How many flashes for Real Estate Photography?

[Alpha Head]

Hi,

I'm getting started in Real Estate Photography and looking to do wireless flash setups as my lighting. I own a a700 and a Sony 11-18mm lens(thanks David on that article comparing the 10-20mm and the 11-18mm it was very beneficial!). I will be mainly working on higher end homes so the rooms/areas will be larger. I'm looking to buy some flashes this month and would like to know how many flashes(maximum) I might need? I don't have a budget but wouldn't want to spend on extra flashes if not needed. However, I wouldn't want to be on a job where one or two more flashes would've helped me out. Thanks for your suggestions and I look forward to contributing to your site!

[David Kilpatrick]

Interiors always look best with only one direction of hard light, therefore one powerful remote flash which you might place to shine through a door, archway, or even an outside window can be a good idea. A second powerful flash is then used for diffused fill from near the camera position, either bounced or with a lightshaper. The key technique is to light the distant part of a room, and the foreground. There is an area in the three-quarter distance which can be left to be darker, as long as plenty of important foreground information (furnishing) is well lit, and the back wall of the room is also well lit. Flash should be pitched to blend with existing light, and it's best to have table or standard lamps lit, not dead.

While it would be nice to do all this using Sony flash, I don't advise it. The wireless control will get round some corners, and do pretty impressive distances like 30ft even controlled by just the pop up flash. But in time you will repeatedly find that you want to place a flash head where it will not trigger. The most reliable method is to use a Pocket Wizard strobe trigger or an Elinchrom Skyport kit, plugged in to the sync port of the A700, and to have AC powered studio flash. My own choice is Elinchrom D-Lite, and a two head kit is enough. This will not cost any more than two 56 flash heads, and in the 400Ws per head power, will be far more powerful. You do not need to waste money on a flashmeter as you can learn by trial and error and making test shots. I use Skyport and Elinchrom, it's one system and I asbolutely trust the quality, I've used them since 1984 and my original EL500/250 kit was only replaced in 2002 so that's 18 years of pro use from a portable kit - one repair needed in that time.

The second advantage of a kit like this is that the halogen-star modelling bulbs are comparable to room lighting in colour temperature and power. This means you can opt to use tungsten white balance, and continous light, in place of flash which produces mixed colour balance with room lights. It opens the door to doing nice stuff like having some lit candles on a table, or a flame effect (or real!) fire burning. Usually, two heads plus any extra domestic lights will do the job, and you can carry (as I do) some simple little clip spotlights - mine cost me £5 ($10) each and are just plastic head with a reflector bulb and a spring clip. They can be positioned to provide small highlights and hidden from view.

So in this case, I hate to advise against Sony flash kit, but the AC mains outfit in its neat kit bag with stands and stuff will impress your clients and enable you to make far superior room shots. It will also enable you to get apertures like f/11 or f/16 for maximum ultra wide sharpness, more easily than battery powered wireless flash.

David

[Alpha Head]

Thanks for your reply David. =) When you say, putting the flash where it will not trigger" could it be because of the flash's sensitivity? From what I hear, the HVL42 is far more sensitive than the HVL56. I like your technique of the Elinchrom D-Lite 2 head kit and skyports and am leaning toward this approach. How does the skyport compare to the pocket wizard and radio poppers? Is there a reason why you prefer skyports over the others?

Also, for versitility, I'll be picking up 2 flashguns and wondering what your recommendation is(in particular to real estate)? I've read your article and I'm liking the HVL56 for it's power but HVL42seems to trigger from far more places than the 56(according to other users who carry both). Also, there is the new Metz 58- AF-1 which is getting great reviews from users who prefer them to the Sony counterparts. Then there's the Flagship HVL58 in which I can preorder and wait a couple of months. I guess power and reliability to trigger are important. I don't know if you've had the opportunity to test the newer flash guns but if you were to choose 2, which would you choose and why?

Thanks again for your knowledge, experience, and insight David! I may have more questions if you don't mind.

[David Kilpatrick]

Skyports are tiny, Pocket Wizards are rather big. Also, the Skyport is fully controllable from a palmtop Windows computer with its USB adaptor dongle. But Pocket Wizard does have more range. In theory, the Sony system requires line of sight between the commander flash and the remotes; they don't suggest that it will work from bounced control signals. In smaller rooms, line of sight does not matter much, but once you get into a large space it may be impossible to trigger Sony wireless remotes which can not actually be seen from the camera position (not necessarily in the frame, of course!).

If I was to buy newer flashguns I would do what I have already done - get a 42 to go with my 36 and 56, and wait for the 58 to arrive. I have used the Metz and while it's fine the TTL-ADI/etc implementation is a bit different and exposures can be slightly generous.

I bought a cheap Chinese radio popper and my advice is forget it. They work, but mine is unreliable (randomly fires the flash if you touch it!) and has a very limited range compared to Skyport or Pocket Wizard. I can only say that for your work, a studio flash mono head kit like the D-Lite 400 2 head kit would give you the capacity to do any size of job well, and shoot hundreds of pictures in a day if needed. It also opens to door to many other types of paid photography.

David

[Alpha Head]

Looks like I will preorder my main flash being the HVL58. Still deciding on whether to pick up a couple of 42's or 56's. You mention you already had some 36's and 56's. If you had to start out fresh(no flashes), would you pick up a couple of the newer sensitive 42's or the more powerful 56's(in addition to my HVL58 in Sept)? Do the skyports do wireless TTL? What is the difference between connecting the Skyport to an FS-1100 or the PC port?

In regards to the D-Lite, how is setup time compared to strobes? Seems strobes maybe faster since they're easier to conceal and don't involve power cords. Will I need to purchase 2 skyport kits to control each D-Lite? Is it the D-Lite 4 "to go" set you are recommending? Is the 200w set too underpowered? Also, are the D-Lites controllable w/ the skyport/usb? I thought it was only w/ the RX models?

Thanks again for your help David as I hope this is most beneficial for your readers as it is for me!

[David Kilpatrick]

Only the Rx models are controllable (that is actually what I use). Mains flash does not take long to set up, and it comes with stands. Remember, with a remote flash like the 58/56 you need a lighting stand to hold it. Also, the mains flash recycles in 1 second or so, and the 58/56 at full power will take 3-5 seconds with fresh cells, and then begin to slow down, until eventually it is 20 seconds between shots. Also, you have no way of knowing it has recycled; with the mains flash, you are absolutely sure it is ready again if you wait two seconds, even if the other flash is in a different room. With the battery flash, you have to walk round and check.

D-Lites or Skyport do not do wireless TTL, and no mains flash does TTL unless you count one or two high end products from Norman and Quantum (Q-Flash). It simply is not needed. Trust me, for your application you really do not want battery powered flash units - you need studio strobes to do it well. Take a look at http://www.garethbyrne.com - I've just been doing a magazine layout of his work. His interiors are shot using two Bowens (Bogen) 500Ws heads, similar in output to the D-Lite 4. He can add supplementary light to Guggenheim size art galleries with just that basic kit. No way, ever, can you do it with battery flash. The total light output of a battery head is about 1/8th that of a mains head, if you compare a 58 gun with a D-Lite 4 etc.

Now, you may need battery flash as well for certain jobs. I use both. The 56 is discontinued and in the UK all stocks are now sold out. The 42 is the only current option as the 58 has not arrived. I'd say that if you can find closeout 56 models, or older 5600s, they are well worth buying. But then, I work with old Metz 45 CT-1, old Nissin, Starblitz and similar thyristor guns. Anything which produces light can help you make pix!

David

[paul_32]

Interiors, not my most favorit job, but for my website, I have to do a lot of it.

Taking pictures in interiors, I always hated the lightfall away from the windows, making it darker along the walls. And, in trying to get a balanced lighting, its difficult including the windows, they are mostly overexposed.
I started out with available lighting, using those cheap construction lights in 300 and 500 Watts. They tend to get hot and the lighting wasn't really controlable with outside colortemperature, so I didn't go on with it.
Later I used to carry around a large studio bag, with two old Metz 60 ct 4, my dynax 7D and two 56 or 54 flashes. Because of the flashes, WB on daylight. I use one flash on the 7D as trigger, all are manual set, triggered with remote eye.
Like David I tried those cheap China things, but not reliable at all.
Setting all flashes manual means you rely heavily on the display to judge the image, and how to increase or decrease the flashes. All flashes have an extra diffusor from Omni bounce, cause I take pictures with wide angle. Until the a900, that wat the KM 7D with a Sigma 15mm fisheye. PTlens als plugin for PS is then used to correct the image. Now I'm trying the a900 with Sigma 14mm. I still need some practice getting decent results with the a900.

Using the flashes in interiors, I learned the following: Light from the flash on the camera, makes it difficult for even lighting. Lightfall away from the camera doesnt make nice pictures. So the flash on the camera is used more as a fill.
Flashes placed higher or lower, make shadows on the walls, if lighting is a bit balanced, you can minimize it but not eliminate.
If possible, I setup flashes in the direction of the walls to be lit, but nut always. I recently found that in order to get even lighting on walls or ceiling ( with those wide angle lenses... ), flashes can be in some position where they bounce against walls or ceiling, but visible in the picture too. Or shielded by some furniture. Lighting is then actually in the direction of the camera. Gives an unreal effect, but not unwanted as I see it.

More recently, I bought an 800 Ws studio flash, to get light indoors, wile still being able to get good exposure for the outside view. I'm now experimenting with pictures taken outside, in the direction of the house to show something like the balcony, and at the same time also some interior. flashes indoors must be fired too, hence the remote control tests. Looks like David is right on that subject......
At the same time I'm a bit experimenting with HDR but I don't find to much use for it, nevertheless I'm sometimes trying it to see if I get decent results.

Most of the time I find it hard to get decent results, sometimes it works, and some days nothing works. Results of a decade interior pics can be seen at my website http://www.cadzandbad.info A good observer will recognize the days of tungsten light and poor scanning of film. This summer I've taken may pics new, and the 2009 season again I'm planning on doing most images again. So I welcome all advise and critics......

[Alain]

Hi

Don't forget to gel you're flash or strobes. Adding a CTO or 1/2 CTO filter (like from LEE or Rosco) is cheap and give you a better color temperature balance with the interior lights.

I would be surprised if a Dlite-2 doesn't has the power to light most houses.