None of the Coolpix automation features are used for studio flash work. Put the camera on full manual, and make sure the internal flash is disabled and the external flash is enabled. If the trigger voltage of the studio strobes exceeds the maximum the camera will tolerate, make sure you use a voltage reducer such as a Wein SafeSync between the camera and the flash units. Wireless is also safe.
Portrait or Commercial StudioOptimum settings will depend upon the lights you are using and the studio setup, but there are guidelines. First, you will want to eliminate the effects of any ambient light from either the flash units modeling lights or ambient light in the studio. Luckily, the CP8800 will synchronize at any shutter speed. Some studio strobes tend to have a fairly long period of flash compared to on-camera units, but shooting at 1/500th should be safe with even the longest duration units.
Once aperture is determined (below) do a test shot with the flash units disabled, but modeling lights on. This should result in a black or nearly black frame, indicating that you have excluded all or most of the ambient light.
Aperture setting alone determines the exposure in the camera, and power of the units and their distance determines the exposure from the lights. Since even the most inexpensive units have loads of power, you should be able to set the camera on ISO50 or ISO100 for the best possible quality.
Use the widest aperture that will still give you enough depth of field. These are tiny lenses and when stopped all the way down, the aperture is little more than a pinhole. Thus it produces increasing flare the smaller it becomes. This is achieved by keeping the lights at some distance, or setting them on fractional power as needed. If you have Photoshop CS2, shoot RAW for ultimately fine tuning and maximum quality. Realize there is a learning curve involved.
The circuitry does not include an flash-meter for external studio strobes, so exposure must be determined either by a hand-held flash-meter or by trial and error. If the lights are moved during the shoot,
ALWAYS do a test shot and immediately check your histogram on replay to make sure you have not overexposed. Shooting RAW, you can bring lots of detail out of the shadows, but a blown highlight is gone forever.
While strobes are sexy and high tech, realize that in top commercial studios and even in portrait studios, photoflood lights have made a huge comeback. They allow you to see exactly what the camera will record and are ideal for digital work. They can cost a small fraction of what a set of studio strobes cost and are far easier to use, producing equal or better results.
There is an illustrated tutorial on classic portrait lighting at
www.larry-bolch.com/portrait-basics/On Location In most cases, studio strobes are used along with ambient light to adjust it and optimize it. In some cases - architectural interiors at night - it is used to simulate ambient light. With film, it was incredibly challenging, but it is a breeze with digital, since you have instant replay.
As supplemental light Let us assume you are doing an interior of an office. It is daylight, and there is a large window. The view is important to the picture. The exposure will thus be based on view. Do test shots to get the ultimate quality without regard to the room. This exposure will not change when you add the studio lights. Using a combination of distance and fractional settings, place the lights so they open up the detail of the interior of the room to natural looking levels. In film days, this took careful work with a flash-meter, but with digital you can do it visually by a series of test shots. Do each light individually, then all at once, and fine tune the result.
This is an environmental portrait of some vintage, but clearly illustrates how strobe and daylight can be perfectly balanced. Click on image for slightly larger.
Before taking on such a job, spend as many hours practicing as possible. Done badly, the results will be horrible. It takes skill and practice to pull it off. The worst thing that can happen is that the lights are reflected in the window. The second is harsh, unnatural looking shadows. Placement of the lights is critical in the first case, and you may have to use barn-doors on the reflectors, or light-blocking gobo panels to avoid these reflections. A better strategy is to bounce the light off the ceiling, or if the room is painted in neutral colours, to point the light into corners opposite the window. Happily, as you are testing, you are getting immediate feedback from the monitor.
Architectural Interiors Creating the look of natural light with strobes requires visualizing the light of the room and recreating and refining it with strobes. Going into detail would well require a book, and is simply beyond the scope of a reply. Perhaps it is a reason why there are so few of us doing it. If you have mastered the use of strobe for supplemental light, you have the foundation for moving on to recreating light, but expect to practice for a few years. Working with photofloods is an excellent way to learn and they can be used in place of strobes. Architectural interiors can be shot with very long exposures since nothing is moving. On the other hand, I have done interiors using very long exposures where someone has actually walked through the view and not registered on the film at all.
Hope this helps.
