I recently asked similar questions about the base for my horizontal macro rig. I ended up using both. That is, a concrete slab stood on 9 Sorbothane hemispheres with 9 smaller Sorbothane hemispheres on top of that and a 10mm steel plate topping it off. Works really well vibration-wise and I can still magnetically clamp stuff to the steel, which is useful for holding lighting and diffusers etc.SallyFungi wrote:Chris, I have found an Australian supplier (I'm in Australia) for Sorbothane. Is there anything technical that I need to know about what thickness etc to get?
I was going to use a steel plate on top of the Sorbothane and mount the vertical stand to that. Has anyone had experience with whether steel or stone is better, or is it all just about mass?
A question on lighting. If using flash, how dark does the room have to be? Completely black, or can there be some ambient light?
Is there an advantage in using the Studio 300AC over say a Canon Speedlight?
With flash and a sync speed of 1/160th to 1/250th, a bit of ambient light won't register in the image. Take an initial shot without firing the flash to be sure though.