Thoughts on Interfit EX150 lighting kit

I've got it.

You get, 2 x 150W flash heads, 1 softbox, 1 brolley, 2 reflector bowls, two stands and cables. No "get you started guide!"

To use on a 350D or 400D you'll need either a wireless trigger or a hotshoe adaptor with pc sync socket (£ 5- £10 from your local camera shop)

They're not the sturdiest, and do not have fan cooling, so won't stand up to professional use, but are quite good as an intro to studio style flash.

For the money, I think its a good kit for a hobbyist. Sure there are better choices out there, but they all cost quite a bit more. I think they're superior to the Jessops Portaflash system.
 
I have one, (mental note, must order new modelling lamp!), as said above its not the sturdiest of systems but I suppose you could always upgrade the lightstands, They are perfect for the home studio.

DCS £189 thats the best price I have found for it.
 
does the interfit EX-150 kit come with modelling lamps, and am i right in thinking there are 2 interfit kits,the flash kit and the continuos lighting kit ??
 
How often do we use our modelling lamps? Ive never used mine! :eek:

I assume you turn them on to see where the shadows are going to be on the faces.. then turn them off again.
 
So would i NEED a flash meter to use the EX150 kit, or is it just trial n error?
 
Janice said:
How often do we use our modelling lamps? Ive never used mine! :eek:

I assume you turn them on to see where the shadows are going to be on the faces.. then turn them off again.
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I leave mine on aswell.
 
tel48 said:
does the interfit EX-150 kit come with modelling lamps, and am i right in thinking there are 2 interfit kits,the flash kit and the continuos lighting kit ??
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anyone with thoughts on the above, and what would be best continous or flash lighting, also comments on the modelling lights, many thanks.
 
Always used to leave the modeling lights switched on but I don't think I've had one head with a working bulb in over a year now. Don't miss them at all and not having them helps keep the heat output down. Great in the summer, not so great now.

I Don't use a flash meter either anymore, it's much quicker to guess and adjust if needed from the histogram/preview.
 
tel48 said:
anyone with thoughts on the above, and what would be best continous or flash lighting, also comments on the modelling lights, many thanks.
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I have a set of continuous lights and an Interfit EX-150 Kit and must admit I prefer the flash kit for portraits and the continuous for product type photography :)
 
dazzajl said:
Always used to leave the modeling lights switched on but I don't think I've had one head with a working bulb in over a year now. Don't miss them at all and not having them helps keep the heat output down. Great in the summer, not so great now..
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I thought it would bugger up the metering... and the white balance.
 
Studios keep their modelling lamps on all the time, I don't think it makes much, if any, effect on the white balance.

If you use continous lighting there is a lot of heat, so models sweat (I mean glow :) ), make up runs, and pupils contract. Flash solves this.
 
Janice said:
I thought it would bugger up the metering... and the white balance.
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With the exposure set for flash light levels, the camera doesn't even see the modeling lights.
 
dazzajl said:
With the exposure set for flash light levels, the camera doesn't even see the modeling lights.
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So you meter with or without the modelling lamps on?
 
Janice said:
So you meter with or without the modelling lamps on?
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You cant actually meter as such without a seperate meter as you need to meter for the flash itself, the modelling lights are just there to show you how shadows would fall and to give you some light to work by I suppose (i use mine in a dark room)

You can only trial and error and use the histogram to guestimate your settings

I always use 1/60 and F4 ISO100 as a starting block and run the lights at about 30% adjusting from there, when I am not using the meter :)

But I could be wrong and there is a special voodoo way of doing it i'm not aware of :D
 
On the topic of modeling lamps. Most of the lights I have owned, and indeed my own lights, have a setting that switches the lamps off before firing the strobe, and then switches them back on again. This usually happens so quick you don't notice it.

I am not sure if the interfit kit has this option, but I always have mine set to this setting, as I get the benifit of being able to start with complete darkness, and still being able to see.
 
CScottMcQueen said:
You cant actually meter as such without a seperate meter as you need to meter for the flash itself,
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Yes, I meter with a seperate meter but if the modelling light is on the face when you do it... it will say you need less light from the flash wont it... so if you then turned it off for the shot... the shot would be underexposed.
 
The way I did it was to plug the lightmeter into the flash head, set the light meter to flash mode and the lightmeter would trigger the flash and give you the exposure needed. Its only takes its reading during the flash and ignores the ambient light.
 
Janice said:
Yes, I meter with a seperate meter but if the modelling light is on the face when you do it... it will say you need less light from the flash wont it... so if you then turned it off for the shot... the shot would be underexposed.
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Most flash meters have a setting for flash or ambient light, My Sekonic has two for flash, one for triggering the flash (via the pc socket as andrewc said) and one that detects the flash.

I think the interfit's turn off the modelling lamps when the flash fires as stated above so when it takes the flash reading it is exact and the meter should get the correct reading
 
Janice said:
Yes, I meter with a seperate meter but if the modelling light is on the face when you do it... it will say you need less light from the flash wont it... so if you then turned it off for the shot... the shot would be underexposed.
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For the most past if you have the camera set to expose for flash and then take a shot where they don't fire but the model lamps are on, you'll get a black frame.

Unless the flash is generating a really low powered output, the model lamps shouldn't interfere at all. It's worth trying it just to see what you are actually getting though. :)
 
CScottMcQueen said:
I have a set of continuous lights and an Interfit EX-150 Kit and must admit I prefer the flash kit for portraits and the continuous for product type photography :)
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Does the interfit EX-150 kit, come with modelling lamps ??
 
tel48 said:
Does the interfit EX-150 kit, come with modelling lamps ??
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Sure does, they supply 60w bulbs as standard but it is recommended to upgrade them to 100w bulbs (although I don't see any reason too)
 
So how does the setup work then ?, do you switch the modelling lamps on to find where the shadows fall,then when the photo is taken the lamps go off immediately before the flash comes on ??
 
Modelling lamps are..... well, lamps for modelling! They just show the relative depth of the shadows dependent upon the output of the Flash-head settings - in other words, the relative power of both the flash and (should be - they are on the EX150) modelling lamp are linked.

If you're using a meter FORGET ALL ABOUT THE MODELLING LAMPS... the output of 2 x 60W tungsten lights won't effect the exposure (unless you're using ISO 800 and an aperture of f1.8 - why would you under controlled circumtances?) one jot! Or the white balance.....

Best bit of £200 a home enthusiast could ever spend..... don't get hung up on the effect of exposure the modelling lamps might have.

Not recommended test..... put on reading light (60W), charge your flashgun.... fire your flash gun into your face! Did you see the 60W lamp? Thought not..... :clap: can you see anything else yet? Don't do this without the supervision of an adult..... :naughty:
 
chuckles said:
Not recommended test..... put on reading light (60W), charge your flashgun.... fire your flash gun into your face! Did you see the 60W lamp? Thought not..... :clap: can you see anything else yet? Don't do this without the supervision of an adult..... :naughty:
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And how many times have I done that and thought 'why the hell did I just do that :shrug:'
 
we have a set that we use a fair bit for home portrait work. theyre getting tired and overheat when used a lot.and only one wants to be the slave unit now.
i,d go for something a litle more expensive.
maybe the new venus range?
were about to replace ours with more pro spec stuff.
they have been ok tho.
were actualy considering the stellar range ourselves.
 
There is an article in 'Digital Photo Mag' March edition comparing the Interfit EX 150 and the Portaflsh kit... The interfit came out best even though it was £50 cheaper. The mag is v good too with lots of good info on studio lighting and portriats etc
 
Having had the Interfit EX 150 kit for over a year now I cant really fault it for the money. I've used it for both portrait, product and macro work :) Can dig out some examples if you want.
 
I use the Stellar 300w at home and I meter by switching the light meter to flash and triggering the heads by taking my IR trigger off the camera and firing the flashes that way. (You could use a synch lead too). The modelling lights don't interfere with the metering at all. I do still check on camera taking a few test shots to look at the histogram but I find metering useful to get the balance right when using more than one light. (still just a beginner so it is nice to confirm settings to myself!)

I also have tungsten continuous lights but I find them to be way too much for the space that I am using them in and there is no way to turn them down! In a large space they can be really good for shooting action because they allow those faster shutter speeds without using flash.
 
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