2 low power strobes vs 1 high power strobe

[cephalogoddess]

Hi friends,
I am trying to get into more advanced underwater photography (been shooting with a Canon D30 PowerShot for the last 2 years...). I am on a budget and need to buy a new camera as well as strobes. I am mostly interested in macro but would also like to be able to do some wide angle shots. And I'm going to Indonesia in March!

I have been offered a great deal on a pair of Inon Z240s for only $400. However, I could also afford 1 YS-D2J strobe or InonZ330. What would you recommend I do? Would it be better to shoot with 2 lower power (guide # 24) strobes or one higher power (guide #32) strobe?

Even if it would be better to have 2 Z240s than 1 higher power, I also need to keep in mind that if I bought 1 high power now I'd be able to save up for an additional one later. Or, what if I bought the 2 Z40s now and 1 high power later? Can you use 2 different strobes at once? I'd rather not have to buy twice...

Thank you very much for any input.
-Taryn

 

[Nemrod]

Two is almost always better than one and the Z240 if in good shape are excellent strobes, you will have a smoother light envelope. You could do two S2000 strobes. Underwater strobes are pretty useless beyond six feet even for powerful strobes and for lesser units, maybe four feet. As just fill augmentation, perhaps a little more distance.

The Z240 is compatible with other optical fired strobes, at least in manual mode. Should work fine with a Z330 in all modes. The now discontinued D2000 and Z240 have an Auto mode the new Inon strobes do not have. Which is kind of a bummer to me. If I were buying new strobes, I would be seriously tempted to do the S2000. They have a GN of 20 at ASA100 and should be plenty for macro and enough for CFWA. Not should be, is.

N

 

[Hoag]

Personally, I would go for the 2 Inon Z240s. If you use a single strobe, especially one that is very powerful, the light will tend to very directional. You will also be limited (especially in wide angle shots) as to how much of the image that you can light. With two strobes, you can spread them out to make the light more balanced. In wide angle shots, you can spread the stobes out to cover the maximum possible area. If you have a situation with two strobes where you want to side light something and you want the light to have a directional component to it, then you will still have the option to adjust your strobes so that they are both on the same side of your camera.

WRT your question about using a mix of high power and low power strobes, yes you can. You can do it a few ways. You could use your two lower power strobes on the sides and a single strobe in the center. You could us the high power strobe and a single lower power strobe with the high power one turned down to match the lower power one (Although this defeats the advantage of the high power strobe.) Finally, you could use the high power strobe with a lower power strobe to give a subtle directionality to the lighting while still lighting the entire image.

 

[davehicks]

Get the two strobes. The Inon's are very good and if the choice is 2x240's vs 1x330 then get the pair. While the newer strobes are more powerful you should find very few scenes where you will want to shoot full power. I rarely go beyond 1/2 power and most of the time I have the second strobe set even lower and acting as a fill-light at a different angle.

 

[Imla]

Personally... as one who has had 6 Z240s and 2 330s... I'd go with the Z240s any day of they week.
I more often have an issue with too much light, rather than too little, and espescially on macro.

 

[bvanant]

The difference between the guide numbers is not that dramatic, particularly with the diffusers on. For macro you mostly will be shooting near half power and even for wide angle you should be fine. I suspect the Z330 power increase was a marketing tool to keep up with the YSD2, bragging rights and all that.
Bill

 

[Chris Ross]

Both the YS-D2 and Z-330 are somewhat marketing driven. The YS-D2 gets 32 guide number without diffuser into an 80° beam and reduces to 24 guide number with 100°diffuser. The Z-240 is 24 guide number with 100° beam without diffuser and drops to GN 20 with the 110° diffuser. The Z-330 gets the 32 GN without diffuser at the expense of some light fall off. They are not exactly apples and apples due to the varying beam coverage. Where you really need strobe power is wide angle, macro you are in close and it's less demanding and for wide angle you want good even coverage.

Having said all that get the two Z-240s, they are great strobes. They are powerful enough for most purposes, you were talking about using a G7X in your other post, you would probably use f5.6 for wide angle and the Z-240 will easily provide enough light for that. They will be suitable for any wide angle work you want to do up to FF DSLR.

 

[tursiops]

What they said. Get the two Z240s. Great price.
And, with two strobes, you have a spare if one fails mid-trip.

 

[cephalogoddess]

Thanks guys, I'll be getting the Z240s. Which means I will have more money leftover to spend on a video light! I'm looking at the Kraken 5000s+, but let me know if there are better video lights in that price range. Super excited for my new camera and lights!

-Taryn

 

[davehicks]

Thanks guys, I'll be getting the Z240s. Which means I will have more money leftover to spend on a video light! I'm looking at the Kraken 5000s+, but let me know if there are better video lights in that price range. Super excited for my new camera and lights!

-Taryn

https://www.scubaboard.com/community/threads/review-xtar-d36-5800-flood

This is worth a look? About $330 on Ebay new.