Help - Portable Power Source?

[Cre8tivepixels]

Hey Guys,

I want to start taking my Softbox out to location shoots, what/how can i achieve this.....any recommendations of batteries or generators etc just to power one softbox for an average shoot time of two hours?......i have no idea...lol?

Cheers
Dan

[sirhc55]

What is the light source in the softbox? What are the normal power requirements - I assume AC power.

The question is like asking what fuel to put in a vehicle without knowing if it’s diesel, petrol or something else. . .

[Cre8tivepixels]

lol.its just a softbox.........like a globe...sorry i dont really know thats why i am hanging it out there...........

Dan

[who]

What sort of globe? What type, size, wattage......

What do you have to spend?

Can you use a generator at your desired shoot locations or does it have to be silent, ie battery based?

You could buy a small generator, but again the size depends on how much power is required for the softbox.

[seeto.centric]

car battery + inverter?

-j

[gstark]

Dan,

A softbox, by itself, is not a light source, but merely a diffuser.

As such it has no need for any power source and is able to be used pretty well anywhere without major concerns.



The questions you have been asked are reasonable anbd valid: what is the light source that is being diffused by the softbox? SB800? Studio flash head?

I have both, as has Chris, and we'll both tell you that the different lkight sources have different characteristics with entirely different power demands.

It's only with the knowledge of the light source behind/within the softbox that you will be able to get a meaningful answer.

Cheers.

[Raskill]

car battery + inverter?

-j

Ditto.

A car battery and a 700 watt inverter will give you heaps of power, and will last some time. The other possibility is to purchase the inverter and run it from your car, use and extension cord and shoot where ever you want. Total price of this option would be less than $150.

[Big V]

Buy a small petrol powered generator from a hardware store. These run for 2 - 2 hours before needing to be refilled. Use a long extension lead and you will have a nice portable solution which will give you enough grunt to run your lights. We use this with our portable astronomy rig for astrophotography in remote areas. The problem with using your car and an inverter is if your car battery goes flat, so does everything else and it is a hassle having to then jump start your car. Using portable dry cell batteries is a choice but their performance differs in the colder weather and it starts to get heavy carrying big enough ones for a long job in the field. Noise can be an issue but if you place the generator downwind or behind the car, you will not hear it.

[Wocka]

As Big V said a portable petrol generator would be what you require.

Getting in before Geoff ( our Aldi Chairman ), Aldi have these on special every 4 months for $150-$200 ish. Or Bunnings would be another place.

Cheers

[seeto.centric]

yeah a generator put in the right place would be another good idea, then again you could also keep the car idling with the inverter on if you didnt want to risk a flat battery.

those little red honda generators are VERY quiet, but then again, if all youre doing is photos, then noise shouldnt really be a problem.
so long as by "location", you dont mean indoors!

-j

[marcotrov]

Not sure if this is helpful to those looking at portable extended battery power for their flash shooting but i found this site with a pretty good looking and seemingly efficient and well priced alternative
http://www.aljacobs.com/THE%20BLACK%20BOX.htm
cheers
marco

[wendellt]

i would like to know what sort of lightweight portable generator(non fuel)
can power at least 4 fluro tubes
there should be some sort of potable power battery pack with standard household cord insets

[seeto.centric]

car battery + 4x 12v fluoros?
surely an inverter and car battery can do it - they output > 150w even for a cheapie. not sure if the fluoro's starting current pull will overload it or not though.. or if it will even cause a problem!

-j

[mR_CaESaR]

how loud are these generators? Are we talking lawn mower loud?

I've seen ones from kmart for around 250ish..

For that price, i think it would be quite decent value for "on location flash"

Woulnd't mind one of these, but its a bit too much for my price range

[Oz_Beachside]

Hey Guys,

I want to start taking my Softbox out to location shoots, what/how can i achieve this.....any recommendations of batteries or generators etc just to power one softbox for an average shoot time of two hours?......i have no idea...lol?

Cheers
Dan

Hi Dan,
I have recently picked up some photoflex softboxes for SB800s, as pictured in this thread http://www.dslrusers.com/viewtopic.php?t=26593&highlight= THey are nice an soft when comparing to small point flash.

As for a larger power source, it depends what you are hooking it up to. Do you have a particular studio light? each manufacturer usually make a battery pack for the lights, expensive, but very convenient (and silent, as noise will draw attension to your shoot!!!)

I use one of these for my studio lights, can run two lights at a time, and get hundreds of shots (depending on power output of course).

[jdear]

Buy a small petrol powered generator from a hardware store.

Be careful... you need to buy a decent one as some cheaper ones dont give clean power. (ie the power spikes up and down)

A photog I know was shooting with one for a commercial shoot outdoors for BHP and had 4 elinchrom heads running off the generator (normally off mains power), except the power settings kept fluctuating and I was recruited to sit and maintain the correct power settings etc.

The dirty power kept turning things on and off and resetting everything.

do you homework!

Jonathan

[seeto.centric]

that's the honda i was referring to hehe VERY quiet...
id say its no louder than the back of a fridge? or that may have been because i heard it in busy sussex st.

not sure about its voltage regulation features though..

-j

[who]

The Honda gensets are VERY quiet, as are the Engel gensets(very similar).

The quality of power out of these would be much better than the cheapies, they will be much quieter and much more reliable. But the price is higher. Other benefit is, you can have power in a blackout too

However - you need to know the wattage, as the smallest Honda is effectively 700watts, then 1000, then 2000, etc.

If you were using lighting that say used 500watt halogen globes.... you need to match your power draw to equipment supplying very carefully.

I don't know camera lighting well enough without advice from you as to globe voltage and wattage specs to advise.

Also -- the fluro's, if 12volt can be run off a car battery or 12V SLA (sealed lead acid battery) no hassles.

If 240V they may work with an inverter depending on the type of ballast used. Some ballasts don't work well with the modified sine wave that the cheap inverters produce.

You can spend more and get a true sine wave inverter, I am not sure if that will guarantee it works.

Also you need to consider the power surge to start an item. This website

http://www.mrinverter.com.au/about_inverters.htm

states that a 40watt Fluro, needs 400watts of power as a surge on startup.

(Please note I do not know anything about that business, they just have guides on Inverters that had relevant info - may be worth a read).

So you need to specify your gear to suit, and ideally be able to switch each fluro on individually, say a minute between each. Or else, instead of needing say a 600watt inverter (400 watt surge + 3*40w running = 520w) you would need 1600watts.

Complex area hey