HID can light as makeshift strobe/using macro lens without external flash?

[Tassie_Rohan]

I'm about to pick up a Inon macro lens in Singapore on route to Lembeh - but the strobe I'm after (Inon2000) is out of stock.

Anyone tryed using their HID light as a light source for photography? If so how did it turn out? Any tips how to make an easy to detach fastener for the light to a strobe arm. I'm eying the top of a pringles can as a DIY diffuser....

Alternatively I could just use the small on-camera flash on my oly SP 350 with the macro lens - or have people found that to be a recipe for disaster?

Cheers,
Rohan.

 

[Mariozi]

No idea... tell me how it looks...
I am thinking of light a Nikon Coolpix with 2 LX15 lights!

 

[Mike Veitch]

think you will do better with onboard flash. the can light just not powerful enough to light up for still photography. to get enough light to expose the scene you would need to use a long exposure...not good.

Give it a try, see if it works, should def help your autofocus. But i think you will be better off using the internal flash for macro, and manual WB for WA

 

[Larry C]

Two things you'll find using a dive light. First, your picture will be either washed out or you'll have a bright subject and black around the edges. Second, since you don't have the strobe effect to "stop" the action, either you'll need a very high speed shutter setting or a rock to set your hand on or you'll blur out. You can get some very dramatic lighting effects if you set the shutter speed high enough, though. The onboard flash won't work in supermacro except on the slave setting, and you'll partially block the light with the lens. You may be able to use it with your macro lens because you won't have to be as close.

 

[jghflash]

It can work but it has its' limitations, obviously. You tend to get a hot spot but it can add to the dramatic effect of the picture. I usually shoot with the internal flash on my 5060 and seem to have figured that out OK. I made a tray and mounted a Mini-Q light for focusing help at night. Then I tried it on few shots with the close up lens during the day.....too close to use the internal flash. Just another tool to use as far as I'm concerned. I'm having trouble uploading some pics to show you what I did, 'll try agaoin tomorrow to do that. Just give it a try! Good luck.

 

[Tassie_Rohan]

Thanks for the advice and tips guys - I'll rig the 21 w up as a focus/fill in light (can anyone say 'overkill') and see how it goes. Sound like a bit of trail and error.

If it all goes pear shaped i've been taking good macro with just the built in flash and no add-on lens.

Cheers,
Rohan.

 

[Hammerhead]

It can work - here's a couple I took in the Philippines...

Not perfect by any means, but you can use it as a stop-gap with the internal strobe. Basically the HID light allows the camera to focus, then you just play with strobe levels untill you get it right.

 

[Tassie_Rohan]

Great shots Larry - I love the seahorse. The HID seems to have softened the shadows from the internal strobe. Did you have a diffuser on the HID light head?

As the short battery life on the SP350 can be a problem a strong focus light should also save power wasted while the AF trys to lock on.

Cheets,
Rohan.

 

[Hammerhead]

Great shots Larry - I love the seahorse. The HID seems to have softened the shadows from the internal strobe. Did you have a diffuser on the HID light head?

As the short battery life on the SP350 can be a problem a strong focus light should also save power wasted while the AF trys to lock on.

Cheets,
Rohan.

Thanks for the complements ( I wasn't fishing, honest ).

My HID's a Salvo 21W wil focussable beam. Slip to wide beam and use the "edge" of the circle to illuminate & voila...

 

[true]

I shot about a quarter of the photos used in the 2006 Halcyon catalog using a D-100 with dual Halcyon 50w video lights. I believe that Curt Bowen has also moved towards shooting with fixed lighting for Advanced Diver Magazine. It is a trade-off-- you do need to run a slower shutter speed, but that's not always a bad thing. The images are softer, but you can set 3-point lighting as if you were in the studio if you have someone to help run lights during the dive. As far as I'm concerned, it's not an either/or, but rather a choice of which works best for what you are trying to achieve.

Best,
Anthony
true@halcyon