Soft Box Studio Lighting

<p style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;" class="MsoNormal"]<span style="font-size: 11pt; font-family: Arial;"]Hi all again.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"] Looking for some advice, I am very interested in getting into portrait photography and am looking at studio lighting, soft boxes in particular.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"] I have read a fair bit on the subject but would like to hear from those who have actually used them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"] I am looking at continuous 1000 w kits (3 lights in kit with stands), around the $500 Australian price range, are these any good, any advice would be appreciated.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"] I use a Canon 50D.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"] Thank you all in advance.<o:p></o:p>
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<p style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0pt;" class="MsoNormal"]<span style="font-size: 11pt; font-family: Arial;"]Scott<o:p></o:p>

Things that are important are:





The studio or space where you shoot: 1000w in a small studio for portraits is a lot and can be too much if you're shooting portraits of people or small groups of people. Seriously.


Cycle speed: how long does it take until you can flash again? The differences may seem small but believe me if I could choose between half a second or two seconds I'd go for the first.


Color consistency: Cheaper flash is very inconsistent.


Third Party parts: High-end sets like Bowens can screw on cheaper (but just as effective) soft boxes and modifiers (check out whoch brands screw on to which pro-grade flash kits: you can save loads of cash in that area). The lights (being top notch) will deliver what you need.





Personally: 1000ws in a 3 light kit: at that price point, you will need to make compromises.


I recommend Bowens Gemini 500ws 2x in a set and use a reflector as a third light source. It's entry level but a-grade and will last years. But it's above your budget.








But do some research: why 1000w x3? Seriously: what do you need that much power for?

EDIT


Oh shoot I didn't see you meant continuous light. My apologies.


But you know what:


That will get hot inside a studio! Especially at those watts. A good fifteen minutes later you will need hair and makeup to touch up models or your subject will melt (well, not melt but it won't be a pleasant experience and it will reflect in your images.





Why continuous over flash? Mastering flash can be fun and you have modeling light that will give you a pretty good idea of your lighting setup.


If I were you (respectfully) I would not put a 3x 1000w set in a studio setup. But that's just me.

I think that when you're first getting into portrait photography you automatically gravitate towards continuous lighting simply because of its WYSIWYG characteristics. However, the previous poster is quite right in saying that a continuous light gets very, very hot and is not comfortable to sit under for any length of time. I bought a 1000 watt continuous light from Steve Kaeser's website (like this one), and while I was happy with it for a while, I found off-camera flashes to be much more useful and ideal in most situations.

Thanks Madison, good point with the heat. I will research the flash. Thankyou