Paul C. Buff, Inc. Technical Forum

Kent, I'm curious as to what you are shooting in such extreme conditions. Got any photos to share?

These are from regular old Dakota blizzards. Temps during these shots ranged from +5 to 20 below. Had to tape over all the vent openings in the monolights to keep them from getting packed with wind blown snow. WL X3200 flash, Vagabond I, CyberSyncs. Don't let anyone tell you Paul Buff gear isn't tough enough. :shock: The worst winter weather the Dakotas have to offer can't kill it.

Kent in SD

Wind was blowing 40 mph, sustained. Official blizzard warning, interstates were closed:
(one B1600, weighted with 50 pounds and lightstand not extended at all) Stop and consider just how hard the wind was blowing that the snow left streaks here. :shock:
http://i148.photobucket.com/albums/s5/d ... rsing3.jpg

Twenty below zero F, blizzard warning expired earlier that day:
(WL X3200 with 30d grid main light, B1600 + 20d grid @ 1/4 power to light nose of engine)
http://i148.photobucket.com/albums/s5/d ... Trest3.jpg

Severe winter storm warning, temp dropping below zero. Snowshoed to location:
(x2 WL X3200 full power, new 8 inch reflectors)
http://i148.photobucket.com/albums/s5/d ... Canyon.jpg

Those shots are amazing. Especially that last one. Do you do this for "fun" or do you make a living from it? I'm wondering why I see some blur on the snowflakes in that first shot. Must be some available light in that scene too I guess. But the blur works well to show the blizzard strength.

No available light at all. It was nearly midnight out on a country road. The blur is because the wind was blowing the flakes THAT fast. Wind blew me down three times that night. I send shots in to magazines and calendars. Mostly those catering to railfans. I know White Lightning and Alien Bees are supposedly studio equipment, but as you can see they are plenty solid enough to take on just about anything.

Kent in SD

Well, I guess at 1/300th of a sec at full power, you might get some blur.

http://www.white-lightning.com/specs.html

Heck of a wind tho. Amazing the flash stands could stand up to it ... even with heavy batteries.

The Paul Buff 13 ft. air cushioned stands are well built, and I'll extend them up in winds as fast as 25 mph. In the first shot I didn't extend the lightstand at all. I was afraid that it would snap right off. I once had a cheaper brand lightstand weighted down with a railroad tie, thinking that would keep it in place. Well, it did. However, the wind caught the 11 inch reflector on the B1600 like a sail and bent the pole right over until it snapped. B1600 fell from 10 ft. up smack into a snow drift. I knocked the snow out of it, stuck it on another stand, hooked it back up, and it worked fine. I'm sold on PB products!


Kent in SD

Speaking of photography in extreme conditions... have you read "The Endurance" by Caroline Alexander? The ship's photographer recorded the entire adventure with glass plates and flash powder. Some of his polar night exposures required 20 flashes. It's an amazing story with amazing photos.

These are wonderful, Kent. Somewhere I just know O. Winston Link is smiling :D