Strobes VS Video Lights for UW Photography | OrcaTorch
Can underwater video lights be used for underwater photography instead of strobes? If you asked me this question a year ago I'd have laughed, but over the past year my strobes have hardly gotten wet. They've been left behind in place of a pair of high powered video lights. Why? Well thats the interesting part.
As a professional underwater photographer and filmmaker I own a range of both UW flash strobes including the Inon D2000, Z240 (newer Z330) series and Sea&Sea YS series, and a range of underwater video lights lately, from OrcaTorch including the D900V, D910V, and D950V. And there was a time where i'd go underwater with 2x strobes and 2x video lights attached to my Sony A7III film rig, and my god, this was such a hassle! Having to swap between photo strobes and video lights was such a massive pain, and by the time the swap had been made, the correct lights were powered up and were adjusted so they were in the right position, most of the time the shot was already gone. Now this process only took around 20-30 seconds, but in that time so much can change, particularly when we're talking about wildlife photography!
While I still use my strobes for Photo only assignments, for my hybrid shoots where my client is asking for both Photo and Video content to be simultaneously produced, I have been relying on video lights as my sole light source. And honestly, my work has been way better and I've been producing better images as I'm not wasting 30 seconds fiddling with gear inbetween every single shot. Instead, I can capture the moment when it appears, and use the extra time to focus on correctly approaching the animal/ wildlife, or focusing on my composition or directing the model. It's also made scuba diving with my camera so much more pleasant!
While technically they don't produce a light as powerful as a strobe, for close focus wide angle photography it's rare that I ever had my strobes on full power anyways, such that a pair of powerful video lights, like my OrcaTorch D950V's which are 10,500 lumens each are easily enough to light my foreground appropriately and bring back that colour and vibrancy to my shot.
Hopefully you learnt something with this tutorial video!
For more visit my website: www.tomparkphotography.com
& check out my Instagram tomsunderwaterphotography
Camera Gear Used:
- Sony A7III
- Sony 16-35mm f4
- Sigma 24-70 f2.8 Art
- Sony 50mm f1.8
- Sony A7SIII
- Sony 18-105mm G F4
- Sigma 35mm F1.4
- Sea&Sea Underwater Housing and Domes
- OrcaTorch D950v and D910v Video Lights
- Zhiyun Weebill S, and Zhiyun Crane Gimbals
- DJI Mavic Drone
Пікірлер: 39
Great vid, I just lost my video light and strobe lights. I was thinking of replacing with just a great video light and you helped make up my mind.
When I go on dives, I usually set my mind "okay I'm just gonna do photo this time" or video. When I miss a shot that would have been perfect for photo and I'm set up for video, then I just think that that shot is not meant for me. Can't have best of both worlds, unfortunately. But yes, recently I switched to just video lights for photo and video and so far I'm loving it.
super helpful video man! cheers
Thanks Tom for the advice
@TomPark
3 жыл бұрын
Anytime hope you learnt something :p
Some amazing shots! I've been wondering about this for a while - it seems video lights have finally caught/ are catching up :)
@TomPark
3 жыл бұрын
They really are catching up and fast! Thanks mate!
Such a nice video !! 👌🏻
@TomPark
3 жыл бұрын
Thank you Roxy!
That camera rig is enormous! :O
@TomPark
3 жыл бұрын
It’s huge hey! Why the lighting question is so valuable haha 🤘🏻
This has been very helpful. I want to shoot photography and video (mounting a GoPro on my ikelite) and don't feel comfortable spending more money than I need. I want to focus on the art & composition over the gear, but I need to make sure i invest in the right gear too...the catch 22...thank you
Agree. The camera struggle is always difficult
@TomPark
3 жыл бұрын
20kg of camera tends to be a pain :p
Great video, very helpful as I am getting in. How much lumens would you recommend for day shooting in rather clear water (15 to 30m average) and how many video lights ? Any beam angle recommendation or temperature suggestion? Thanks
I use two Big Blue VL4200P video lights for my close up and macro shots. Great for video and photo and use on low vis and night dives.
@TomPark
3 жыл бұрын
That’s awesome, it’s amazing how quick constant lighting technology is catching up to strobes!
hi! what is your recommendation video light lumen for mid range lights? Am looking to shoot wide angle with it!
I thought the d950 had a strobe node but I may be wrong about it
I’m just a surface snorkeler. Some trips to VIs have convinced me the need to use my Nikon d850 and new Ikelite housing. Will two these light work given how I’d use them?
Good reflections. Do you have any photo shoots comparison since you had strobe abs video light in the same gear?
@TomPark
3 жыл бұрын
Glad you enjoyed! Somehow I actually don't, whenever I took strobes I'd use the constant lights for video and switch them off for photos where I'd use the strobes. lately ive just been using the video lights for both, but I never actually took the same shot twice, once with video lights and once with strobes - something I'll definitely look at in the future for a more detailed comparison :)
Is it better to have a 5000 lumen video light x1 or a 3000 lumen x2 lamp? I'm just planning to build a simple video system with a Sony RX100 camera, do you have any video light suggestions for me, thanks for the response
hey how are you, I recently started taking underwater video recordings with the GoPro Hero 10 and quickly noticed that without extra light, they won't work. Is there an inexpensive rack with lights that you can recommend for the GoPro?
How much does this rig cost? Excluding camera
Would this still be the case when leveraging a macro lens for ultra close up shots ? Genuinely curious as I'm just starting out in UW photography
@TomPark
3 жыл бұрын
Video lights will perform way better for macro than wide angle. Wide angle the challenge is - are video lights bright enough to compete with strobes, as wide angle the lights usually need to cover some distance (2-3m). Which the technology has only very recently caught up and made them a viable option. But for macro - they’re great and have been for years as the light does not have to be anywhere near as powerful due to the fact that you’re only a few cm away from your subject. I actually know many macro photographers who prefer video lights over strobes for macro as you not only have more than enough light, but you can also see how your shot is lit and exposed before taking the image (unlike strobes where you can only see the result after taking the shot). Hope this helps! :)
@TomPark
3 жыл бұрын
Much shorter - the case is even better for video lights when using macro than what I’m talking about here (wide angle)
@ln9397
3 жыл бұрын
@@TomPark very much appreciate it! Still working on the kit I'm purchasing as I have an A7 iii for my outside of water photography so will just be looking to add a Underwater housing, lights etc
@TomPark
3 жыл бұрын
Yeh nice the A7iii is epic! It’s what I’ve been using for the last few years and I’ve been loving it! - I’m sure you will as well! There’s plenty more UW photo specific tutorials on the page if you’re interested, hopefully they’ll help!
@ln9397
3 жыл бұрын
@@TomPark have just started watching them all!
Can a small capacity (1000-1500 lumen) video light be used as a fill light for those of us who go snorkelling and don’t require a big rig lime yours? I am thinking that it could be used in places where trying to shoot under big rocks or in shaded areas where the sunlight is hidden. I like macro but I keep thinking that a strobe would be overkill for snorkelling and at the shallow depths I tend to go to.
@melwtan
8 ай бұрын
I would guess it is probably fine. Been using a L&M Sola dive light as my primary light and it is “ok”. You won’t be going down as deep as scuba divers. I also am not wanting to spend tons of money on UW photography myself and want a minimalist setup. It’s more to show family and fish ID.
@marieta.s
8 ай бұрын
@@melwtan thanks for your reply. After some thought I bought the weefine ringlight which works just fine for what I do. I don't dive deep and I even use it during daylight in the shallows. I cast my shadow in the subject to hide all the reflections and blown out highlights that can ruin a photo and use the ring light to illuminate the scene. It gives a daylight WB that requires less post processing and I get an even light everywhere, so I don't have noisy shadows. So far it has been working great for my needs.
@Jefferson-ly5qe
7 ай бұрын
@@marieta.sgood to know. I'm looking at the price tag of those orcas and wondering if 10000 lumens us really necessary. For a lot of the darker shots I do, even if I could get the ISO from 1500 down to 500 it would be a big help.
@marieta.s
6 ай бұрын
@@Jefferson-ly5qe in general they say that the more lumens the better especially if you dive deep. But lights are more suited to video work and sometimes as a focussing aid. If you are doing photography then maybe you should consider two strobes and get a smaller light to assist you when needed. If you are shooting video then lights are the correct choice. The thing is that lights can also be used in photography but strobes obviously cannot be used in videography. 😃 everybody’s needs are different and sometimes getting it right requires a bit of trial and error.
@Jefferson-ly5qe
6 ай бұрын
@@marieta.stwo strobes would be great but would also cost over a grand! Maybe one day I'll probably get an inexpensive constant light first and move my way up from there.
What about throwing 10k lumens at wildlife? You probably missed a lot of shots because of that. And also disturbed a lot of wildlife....