Dirt Cheap Lighting - A Buyer's Guide

Browncoat

Senior Member
I think a lot of photographers stay away from lighting gear for a variety of reasons:
  • Expensive
  • Confusing
  • Takes up a lot of room
It's much easier to simply step outside and take photos in natural light. But what happens when the sun goes down? How about when the weather is bad and you're stuck inside? Sometimes space limitations can't be improved, however, having lighting equipment doesn't mean that you have to have a spare bedroom or basement either. As for the confusing part...it can be. It's difficult to make an informed decision on what to buy because most of us fear spending a lot of hard earned cash on something, only to figure out later on that it isn't what we needed.

I've compiled a few different lighting kits here that will get the job done on the cheap. The key word here is cheap. If you're looking for middle of the road equipment, you won't find it here. Most of this stuff is imported and made available through Amazon. If you want to experiment with lighting and want to fund it by digging through your couch cushions, read on:


Clark Howard Kit - $150
In case you don't know, Clark Howard is a syndicated radio talk show host, and is the cheapest person alive. This kit features the bare essentials, and even a 16 year old kid working at a grocery store can afford this stuff.

$65 - Yongnuo YN-560 speedlight. It is what it is, gang. No bells and whistles here, just dirt cheap and reliable.
$40 - CowboyStudio stand/umbrella/bracket kit. Don't sneeze on this thing, or it will blow over.
$22 - CowboyStudio NPT-04 wireless trigger. Bam! Welcome to the 21st century.
$14 - 43" 5-in-1 reflector. I own this thing. It's fragile, but it gets the job done. Take care of it, and it will last!



Weekend Warrior Kit - $ 300

If you have a bit more $$$ burning a hole in your pocket and want a better setup, take a look here.

$130 - Yongnuo YN-560 speedlight (x2). Having two flashes opens up a lot more options to you.
$48 - Opteka LS1000 10' stands (x2). These are much more sturdy than the budget stands. You might have to sneeze twice.
$22 - ePhoto brackets (x2). Our fancy new stands will need these to hold the umbrellas.
$20 - ePhoto 40" shoot-thru umbrella (x2). El Cheapo umbrellas for you Mary Poppins wanna-bes.
$45 - CowboyStudio 24" softbox. This will give you something new to play with.
$29 - CowboyStudio NPT-04 wireless trigger. Same as in the budget kit, only with another receiver for your 2nd flash unit.
$14 - 43" 5-in-1 reflector. Seriously...buy this thing. It's a helluva deal.



The Closet Studio - $700

This is a more comprehensive kit that is very portable and can be easily stowed away next to the vacuum cleaner.

$260 - Yongnuo YN-560 speedlight (x4). Yup, four of these bad boys. You're in the big leagues now.
$96 - Opteka LS1000 10' stands (x4). A no-brainer, right? We need four stands for our lights.
$22 - ePhoto brackets (x2). Same as above.
$20 - ePhoto 40" shoot-thru umbrella (x2). Ditto.
$90 - CowboyStudio 24" softbox (x2). This gives us a two softbox/two umbrella setup.
$60 - CowboyStudio NPT-04 wireless trigger (x2). Same as the above kit, only buy two kits for your four lights. Confusing, eh?
$14 - 43" 5-in-1 reflector.
$136 - Ravelli backdrop kit. Adjustable width for smaller rooms and comes with a handy storage bag.
$8 - Strobist gel kit. These will add some color to those backdrops.
 

Berkerk

Senior Member
Really useful lists!

I've been putting together my own set of kit and have the Yongnuo YN-560, it's a great manual flash for the price (which is cheap, so don't expect anything clever). One thing to note though is that you should look out for the all-metal foot as the earlier version, with plastic foot and metal contacts, were far from reliable (zoom head issues and faulty capacitors - simply fixed if you are willing to risk prising open your flash).
 

Peekcha

New member
I know this is newbie question but what is a manual flash?

Some flash units have what's called a TTL (through the lens) metering and the higher end ones have i-TTL. That takes most of the guess work on how to set up your flash for lighting conditions to properly expose your shot. Manual flash on the other hand has to be set up by the photographer to properly expose the shot, usually more guess work but you do end up with some really creative lighting though.
 

Jon

Senior Member
Some flash units have what's called a TTL (through the lens) metering and the higher end ones have i-TTL. That takes most of the guess work on how to set up your flash for lighting conditions to properly expose your shot. Manual flash on the other hand has to be set up by the photographer to properly expose the shot, usually more guess work but you do end up with some really creative lighting though.

Thanks.
 

Will V|Photography

Senior Member
I'm currently building my own "Clark Howard Kit". So far I only have...

YongNuo 460ii Speedlight - $35
YongNuo CTR-301P "Poverty Wizard" (1 trigger, 2 receivers) - $42 (just ordered tonight

I'm going to get that CowboyStudios umbrella kit and the 5-in-1 reflector from the first post probably next week or after the 1st. After that I'll be picking up a YN-560 so I can make use of the second receiver. ;)

Thanks for this post Anthony, it really helps give me a baseline and good links for future purchases. I can't wait to really try some "Strobism". Some may remember my first attempt in this thread: http://nikonites.com/general-photography-forum/4003-manual-strobism-automotive-content.html
 
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teejay

Senior Member
I've got 3 x Yongnuo 560's and 4 of their RF-603N radio triggers. Build quality seems pretty good for the price. So far so good - recommended.
 

Berkerk

Senior Member
Just got some freebie Rosco gels (colour cast correction from the Strobist collection) in the post and I've got to say they're rubbish, really flimsy. I'd bought some Lee gels a while back and they're so much more durable. I don't know if there's a difference in colour quality but I know which will last longest!
 

carguy

Senior Member
Below is a list of items I've purchased as I dove into off camera lighting:

CowboyStudio Photography 9 feet Professional Heavy Duty Light Stand
Amazon.com: CowboyStudio Photography 9 feet Professional Heavy Duty Light Stand for Photography and Video Lighting: Camera & Photo
$25

Cheaplights NPT-04 4 Channel Wireless Hot Shoe Flash Trigger and 2 Receivers
Amazon.com: Cheaplights NPT-04 4 Channel Wireless Hot Shoe Flash Trigger and 2 Receivers Set for Canon Nikon Pentax,OTT-04GY: Camera & Photo
$13.00 (Price fluxuates)

Neewer TT560 Flash Speedlite
Amazon.com: Neewer TT560 Flash Speedlite For Canon/Nikon Digital SLR Cameras: Camera & Photo
$33 (Price fluxuates)


Neewer 110CM 43" 5-in-1 Collapsible Multi-Disc Light Reflector
Amazon.com: Neewer 110CM 43" 5-in-1 Collapsible Multi-Disc Light Reflector: Camera & Photo
$18


Fotodiox 2260Arm Telescoping Reflector Holding Arm (for reflector)
Amazon.com: Fotodiox 2260Arm Telescoping Reflector Holding Arm, Holds 22-Inch to 60-Inch Reflector Disc: Camera & Photo
$23

Fotodiox Umb-Soft-43-W Fotodiox Premium Grade Studio Umbrella Softbox - 43-Inch Shoot Through Translucent White
http://www.amazon.com/Fotodiox-Umb-Soft-43-W-Premium-Umbrella-Softbox/dp/B005ODKQC
$12

CowboyStudio Flashlight /Hot Shoe/Umbrella Holder with Swivel/Tilt Bracket
Amazon.com: CowboyStudio Flashlight /Hot Shoe/Umbrella Holder with Swivel/Tilt Bracket for Nikon and Canon E430 E580 SB600 SB800 SB900: Camera & Photo
$3.00


Picked up two Nikon SB-24 speedlights
$50 each on ebay. Price varies, be sure to shop. Great for off camera flash and have TTL if you need it.
 

John P

Senior Member
For thicker longer lasting gels. Go to a music store and buy colored stage light gels. Cut them down to fit your flash.
 

wud

Senior Member


Weekend Warrior Kit - $ 300

If you have a bit more $$$ burning a hole in your pocket and want a better setup, take a look here.

$130 - Yongnuo YN-560 speedlight (x2). Having two flashes opens up a lot more options to you.
$48 - Opteka LS1000 10' stands (x2). These are much more sturdy than the budget stands. You might have to sneeze twice.
$22 - ePhoto brackets (x2). Our fancy new stands will need these to hold the umbrellas.
$20 - ePhoto 40" shoot-thru umbrella (x2). El Cheapo umbrellas for you Mary Poppins wanna-bes.
$45 - CowboyStudio 24" softbox. This will give you something new to play with.
$29 - CowboyStudio NPT-04 wireless trigger. Same as in the budget kit, only with another receiver for your 2nd flash unit.
$14 - 43" 5-in-1 reflector. Seriously...buy this thing. It's a helluva deal.



The Closet Studio - $700

This is a more comprehensive kit that is very portable and can be easily stowed away next to the vacuum cleaner.

$260 - Yongnuo YN-560 speedlight (x4). Yup, four of these bad boys. You're in the big leagues now.
$96 - Opteka LS1000 10' stands (x4). A no-brainer, right? We need four stands for our lights.
$22 - ePhoto brackets (x2). Same as above.
$20 - ePhoto 40" shoot-thru umbrella (x2). Ditto.
$90 - CowboyStudio 24" softbox (x2). This gives us a two softbox/two umbrella setup.
$60 - CowboyStudio NPT-04 wireless trigger (x2). Same as the above kit, only buy two kits for your four lights. Confusing, eh?
$14 - 43" 5-in-1 reflector.
$136 - Ravelli backdrop kit. Adjustable width for smaller rooms and comes with a handy storage bag.
$8 - Strobist gel kit. These will add some color to those backdrops.


Thanks for these awesome lists!

I started looking and see I more or less got something between these 2, I will start with 2 flashes but also want backdrop kit. And I couldnt really figure out if I should go for umbrella or softbox, but I see you think both.

Another thing I've been thinking about, are lamps. Dont anyone use this?
 

Mike D90

Senior Member
I am, again, putting together a cheap/budget studio kit.

So far I have my Sunpak PZ40X unit, two Vivitar 265 hot shoe flashes, one Vivitar 285 (non HV) flash and will add two Vivitar 2800 flashes to this.

I plan to make the double flash holder piece to fire two flash units in each soft box and the others will be used as a hair light and/or back drop light.

I am buying the Cowboy Studios light stands, flash holders and umbrella brackets with two of their medium Speedlight soft boxes and probably one large umbrella.

I plan to make my own backdrop stand setup and probably use sheets or muslin fabric.

I do have a question here.

If I want to fire both flash units in each soft box can I use one radio trigger, per soft box, and use a cheap optical slave trigger on each of the second flash units? Should be enough light to trigger a simple optical slave trigger I think? This would keep me from having to buy five or six radio triggers total.

Also, using optical slaves on a second flash . . . . will this cause any flash delay that would be noticeable in the photo? Are they fast enough to fire in sync with the trigger flash?
 
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