topic Re: Dark vignette appearing on one side of pics taken with Canon R6 when using studio strobes in EOS DSLR & Mirrorless Cameras

Dark vignette appearing on one side of pics taken with Canon R6 when using studio strobes

Radison — Fri, 25 Feb 2022 00:21:37 GMT

I'm having a problem with vignette/banding on one side of my pics when using studio strobes. At first I thought this might be caused by exceeding the shutter speed max resulting in banding from the curtain but the attached samples were all shot at 1/160 which is well within the 1/250 max for my Canon R6 when using studio strobes (Alien Bees). These were shot at 100ISO, 58mm, f6.3 using my Canon 24-70 f2.8 L lens. The strobes are set up either side of me at the same distance on the same power level

This seems to keep happening when I do studio shoots and I would really appreciate any thoughts on how to fix the issue. Thanks a lot!

Vignette is at the bottomVignette is on the leftVignette is on the left

Re: Dark vignette appearing on one side of pics taken with Canon R6 when using studio strobes

ebiggs1 — Fri, 25 Feb 2022 15:34:37 GMT

First thought is placement of the strobes. You may have to move one or both to balance the scene. Your back drop may not be perpendicular to the camera so check that.

Re: Dark vignette appearing on one side of pics taken with Canon R6 when using studio strobes

ebiggs1 — Fri, 25 Feb 2022 15:35:24 GMT

Do and check the easy stuff first! 😊

Re: Dark vignette appearing on one side of pics taken with Canon R6 when using studio strobes

Radison — Fri, 25 Feb 2022 16:37:10 GMT

Thanks so much for your input EB. I really appreciate it. It's a great point but this has occurred on all my recent studio shoots and the band is always on the left when shooting portrait and then at the bottom when shooting landscape. This is despite having the strobes set up the same way and distance either side of me with the same power and the backdrop perpendicular. So I don't think the strobe balancing or perpendicular backdrop are the issue in this case. Do you have any other suggestions I can explore?

Re: Dark vignette appearing on one side of pics taken with Canon R6 when using studio strobes

ebiggs1 — Fri, 25 Feb 2022 16:53:40 GMT

I know of no issues with inconsistent output from Alien Bee strobes but it is a possibility too I guess. Even though you have them spaced exact distance, BG right, try altering that distance to see if it either clears up or gets worse. If it improves or gets worse it could be a faulty strobe. Cameras tend to capture exactly what we tell them to, ... mostly!

I suppose so we need to eliminate the camera being at fault, you need to have Canon do a C&C on it. At the same time explain exactly what you are seeing.

This can be corrected in Lightroom or Photoshop.

Re: Dark vignette appearing on one side of pics taken with Canon R6 when using studio strobes

ebiggs1 — Sat, 26 Feb 2022 16:34:38 GMT

However, ...

As you can see it is an easy fix in Photoshop.

Re: Dark vignette appearing on one side of pics taken with Canon R6 when using studio strobes

Waddizzle — Sun, 27 Feb 2022 16:46:33 GMT

Light flicker? How much ambient lighting is in the photos? But, it is weird that it always seems to be in the same place, though.

Re: Dark vignette appearing on one side of pics taken with Canon R6 when using studio strobes

ebiggs1 — Sun, 27 Feb 2022 16:54:17 GMT

"... it is weird that it always seems to be in the same place, though."

I gave that some thought, too. I am still leaning to the BG not being exactly perpendicular (or flat) to the camera. As you can notice in the last example the bottom edge of the BG isn't straight. It doesn't take much to cause a slight difference in lighting. The vignette is slight anyway so a simple task to correct in PS.

Re: Dark vignette appearing on one side of pics taken with Canon R6 when using studio strobes

Radison — Sun, 27 Feb 2022 17:15:43 GMT

Yes, that would be a good point about the strobes. What makes me think that's probably not the culprit for my issue is that it has occurred at different studios with different strobes. It seems like I might need to get the camera checked out. I do really appreciate you taking time to address my issue.

Re: Dark vignette appearing on one side of pics taken with Canon R6 when using studio strobes

Radison — Sun, 27 Feb 2022 17:17:49 GMT

Yes, I think that's a good workaround until I resolve the cause. Did you use the linear gradient feature on the section with the vignette and reduce the shadow?? Would love to know a quick photoshop fix. Thanks!

Re: Dark vignette appearing on one side of pics taken with Canon R6 when using studio strobes

Radison — Sun, 27 Feb 2022 17:19:56 GMT

Thank you for your input, I really appreciate it. It seems to occur each time I work with strobes in a studio. I don't notice the issue for outdoor shoots. In the studios I use they generally have some natural light from a skylight or windows which is consistent rather than flickering. Does that give you any ideas?

Re: Dark vignette appearing on one side of pics taken with Canon R6 when using studio strobes

Radison — Sun, 27 Feb 2022 17:21:37 GMT

Yes, that's a great observation. I check other pics and they a more perpendicular and the vignette is still present. But I will definitely keep a look out for this in future.

Re: Dark vignette appearing on one side of pics taken with Canon R6 when using studio strobes

ebiggs1 — Sun, 27 Feb 2022 18:49:47 GMT

I just got through with a 100+ photo shoot on a green screen and saw similar situation. In my case it was to delete the BG so no biggie. PS took care of it for me.

Re: Dark vignette appearing on one side of pics taken with Canon R6 when using studio strobes

Radison — Mon, 28 Feb 2022 01:42:47 GMT

I see. Ok, thank you. In my case I think I will need an alternative solution than replacing the background on hundreds of pics. Hopefully someone else will have other ideas we can both try. Fingers crossed!

Re: Dark vignette appearing on one side of pics taken with Canon R6 when using studio strobes

ebiggs1 — Mon, 28 Feb 2022 15:41:44 GMT

In my case I needed to replace the BG and use this one.

The student is removed from the BG and placed in this to make a 24"x36" poster on canvas.

I have done this for years so it has become a simple set of procedures for me. I used a green screen but I do not recommend it. A neutral gray like yours is prefered. Also it was a fabric screen and I don't like that either because there is invariably variations in it. I was not at my own facility but you do what you have to do. That's a photographer's life isn't it? 🤔

Re: Dark vignette appearing on one side of pics taken with Canon R6 when using studio strobes

sherrysaifullah — Mon, 06 Feb 2023 22:15:22 GMT

Hi! I'm having the same issue and the shadow shifts as I rotate the camera. Did you ever figure out what was wrong?

Re: Dark vignette appearing on one side of pics taken with Canon R6 when using studio strobes

amfoto1 — Mon, 06 Feb 2023 22:29:43 GMT

It's quite possible the 1/160 shutter speed you are using is a little too fast. Try a little slower.

Most studio strobes fire slower than portable flash, so slower shutter speeds are necessary. It varies depending upon the particular strobes. With my Normans I can use 1/160 on cameras that sync flash at 1/200 and 1/180 on those that sync up to 1/250. However, that's no guarantee the same is true with your strobes. To me it looks like the 1/160 you're using is just a tiny bit too slow. Anyway, it's easy to try and see if 1/125 solves the problem.

***********

Alan Myers
San Jose, Calif., USA
"Walk softly and carry a big lens."
GEAR: 5DII, 7DII (x2), 7D(x2), EOS M5, some other cameras, various lenses & accessories
FLICKR

Re: Dark vignette appearing on one side of pics taken with Canon R6 when using studio strobes

rs-eos — Mon, 06 Feb 2023 23:17:44 GMT

It would be better to start a separate topic as this original one is a year old now. Also, please post a couple images so we can see exactly what is going on.