Help! Beginner Studio Lighting Help Needed.

Hello Canon Digital Photography,

I wonder if some people could give me a hand trying to understand what I need for a basic portrait photography studio. I'm a Graphic Design graduate & I'm wanting to start a Portrait Studio in my spare room & create a bit more work for myself.

I'm familiar with Cameras, Lenses & editing of my photographs, but I'm a novice when it comes to studio lighting.

Camera: Canon 550d with various lenses
Background: I have a big plain white back drop

Lighting Equipment:

I currently have a Interfit EX150 MkII Twin Head + Umbrella/Softbox Kit which I was given from a friend. One of the MonoBlocs has blown up (in transport) So I am just down to one. (Only briefly tested - not with a subject)


The information I'd like to know is what is the best kit for me to start with.

* Flash or Continues Lighting
* LED or Bulbs
* Umbrellas or Softboxes (or both)
* Heat from the lighting?
* Any other info that I'm missing…..


I'm swaying more towards Continues Lighting as my subjects will be family & children. (portraits, life style & family)

Photography Effect:

The effect for the final images is brilliant white backgrounds, soft but bright lighting on the subject. Like this…..

Here

But also I've seen these on eBay & I'm not sure if they are worth buying. I'm looking to have this kit for 6 to 12 month's, sell it on & progress to a better lighting kit once I've got a footing on working with studio lighting.

http://www.ebay.co.uk …_Kits&hash=item​3f19ff802d

Any help would be greatly appreciated!

Thanks Guys & Gals!

You want to get flash. Continuous light seems appealing but its a problem for portraiture. To be bright enough to get sufficient shutter speed to stop moving subjects with sufficient depth of field the light is so bright as to be uncomfortable for your subject. It also causes the pupil of the eye to turn into a little black spec. Flash is much more powerful and comfortable for the subject.

To do white backgrounds properly you are going to need to light the white drop independently of the subjects. This means a minimum of 3 lights. One key light, one fill light, and one background light. It's better for a large white drop to have 2 lights lighting it as one light will have falloff leading to uneven whiteness across the drop. You really need to come up with a budget so that users here can suggest reasonable options.

What I'm thinking at the moment, is a budget is £250. It could go up dependent on what more I would gain for more moneys.

So I'm looking for possibly buying 2 other lights like the ones I have. Use one for the background, one for the subject & then one to fill.

@gonzogolf thanks for your quick response. I can now narrow down my search for lights & start pricing up the ones that I need.

I dont know UK pricing, but if memory serves thats going to be a pretty bare bones setup. Avoid the all in one kits on ebay, as they usually have crap components that wont work going forward. You would be better served by buying better quality and building a kit over time if you can. Another option would be to go with inexpensive speedlights like the YN560II, those are sufficient for portraits in a small studio setup.

@gonzogolf I'm still wanting studio lights rather than the speedlights. I'll post some photo's of the studio & see what you think. The reason I'm fine with spending £250 on a Kit off eBay, is to practice using the lighting equipment more, generate some income & then invest in some more expensive lights in the next 6/12 months.

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Any money you spend on an ebay kit will be wasted. The components are crap and wont work with the stuff you want to get going forward. At least the speedlights, which are just as viable for practice as the ebay junk, will at least give you the option of a portable kit going forward. Or you can sell them and reinvest. The ebay junk doesnt even have much resale value.

Why not go on some lighting courses and learn how to do it well before trying to sell poor practice shots to the public! You studio area looks far to small to do the Chav white background shots that you linked to as you need a fair bit of space between subject and background.
If you really want to copy the venture photo look why not book yourself a shoot and see how they do it.

@pauly916 lol clam down. It was only a question. I've had massive amount of help from other forums & from other photographers online who understand I'm just looking of an image style. I also have 2 friends who work for venture who have also given me some pointers on the looks I am wanting to achieve. Selling poor practice? ha I'm not going to even comment on that.

callumdt wrote in post #15975297
Photography Effect:

The effect for the final images is brilliant white backgrounds, soft but bright lighting on the subject. Like this…..

Here

You're going to need several lights to pull off that effect. You'll need lights just for the background and other lights for the subjects. For the subjects, you'll want umbrellas or softboxes (I would prefer softboxes) and for the background, your modifiers will depend on the space, the background, and what sort of lights you choose to use.

You will need a variety of light stands or other fixtures to hold the lights.

I agree with the suggestion to go to a class to learn about lighting before you waste money on equipment that may not do the intended job for you.

Lol don't worry I'm calm.. I just find it amazing that you want to open a photo studio and are asking some very basic lighting questions.

@pauly916 ahh ok. No worries Pauly. We already have a design studio, so photo-shoots are just for 2/3 times a week. Just a little side project. It seems we keep on having alot of people contacting us, looking for this style. We are not located near any Venture studios & the few photography studios that are, tend to produce a lot more traditional style of portraiture photography.

SkipD wrote in post #15979477
You're going to need several lights to pull off that effect. You'll need lights just for the background and other lights for the subjects. For the subjects, you'll want umbrellas or softboxes (I would prefer softboxes) and for the background, your modifiers will depend on the space, the background, and what sort of lights you choose to use.

You will need a variety of light stands or other fixtures to hold the lights.

I agree with the suggestion to go to a class to learn about lighting before you waste money on equipment that may not do the intended job for you.

The OP wont even produce an image like that on a £250 budget.

That £250 is enough to only buy two chepa flashguns.

what about softboxes? raido triggers? light stands?strobe fittings? etc etc