| Paul C. Buff, Inc. Technical Forum http://www.paulcbuff-techforum.com/ |
|
| Could someone please explain this to me? http://www.paulcbuff-techforum.com/viewtopic.php?f=8&t=4262 |
Page 1 of 1 |
| Author: | seanberrigan [ Wed Nov 27, 2013 10:33 pm ] |
| Post subject: | Could someone please explain this to me? |
I've been reading up a lot lately on flash duration and my question is why does it seem that the higher powered Alien Bee strobes (AB1600) have a longer or "slower" flash duration than lets say an AB400? :o I figured since they were higher powered even if you lower the power output on the strobe that it would have a faster flash duration than the lowered powered. It seems that the higher you go up the slower it gets. Im curious because the Einstein's have such a fast flash duration compared to all the other paul c buff strobes. Thanks, Sean |
|
| Author: | Luap [ Fri Nov 29, 2013 4:15 pm ] |
| Post subject: | Re: Could someone please explain this to me? |
ABs are conventional voltage controlled power, like 99% of other studio flashes. They all have the fastest flash duration at Full Power, and the duration slows as you reduce power. An AB1600 has a slower duration than an AB400 because it has larger flash capacitors, which take more time to discharge than AB400's smaller capacitors. This is true with all conventional brands, be they BUFF, Profoto, Elinchrom, etc. Einstein™, and the new $2000 copy cat Profoto B1, use IGBT circuitry (like a giant speed light). Instead of letting the flash capacitors discharge to zero with each flash, Einstein™ shuts off the capacitors when the desired power is reached. This results in shorter and shorter durations as power reduced. Einstein™ also has an algorithm that prevents color shift as power settings are changed, resulting in constant color temperature over the full 2.5WS to 640WS power range. All conventional units, including AB, White Lightning and the aforementioned brands share the characteristic of lower (warmer) color temperature as power is reduced from full to minimum. This shift is typically 350K to 550K over the power range. |
|
| Author: | seanberrigan [ Fri Nov 29, 2013 4:23 pm ] |
| Post subject: | Re: Could someone please explain this to me? |
Wow, didn't think i'd get a response from the man himself! Thanks for the explanation King Luap! Cheers from Prince Edward Island! Sean |
|
| Author: | Luap [ Fri Nov 29, 2013 4:46 pm ] |
| Post subject: | Re: Could someone please explain this to me? |
You're very welcome. That's my job (among a few hundred other things). Happy holidays to you and all others here. |
|
| Page 1 of 1 | All times are UTC - 6 hours [ DST ] |
| Powered by phpBB® Forum Software © phpBB Group https://www.phpbb.com/ |
|