The home photo studio – questions and answers
So, it's time for questions.
Driven by our hobbies, we do various things that are enjoyable or bring us some satisfaction. Often, these are activities that perfectly fit the epithet "home-made." Thus, we have a home cinema, home-made lyutenitsa, a handyman... If our hobby is related to photography, we can also talk about a "home photo studio." This article is for those who want to set up their modest studio at home.
Can I set up my photo studio at home? What space do I need?
First and foremost is the question of choosing a room. This is the main problem when organizing a professional photo studio. It requires a large area and high ceilings. For photographic activities at home, such a large space is not necessary. If you are shooting still lifes, it is enough to clear a medium-sized table and arrange the lighting around it. For portrait shots at home, an area of no more than 4 x 3 m is required. With good will, you can manage with even less space. For some portrait shots, it is appropriate to use the details of the interior itself as a background. In this case, it is enough to find space for two or three lighting stands among the furniture.
What kind of lighting should it be?
To begin with, for amateur purposes, a budget-friendly set of two studio flashes with low power, softboxes, and stands is suitable. This is a complete solution that can be used without adding expensive additional components. In most cases, the price of such a set does not exceed that of a system external flash for various camera brands. Dynaphos offers ready-made lighting kits based on the compact flashes Sprite and Delicacy, which, by their design and control method, are as close as possible to professional monolights:
Consists of two Delicacy 180 flashes, two silver reflective umbrellas with a diameter of 85 cm, and two 181M lighting stands. This is a starter budget kit, suitable for amateur photographers taking their first steps in studio photography. It is recommended for portrait and product photography. It can be supplemented with softboxes 50x70 cm, 55 cm octaboxes and all types of photographic umbrellas from the Dynaphos range. In addition to training, this kit is often preferred by customers who take photos of various goods for their web-based stores, as it is particularly suitable for illuminating a product photography tent.
A kit similar to the one described above, consisting of two Delicacy D-120 flashes, two octagonal softboxes (octaboxes) with a diameter of 55 cm, and two 180Q lighting stands. Due to their relatively small diameter and shape close to the ideal parabolic reflector, the 55-centimeter octaboxes utilize the flash power to the maximum extent. The kit is recommended for portrait and product photography. For portrait shots, the octagonal softbox creates a round catchlight in the model's eyes.
Amateur kit consisting of two Delicacy D-180 flashes, two rectangular softboxes with a size of 50x70 cm, and two 180Q lighting stands. The more powerful flashes allow the use of larger softboxes and umbrellas, which is a prerequisite for finer tonal transitions, especially in portrait photography. In addition to portraits, this kit is suitable for full-body shots of people, as well as for product photography and as additional lighting for shooting small interior spaces.
A ready-made solution for a home photo studio, based on compact flashes from the Delicacy series. All components of the kit are specially selected to take up little storage space and to be quickly put into working order. An excellent choice for amateurs who want to set up their own studio at home.
The kit includes:
- 2 compact Delicacy 180 flashes
- 1 compact Delicacy 120 flash
- 2 silver reflective umbrellas 105 cm
- 1 honeycomb grid for Delicacy flashes
- 3 180Q lighting stands (1.90 m)
- 1 ultra-compact 6D lighting stand
- 1 foldable textile background 150 x 200
Amateur kit based on more modern flashes from the Sprite series. It consists of two Sprite-180 flashes, two rectangular softboxes with a size of 50x70 cm, a 4-channel radio trigger, and two 180Q lighting stands. The more powerful flashes allow the use of larger softboxes and umbrellas, which is a prerequisite for finer tonal transitions, especially in portrait photography. In addition to portraits, this kit is suitable for full-body shots of people, as well as for product photography and as additional lighting for shooting small interiors.
A ready-made solution for a home photo studio, based on compact flashes from the Sprite series. All components of the kit are specially selected to take up little storage space and to be quickly put into working order. An excellent solution for a home photo studio. A good choice for professionals who need auxiliary flashes and easily portable lighting.
The kit includes:
- 3 pcs. Sprite 180 flash
- 2 pcs. Sprite 50x70 cm softbox
- 1 pc. Sprite honeycomb grid and color filter kit
- 3 pcs. 180Qm air-cushioned light stand
The kits in question are mainly aimed at amateur photographers who want to equip their studio without making large investments. As I said above, these kits are complete systems, ready to solve various imaging tasks.
What else do I need?
By adding some additional components and accessories to your home studio equipment, you can greatly expand your capabilities and build more complex lighting setups. Below I will list some useful things you can add to your kit:
- foldable background, available in sizes 100x150, 120x180 and 150x200 cm. Suitable for portrait shots. If you are shooting more than one person at a time, it is good to prefer a larger size.
- foldable background 200 x 300 x 480 cm - an excellent solution for full-body shots of people. All backgrounds listed so far take up little space when folded and can be stored in your home without problems.
- 5-in-1 reflector disc - 110 cm diameter. It is mainly used to brighten deep shadows in the composition. In a home photo studio, you can use it as a source of fill light. In addition to 107 cm diameter, it is also available in many other shapes and sizes.
- compact flash on E27 socket 45W or S100 compact flash on E27 socket. These small flashes provide an affordable solution for fill or background lighting, as well as for local lighting effects. They are usually mounted on a special holder, to which a photographic umbrella can be attached.
- radio trigger – allows flashes to be fired wirelessly, significantly increasing working comfort. If you do not want to invest in this device, you can safely use the sync cables that come with every studio flash.
What are the capabilities of this lighting and how to use it?
Delicacy series studio kits can be primarily used for portrait or product photography. Specific examples and tips for their application can be found below.
Portrait:
In the image on the right, you can see a typical example of a portrait shot that practically any amateur photographer can take at home. The diagram below shows the arrangement of the lighting and other accessories.
This photo was taken with a Delicacy 360S studio kit. The two flashes are positioned at a height of 1.90 m and at a distance of about 1.30 m from the model. For backlighting from the right, the silver surface of a 110 cm reflector disc was used. Behind the model, a 120x180 cm foldable background is placed. The full power of both flashes was used, which in this case allows working at aperture 11.0 at ISO 100. The diagram shows the size of the area on which the entire composition is arranged. In the photo below, you can see a general view of the entire setup.
More portraits:
This short photoshoot was done against a white wall. For "whitening" the background, a D-180 flash with a standard reflector was used at 1/2 power. It was placed behind the model, on the floor of the room. For front top lighting, a flash of the same type was used at full power, with a 50x70 cm softbox. It was positioned at a height of about 1.90 m. Everything listed here is included in the Delicacy 360S kit.
Still Life:
The still life is illuminated by two D-180 flashes with 50x70 cm softboxes. The rear top lighting works well to bring out the texture of the objects in the composition. The rear flash is at a height of about 1.70 m and is set to 2/3 of its power. The front flash serves to brighten the shadows and is set to 1/4 power. The composition is arranged on a 130x60x60 cm product table with clamps. The camera is mounted on a professional tripod with a 905YT head. Below you can see a general view of the entire setup.
Artwork Reproduction:
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Some artists prefer to take photographic reproductions of their paintings themselves. For them, the Delicacy 240S kit is suitable. It is enough to place the two flashes at a 45° angle to the optical axis of the camera and direct them towards the original. The flashes should be at the height of the original, and the latter should be strictly perpendicular to the optical axis (see diagram on the left). It is preferable for the camera to be mounted on a tripod, and using a three-step gray card will ensure sufficiently accurate color reproduction.
Photo for a commercial catalog:
The need for frequent content updates in the increasingly popular online stores prompts many owners of such resources to take photos of the products they offer themselves.
To take decent photos for commercial catalogs, it is enough to get a cube tent for product photography of medium size, for example 75x75x75 cm. The tent largely diffuses the light that passes through its walls, and thus you can get an almost shadowless drawing in the captured image. This is a prerequisite for easy cropping of the captured object and placing it on another background. To illuminate the tent, you can use the economical Delicacy 240 kit, and in most cases, you don't even need to mount the umbrellas that come with the kit (see the photo on the left).
©2008 Boris Bishkov, Dynaphos Ltd.
