When natural light won’t work or isn’t enough, strobe lighting can be your saving grace. Here’s your official guide to strobe photography.

Strobe lighting can help take your photos to the next level by giving you perfectly lit photos every time. There are so many ways to use them, from portraits to underwater photography. Of course, natural light will always be king, but sometimes natural light needs a little help.

For instance, you may want a more dramatic outdoor shot with a well-lit subject, vibrant colors, and dark background, or you may do a lot of portrait or studio photography.

If so, strobe lighting may be a worthwhile investment as opposed to using only an on-camera flash or flashgun.

What’s the difference between strobes and speedlights?

Strobe lights, also known as monolights, are extremely bright and emit rapid bursts of light.

Strobes and speedlights are similar in that they both emit short bursts of light, and both need low shutter speeds. A speedlight, also known as a hot-shoe flash or flashgun, can be used as an on-camera flash or off-camera lighting.

Strobes are strictly for off-camera use and are more powerful than speedlights. They also have a faster recycle rate. You may need a few seconds in between shots for a speedlight to recycle, while a strobe will recycle and be ready to go again almost instantly.

Speedlights are more compact and portable, while strobes are larger and mostly used for studio shoots.

Types of bulbs.

LED lights, halogen lights, and xenon flash lamps are all used for strobe lighting. Depending on the kit you buy, they can range from 100 to 1,000 watts. When purchasing a strobe kit, you may want to look for one with adjustable output. This will allow you to turn the light intensity down when doing close-ups and use more power when your subject is farther away.

Using strobes outdoors.

One of the many benefits of strobe lighting is that it’s powerful enough to overpower the sun, yielding some unique effects. Using a strobe outdoors will highlight your subject against the background and give you a powerful and vibrant shot.

Taking a photo with strobes.

If you’ve never used strobes before, you’ll be happy to know they’re beginner friendly. All that’s needed are a few setting adjustments, and you’re good to go.

1. Set your camera to manual mode. From there, adjust your aperture, shutter speed, and ISO (otherwise known as the exposure triangle).
2. To start, adjust the shutter speed to 1/125, or whatever your camera’s flash sync speed is. If you’re not sure, check your manual or just go with 1/125, which should work for most cameras.
3. Next, adjust the aperture to give the desired depth of field and control how much ambient light (versus strobed light) your camera will capture. If you’re not sure where to start, try f/8 and go from there.
4. As for the ISO, since you’re going to be using a strobe, it’s best to keep it low. The strobe is bright; if the ISO is too high, you may get a photo where the colors are off, and it may have too much noise. An ISO between 100 and 200 will do.
5. Once the camera is set, it’s time to get the strobe ready. You’ll need either a wireless trigger for the strobe, or it can be connected to the camera with a sync cable. Note, for the cable to work, the camera needs to have a sync port.
6. The final step is to start shooting! You’ll have to adjust the strobe’s power, and there are two ways to figure out how much is enough. You can invest in a light meter, or you can take a couple of test shots to see if you need more light or less. The farther your light is from your subject, the more powerful it will need to be. Don’t be afraid to play around with where you place your strobe.

Stroboscopic portraits.

Once you’re comfortable working with a strobe, you can unleash your creativity and start taking stroboscopic portraits. This unique photography style uses strobe lighting combined with long exposure to create stop-motion pictures. All you need is a strobe that allows you to adjust the number of flashes and the frequency. Set off the strobe a number of times during a single long exposure while your subject moves. Experiment for some fun and interesting effects!

We hope you’re encouraged to add strobes to your next shoot if you haven’t tried them already. They’re fast, powerful, and are sure to enhance your photos.

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Have you worked with strobe lighting before? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below, or start a conversation on X, Instagram, and Facebook.