would get the most out of your dept of field if you focused in the middle row of people or between the front and second row of people probably. The giant soft box takes away a lot of your light though, especially when put on a B400. I always use my softbox on a b800 to make up for lost light when using it with my b400. You could manage slowing your shutter speed to 1/160 or 1/120 though, if you really want more light to bump your aperture to a 9 or higher. Also, these photos look a bit bright on my monitor, so you may want to underexpose just slightly to get a sharper look.
You could manage slowing your shutter speed to 1/160 or 1/120 though, if you really want more light to bump your aperture to a 9 or higher. Also, these photos look a bit bright on my monitor, so you may want to underexpose just slightly to get a sharper look.
Will changing the shutter speed change the exposure much with strobes? I thought aperture was the controlling factor with strobes? I've got a couple AB's, but do not use them as much as I'd like so I'm curious.
I agree that the photos look bright - faces are blown out.
I agree faces are hot. Do not worry about going up on ISO on the 5D. I would routinely shoot much higher then that if needed when using smaller strobes for large groups. But for the situation you are doing you really need more light and more strobes, but not for the reason of needing more light.
You could manage slowing your shutter speed to 1/160 or 1/120 though, if you really want more light to bump your aperture to a 9 or higher. Also, these photos look a bit bright on my monitor, so you may want to underexpose just slightly to get a sharper look.
Will changing the shutter speed change the exposure much with strobes? I thought aperture was the controlling factor with strobes? I've got a couple AB's, but do not use them as much as I'd like so I'm curious.
It can give just enough extra light from ambient light of the modeling lights to get you another stop, I go between 1/160 and 1/200 all the time and don't have a problem and it gives much just a tad bit of wiggle room.
