Prime lens - I miss zoom

Qactuar

Absolutely - and the "if you're good, it is good" comment - it really is a steep curve and not at all a cheap one to dabble in! For me, constant light is handy for the avoidance of trial and error for the main part - fewer mistakes (though naturally still plenty!) and ability to see the exposure "up-front" so to speak.

Flash will never go away, but it does present a big barrier to entry. I've looked into a few flash photography courses, but the cost is a sticking point for me, as well as the equipment outlay.

Of all the things to learn, flash is the hardest for me and the one I can't find the time or energy to "get".

Of course, if I was making money, it's easily justified...but I don't, and two kids steal all my money

snerkler

I must be lucky as I've never found flash any harder or easier than learning any other part of photography tbh, although that's probably just a case of all my photography being rubbish

But in terms of cost it really doesn't have to be expensive tbh. You can get very good flash units for around £50 and it's amazing how a simple bounced flash can transform images, or even a bit of fill flash in those bright sunny days that cast horrible shadows. Of course, if you want to get into multiple flash usage with beauty dishes, soft boxes, gels, remote triggers etc etc the cost can soon mount up.

Whilst I don't use it a lot, a wouldn't be without my flash, it's invaluable for certain situations. Of course, flash photography is not for everyone, but for those that are interested the book "understanding flash photography" by Bryan Peterson is a great place to start and can save you a fortune on courses. The book can be had for under a tenner used.

Qactuar

I've tried many times (albeit a limited photography hobby) over the last 16 years or so, but can't get on with it at all. The revelation of a constant light source was an eye-opener. Maybe one day I'll have the resource to go again.

Apologies to OP for the slight tangent!

snerkler

We all have different ways of working and it's good to find whatever works for you

Faldrax

If by 'constant light' you mean 'natural light' - IE Sunshine, then in some ways it can be superior - BUT you are very much at the mercy of what nature decides the light will be at any given moment.

If, however, you mean constant artificial light, then I have to disagree.

If we exclude high-end movie type lighting (costing tens of thousands), then continuous light comes in a few varieties, all of which have their disadvantages;
1) Traditional 'hot lights' - halogen / tungsten filament bulbs
        Get very hot, very quickly, limited (often zero) power adjustment.
2) Compact Fluorescent
        Relatively low power, limited (often zero) power adjustment, get warm, but not as hot as filament bulbs. May have incomplete colour spectrum
3) LED
        Lightweight, but very likely to have a limited colour spectrum.
The limited colour spectrum of CFL and LED lights is a significant drawback - and it's not something that can be corrected in PP.

You can get decent flash units for under £100, mains powered studio strobes start at ~£100 or so for a reasonable unit - not cheap, but also not particularly expensive in photographic terms.
These have full colour spectrum, don't have the heat problem, and allow you to adjust the power - essential if you have multiple light sources, as one needs to be the main (key) light, and all the others are secondary (fill) lights.
Note that the cheap option is to have 1 light and a reflector (which will automatically be less bright than the main light it's reflecting).
Mains powers strobes also have a 'modeling light' - which you can turn on to help visualise the light on your subject (as it's positioned at the same point as the flash tube) - these are typically 150-250W halogen bulbs, so do get hot, but you only use for short periods then turn off, so heat is less of an issue.

Qactuar

I meant LED - some of which have a decent amount of colour options. But more so as a fill-in light compared to flash - in which I like being able to see the end result "live" as it were, before moving the light around to get the desired effect. With flash, that's really tough, but of course if you work hard you can reap the rewards too of course!

snerkler

A lot of flashes have a modelling light too so you can see where the light will fall etc prior to actually exposing the shot

Qactuar

Not in my price range!!

snerkler

You can get used Godox TT685 flashes for around £60 and they have TTL, HSS and modelling light

Qactuar

That's reasonable, in fairness.