One of the reasons for our visit to England was to attend a reception for my daughter and her British husband in his hometown, Grimsby. I was invited to photograph the reception and an engagement type session before the reception.
I last photographed a wedding in the late 80's when I was using a 645 film camera. I used a Lumidyne system for an off-camera strobe light. That system included a 400WS head with modeling lamp, a 200WS power pack and three mini-batteries. Part of the system was a Stroboframe. A Stoboframe holds the camera on a rotating platform and the strobe high above the camera. The rotating platform keeps the lens axis of a rectangular format camera concentric even though you change from horizontal to vertical camera orientation.
Months before my departure, I found the Lumidyne was not working. I assumed the flashtube was bad but without testing the whole system, I could not be certain. The flashtube was the least expensive part in the system and I thought replacing it might be the easiest and most cost effective action to take. I called around and no local store had a flashtube in stock. I bid on several used Lumidyne systems on eBay but was unable to purchase one within my budget. The Lumidyne was not a viable consideration.
Years before I purchased the Lumidyne system I used a system that consisted of a Sunpak 611 and a Quantum Battery1. The Quantum battery recycled the strobe much quicker than four C batteries that the 611 was designed to use as a power source. I had recently replaced the batteries in the Quantum for my son to use as a movie extra portraying a paparazzo. This system was a viable consideration.
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| SB-700 |
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| SB-910 |
The last possibility, and the one I favored the most, was to purchase a new Nikon Speedlight. Either an SB-700 or SB-910. Both of those strobes would work automatically with my Nikon and control the flash used for a correct exposure. However, the SB-700 would cost at least $320.00 and the SB-910 even more. I was going on a trip and London is an expensive city. I thought it would be prudent to spend the least amount of money for the best results with little time remaining. The new Speedlight was out.
I decided to take the Sunpak to England. The Sunpak system was lighter in weight than the Lumadyne system. The Sunpak was working. I made my decision. There were some issues with the Sunpak system. Neither of the remote thyristors worked to control the light output, so I had to use the strobe at full power, all the time. I actually had two Sunpak 611s and each had its own problem. One didn't have a functioning on/off switch and didn't flash. The other took a long time to recharge the condensers. Plus the face of the strobe had a small surface area and couldn't be rotated for bounce flashes, resulting in harsh lighting.
I decided to purchase a light modifier for the 611. It would be kind of a small light box fitted to the strobe head. A light box creates a larger light source thereby softening the shadows on the subjects. Two days before I departed on BA flight 68, I purchased a LumiQuest Softbox III at a Philadelphia photography shop. It increased the size of the light source 20 times. I believed I was set with a camera strobe. I packed all the photography equipment into my gym bag shaped carry-on with wheels and a extendalbe handle.
I placed a list of all the equipment into the bag. A check list reduces the chance of forgetting any items. I use this list as does an airplane pilot, not that I don't know what is necessary but to be sure I have everything both on the outbound flight and on the inbound flight.
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| This bag is very similar to the bag which contained my flash |
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