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No photography studio would be complete without continuous lighting equipment. However, if you’re just starting to bring your photography into the professional sphere, it can be difficult to determine which kits are best for your needs. But one thing is for certain: the right kit has the power to transform your still-life photoshoots and videography alike.
Continuous lighting operates much like a flashlight. The light’s power can be adjusted depending on what result you need, but as a light source itself, it is constant. Once you turn the lights on, they remain on until you power them off yourself. While the definition may seem self-explanatory, it is what makes this equipment different from other photography lighting equipment, such as strobe lighting, which operates much like a flash and must be triggered before it lights up (with the moment of illumination being the moment in which you should capture your shot).
One of the primary advantages of utilizing continuous lighting equipment is its “what you see is what you get” quality. The way the light looks to your naked eye is also the way it will look in your final image. Therefore, it’s extremely easy to manipulate the light manually in the studio to be exactly how you want it, with no surprises when the shoot is over and you’re looking back at your images. This quality is also what makes continuous lighting so suitable for beginners – there is far less uncertainty involved in the overall process.
When selecting a continuous lighting kit, there is an important choice to make between softbox or umbrella lighting modifiers. Softboxes transmit light through the use of a diffusion panel and offer you directional control over where the light goes. In turn, the emitted light closely gives the effect of natural light coming in from a window. On the other hand, the umbrella modifier is simple to use because it is designed to create a broad, unrestricted source of lighting. Giving up directional control leads to an easier shooting experience for beginners. However, some kits come with both structures, which makes for more fun and possibility in the studio.
