Alien Bees or Bowens? (upgrade, compatible, professional, accessories)

[hamellr]

I've already got a (extremely) cheap set of studio lights and looking to upgrade to something with a lot more control.

I've used both Alien Bees and Bowens in various capacities and am having a hard time deciding which setup to go with.

I'm leaning towards Bowens only because it looks like they have more accessories, and more brands of remote triggers are compatible with them. But the physical durability of the Alien Bees is pretty attractive too as I do intend on using them outdoors in some hard to reach spots.

Any one have opinions on either set?

[WyoNewk]

I have both Alien Bees and Calumet Travelites (made by Bowens I believe). I like the Bees because they're so lightweight, but the Travelites are made waaaaaaaay better imho. I recommend both to people, but Alien Bees for their low price and light weight. For quality, I think Bowens is an easy pick over the Bees.

[hamellr]

Have you used Alien Bees with any external battery packs? Bowens seems to push their battery packs and the lights compatibilities with the packs.

But I've never seen Alien Bees actually have an external pack.

[WyoNewk]

I've not, but there is a battery pack made expressly for the Alien Bees -- the Vagabond Mini. It's actually their 3rd generation pack. Have you checked their website? $240.

[kdog]

Everybody I know shoots with AB's or White Lightnings. I still shoot with multiple speedlights. But if I was in the market today, I'd get Einsteins. All three of those are designed by the same guy, BTW. Paul Buff.

I'm curious about the comment of Bowens having more accessories and working with more wireless remotes. Frankly I find that hard to believe. Got any examples of that?

[hamellr]

Originally Posted by kdog

I'm curious about the comment of Bowens having more accessories and working with more wireless remotes. Frankly I find that hard to believe. Got any examples of that?

Just gut feeling based on the number of wireless remotes that specifically say that they work with Bowens vs. Alien Bees, and multiple searches across eBay, Amazon, B&H, and several other websites for accessories for both products.

I could be wrong, as I know little about studio lighting. You don't really need to know much when working with landscapes. But I find myself ending up doing more and more studio work, so it's time to make the leap.

[kdog]

I checked the popular flash remotes and can't find any that work with Bowen and not Alien Bee. PocketWizard and Radio Popper are the two biggies out there and they certainly do. But even my cheapy Yongnuo remote triggers work with Alien Bees. Honestly, unless there's a proprietary remote made by Bowen's themselves, I don't think there exists a remote trigger that works on Bowen and not Alien Bee. Given the size of Alien's marketshare, it wouldn't make a whole lot of sense.

From looking at Bowen's lineup of strobes, I think it's pretty clear they're targeted towards high end professional studios that run them all day long. They're obviously built well, but are very pricey. Alien Bees and the other Paul Buff strobes seem geared more towards the enthusiasts like us. Just my two cents.

[Ep-]

all my stuff is from the AB people. i haven't used bowens.

ABs are built nice and solid, have tons of mods and the vagabond mini is great. they also have one of the nicest and most helpful customer service depts i've ever encountered anywhere.

all your wireless triggers should work on them too

plus i love that they have annoying and obnoxious colors. all my strobes are bright pink and green. always gets laughs :P

[hamellr]

Thank you all for the help!

[forgeguy]

I can recommend Multiblitz Studio Lighting - German company, quality stuff.