Studio Photography

Comment

Comment by Peter Haken on November 6, 2012 at 6:08am

Hi Guys

Just found this forum so my first post. Looking for some advice on backdrops, Tents etc.

I love street photographer mainly as a way to unwind my daytime job. But as a website designer I occasionally have to take photographs for clients. But as the business has expanded, we have secured 2 location shoots for products.

My Equipment

• Nikon D7000 coupled with Nikon 18mm to 105mm 5-5.6 zoom plus a lovely Nikon 35mm 1.8.
• Leica M8 with a lovely 40mm 1.4 lens for some great shallow DOF, moody shots
• My eyes

Have just bought a 2nd hand pair PROLINCA STUDIO LIGHT HEADS and STANDS, reflectors etc.

But I have not bought any backdrops, light tents or light cubes yet.

The 2 location shoots are as follows

Client 1:

These are window handles and accessories may be up to 800mm in length and pretty much all white PVC style finish. Will be shot on there premises, indoors plenty of light, warm area with nice high ceilings.

Client 2:

These are much bigger products up to 1.5m or even 2 meters high and very heavy. Products are heating cylinders and air source heat pumps. Stored in a warehouse, not sure on lighting, but could be set up outside weather permitting.

Now do I go for?

1. Photography Photo Studio Kit 3x6m Backdrop White/Background Support Stand 3x4m found these sort of things on ebay
2. I have found a 2 meter square light tent with interchangeable backdrop, so can be all pure white great for portrait, furniture, air source heat pumps lol or what ever. Plus a grey and then blue background so very versatile.
3. Or what other choices do I have?

Both photos will be used for website images, catalog images and electronic PDF's so really need a plain background.

Would welcome all your thoughts. I am budgeting approx £300 for this element, not sure if I am being tight, generous or whether this budget is to basic, not sure. But would rather have something that will enable me to expand my photography, learn new things and perhaps make some money from my never ending purchases!

Thanks for looking and your feedback greatly received.

Regards Pete

Comment by katie damron potter on August 3, 2011 at 10:46pm

TAINTED MIRROR IMAGE © katie damron potter 2011

model: elizaStorm/ Cockeysville, MD - my studio

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

• one strobe, one reflector, one diffusion panel - and the reflection is real

completely real 

 

Comment by pappu sahni on July 29, 2010 at 12:03am

Excellent light positioning worth your effort too good

Comment by eugene on July 23, 2010 at 9:50pm

A studio shoot with model Jocelyn:

Comment by katie damron potter on July 23, 2010 at 3:07am

recommended beginning studio light set-up: Sarah Ashley is right on with the AlienBees, but I'd get a set of 800s instead of a set of 400s. My first set was a pair of 800s, a 400 and a ringflash (which I LOVE... so freaking versatile) - they're pretty standard, too, so MOST modifiers/reflectors/etc. will pop right on them - I recommend just going with the Paul C. Buff light mods - I really don't see a difference between my Chimera stripboxes (umm... like... 325 for the PAIR) versus the Paul C. Buff stripboxes, which I got the pair for like 125. A lot of the really ridiculously expensive light modifiers can be made from the not-so-insanely softboxes and such with the addition of a little bit of black nylon tape (or something to that effect) where you see light leaking (usually is going to be leaking from where the modifier attaches onto your strobe). A lot of these mods can be made if you're willing to put a little time and effort into them - I've made - from scratch - two 20"x40" softboxes, snoots, umbrellas, grids... heh... you name it. And I'm DAMN proud of my ghetto-rigged studio :) Light meters... eh, always on-going debate about these... I started off not using one, now I don't use one at all - I don't need a machine to tell me if my light is right or not when I have my EYES... heh, you know? I find it's a crutch that a lot of people get stuck on - kind of like diving into photoshop before you can shoot a good picture OOC (heh, don't do that either... nail them out of the camera BEFORE you start screwing around in photoshop... Lightroom can be kind of dangerous for that, too, don't let it take over!)... during my first bit of shooting I was following a lot of really specific advise from quite a few very respected high-end photographers that shot me (I'm also a model... kind of how I got into photography...), and after fumbling around with a lot of different random techniques on how to essentially do the same thing, I found that you learn by doing - not by being told what to do - and I got good really fast. So, trust yourself, stand behind your work, you'll be learning forever so why not share it with fellow photo-enthusiasts?

Comment by katie damron potter on July 23, 2010 at 2:56am

well, here's something interesting. i usually shoot with 2-5 lights in the studio but i put in an overhead floodlight to get rid of this annoying low-hanging light fixture i got REALLY sick of cloning out of my studio shots... so i decided to mess around with just the flood light. simple - but it works :)

Comment by Lynne on July 5, 2010 at 7:02pm

I would like to join this group as very interested in trying my hand at studio photography - am sure that I will learn stax from you guys

Comment by onrie on January 10, 2010 at 6:12am

I am putting together my studio and trying to get ideas. Was wondering if people could post pics of there studio set up.

Comment by Sarah Ashley on September 17, 2009 at 9:10am

I was about to make a group like this because I dident rember seeing one. Good thing I looked again. I used to have some cheap lights from ebay and I just replaced them with Alien Bees B400s. After taking my first studio light class Im rarely with out a flash or even out of my studio =P

My new babies <3 My old softboxes and barn doors even fit on them!

Comment by Louise Fowkes on August 20, 2009 at 2:50am

hey everyone im just getting into studio shots, id like to buy black and white backdrops and lights to be able to travel around to clients houses, can anyone reccomend certain products that they have found good and where to buy them? thanks :D

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