Juist Bought Softboxes using CFL Lights - My Impression

Ian Stark · September 20th, 2007, 09:45 AM

When I got to 500 posts a man wearing a DVi t-shirt turned up at the door offering to type all future posts for me. Now that's service . . .

Emre Safak · September 20th, 2007, 09:57 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Shiv Kumar

http://thehomefront.dynamicarchitect...o/Softbox1.jpg
http://thehomefront.dynamicarchitect...o/Softbox4.jpg
http://thehomefront.dynamicarchitect...o/Softbox5.jpg

Working great now.

Shiv Kumar · September 20th, 2007, 09:59 AM

Ok, to whomsoever is writing this:

Please let Ian know that I'm working on getting to 500 posts and then you can write my posts and Ian can find someone local to do his work for him :).

Shiv Kumar · September 20th, 2007, 04:36 PM

Please find the images of the lightboxes here:

http://photoalbum.matlus.com//AlbumView.aspx/6

You'll see them after the pictures of the Merlin.

Seun Osewa · October 5th, 2007, 05:08 AM

Thanks for those pictures, Shiv. Your softlight light looks very natural.

Though the white balance is a little bit off, it actually appears to me as if the ladies' faces are illuminated by a window. I'm having this idea of positioning my lights to simulate window lighting but I wonder if that makes any sense!

Attached is a white balanced version of the first pic you posted.

Shiv Kumar · October 5th, 2007, 09:44 AM

Seun,

I had white balanced for the Softbox before shooting. There was sunlight coming in via a window (with a white shade) from the right side of the subjects (looking at the photo, the left side). The window was about 20ft from the subjects. That's the light that caused a highlight on the side of their face.

How do you tell if the white balance is off and how did you fix it?

Seun Osewa · October 5th, 2007, 03:53 PM

Hmmm, we can't possibly judge the quality of any lighting fixture using a picture taken with the windows open! I'm not sure that the white balancing was off; perhaps the CFLs had a natural magenta cast? Either that or the wall is light magenta in color rather than white. I assumed that the wall was a white one. I attempted to white balance it using a color balance filter in the GIMP app.

Shiv Kumar · October 5th, 2007, 04:54 PM

The light from the window was not coming into the area where the subjects were, plus the window was quite far from the subjects. The window had a (white) shade pulled over it (diffusing it).

The wall behind the subjects was illuminated by the softbox only indirectly. The wall is white in so far as a "white" wall in a home. A white foam core board, or a white sheet of paper is much whiter than the wall.

The megenta - don't Canon cameras have more of a magenta then normal?

Seun Osewa · October 6th, 2007, 06:09 AM

I think the picture's beautiful regardless. I think the lighting is soft and great.

Eric Lagerlof · October 7th, 2007, 11:06 AM

Shiv, I bought the same lights about 2 months ago and have used them on a shoot once. I love the quality of the light as well. Now I need to experiment on controlling spill so I can get good subject/background seperation.

Video cameras reaction to light, vis a vis white balancing, is different than film. Film reallly is setup for 3200 or 5600 K. Video cameras could care less what the color temperature is. Hitting the WB switch, the camera 'assumes' you are pointing it at white and will adjust its R, its G and its B amplifiers in such a way that they are cumilatively sending out a white signal.

If your camera always seems magenta to you, get an extremely unsataurated magenta gel, hold it up to your lens when you do a white balance, and it will take the magenta down. If they still have them, a LEE or ROSCO color correction swatch book, with little sample gels all pinned together, is a great resource, as is a color accurate field monitor.

As to the Kaiser lights, I'm trying to figure out a way to carry them and set them up with lights screwed in, otherwise the setup time gets too long. But for the money, they are a good light.

Shiv Kumar · October 7th, 2007, 02:16 PM

Eric,

Thanks for the info.

I used a white foam core board to do the white balance for that clip. I'm planning on buying a swatch book because at a shoot I had a very difficult time finding a "white" something and then the camera wouldn't white balance for some reason. It took about 20 minutes of trying various angles/distances etc. to achieve white balance.

Yes, I love the lights too. They are cumbersome to transport in a way that they are ready to go. In my last shoot and carried one mounted while the other dismantled. That was the only way I could do it given the space in the rented SUV along with all the other stuff and equipment I had with me.

Seun Osewa · October 8th, 2007, 06:11 AM

The whitest material I've been able to find is table salt. :-o

September 20th, 2007, 09:45 AM	#16
Ian Stark Inner Circle Join Date: Dec 2003 Location: Hampshire, UK Posts: 2,237	When I got to 500 posts a man wearing a DVi t-shirt turned up at the door offering to type all future posts for me. Now that's service . . . __________________ www.vit-media.com www.classicmachinefilms.co.uk

September 20th, 2007, 04:36 PM	#19
Shiv Kumar Major Player Join Date: Jul 2007 Location: Gainesville, VA, USA Posts: 327	New Images Posted Please find the images of the lightboxes here: http://photoalbum.matlus.com//AlbumView.aspx/6 You'll see them after the pictures of the Merlin.

October 5th, 2007, 05:08 AM	#20
Seun Osewa Major Player Join Date: Oct 2006 Location: West Africa Posts: 255	Thanks for those pictures, Shiv. Your softlight light looks very natural. Though the white balance is a little bit off, it actually appears to me as if the ladies' faces are illuminated by a window. I'm having this idea of positioning my lights to simulate window lighting but I wonder if that makes any sense! Attached is a white balanced version of the first pic you posted. Attached Thumbnails

September 20th, 2007, 09:59 AM	#18
Shiv Kumar Major Player Join Date: Jul 2007 Location: Gainesville, VA, USA Posts: 327	Ok, to whomsoever is writing this: Please let Ian know that I'm working on getting to 500 posts and then you can write my posts and Ian can find someone local to do his work for him :).

October 5th, 2007, 09:44 AM	#21
Shiv Kumar Major Player Join Date: Jul 2007 Location: Gainesville, VA, USA Posts: 327	Seun, I had white balanced for the Softbox before shooting. There was sunlight coming in via a window (with a white shade) from the right side of the subjects (looking at the photo, the left side). The window was about 20ft from the subjects. That's the light that caused a highlight on the side of their face. How do you tell if the white balance is off and how did you fix it?

October 5th, 2007, 03:53 PM	#22
Seun Osewa Major Player Join Date: Oct 2006 Location: West Africa Posts: 255	Hmmm, we can't possibly judge the quality of any lighting fixture using a picture taken with the windows open! I'm not sure that the white balancing was off; perhaps the CFLs had a natural magenta cast? Either that or the wall is light magenta in color rather than white. I assumed that the wall was a white one. I attempted to white balance it using a color balance filter in the GIMP app.

October 5th, 2007, 04:54 PM	#23
Shiv Kumar Major Player Join Date: Jul 2007 Location: Gainesville, VA, USA Posts: 327	The light from the window was not coming into the area where the subjects were, plus the window was quite far from the subjects. The window had a (white) shade pulled over it (diffusing it). The wall behind the subjects was illuminated by the softbox only indirectly. The wall is white in so far as a "white" wall in a home. A white foam core board, or a white sheet of paper is much whiter than the wall. The megenta - don't Canon cameras have more of a magenta then normal?

October 6th, 2007, 06:09 AM	#24
Seun Osewa Major Player Join Date: Oct 2006 Location: West Africa Posts: 255	I think the picture's beautiful regardless. I think the lighting is soft and great.

October 7th, 2007, 11:06 AM	#25
Eric Lagerlof Major Player Join Date: Mar 2004 Location: Pacifica, CA Posts: 348	Shiv, I bought the same lights about 2 months ago and have used them on a shoot once. I love the quality of the light as well. Now I need to experiment on controlling spill so I can get good subject/background seperation. Video cameras reaction to light, vis a vis white balancing, is different than film. Film reallly is setup for 3200 or 5600 K. Video cameras could care less what the color temperature is. Hitting the WB switch, the camera 'assumes' you are pointing it at white and will adjust its R, its G and its B amplifiers in such a way that they are cumilatively sending out a white signal. If your camera always seems magenta to you, get an extremely unsataurated magenta gel, hold it up to your lens when you do a white balance, and it will take the magenta down. If they still have them, a LEE or ROSCO color correction swatch book, with little sample gels all pinned together, is a great resource, as is a color accurate field monitor. As to the Kaiser lights, I'm trying to figure out a way to carry them and set them up with lights screwed in, otherwise the setup time gets too long. But for the money, they are a good light.

October 7th, 2007, 02:16 PM	#26
Shiv Kumar Major Player Join Date: Jul 2007 Location: Gainesville, VA, USA Posts: 327	Eric, Thanks for the info. I used a white foam core board to do the white balance for that clip. I'm planning on buying a swatch book because at a shoot I had a very difficult time finding a "white" something and then the camera wouldn't white balance for some reason. It took about 20 minutes of trying various angles/distances etc. to achieve white balance. Yes, I love the lights too. They are cumbersome to transport in a way that they are ready to go. In my last shoot and carried one mounted while the other dismantled. That was the only way I could do it given the space in the rented SUV along with all the other stuff and equipment I had with me.

October 8th, 2007, 06:11 AM	#27
Seun Osewa Major Player Join Date: Oct 2006 Location: West Africa Posts: 255	The whitest material I've been able to find is table salt. :-o