Home Studio Setup

I am planning to set up a home studio to photograph children and also families. Ideally I would like to be able to shoot full length with a family of two adults and upto three kids. I am planning on getting the following:

- Lastolite Collapsible Reversible backgound (6'x7' plus train) - White & Black.
- Stand
- Elinchrom D-lite2 2 go kit (i.e. 2xD-lite2 200W/s strobes plus 1 x 65x65cm
and 1 x 53x53cm Softboxes).

Is this a reasonable set up? I am curious to hear from anyone with the D-lite2 strobes if they think that they have enough power for to do full length group shots. Reading through previous posts there seems to be some debate on this.

Also, will the softboxes be large enough to light the required area or do I need to get an umbrealla and if so what size? From the research I have done it looks like a 1.0m meter umbrella will be too small and I will need at least 1.5m. Or with the 1.0m unit do the job?

Should be ok. I have AB800s, 320 true WS, 800 pretend WS (no idea what that is), they're fine for the studio. Get another little slave light as a hair light if you want, they're pretty cheap. More power wouldn't be a bad thing, but you'll probably be ok. You can use up to ISO400 and still get very clean studio shots.

50cm is WAY too small for a soft box. Get one between 1 and 1.5 meters on the longest side for your main light, maybe a little smaller as fill. Umbrellas I wouldn't bother with.

Hi Tim,
Thanks for the feedback. I was tossing up the D-lite4 set which are 400wsec units however there seems to be some concern that they are too powerful for a home set up. If the 200ws units are Ok I figure I will stick with them and then get a 400ws unit latter on if I need it.

Regarding the Softbox, have you got any recommendations for a brand?

- Lastolite Collapsible Reversible backgound (6'x7' plus train) - White & Black.

Might be kind of small for some full lengths and families.

drywall is really cheap if you have a spot for it. It makes a nice backdrop that you can customize.

jdouglas003 wrote in post #5533774
- Lastolite Collapsible Reversible backgound (6'x7' plus train) - White & Black.

Might be kind of small for some full lengths and families.

Yeah I am a little worried about that. The picture below shows one being used for full length shots so I should be Ok with 2 people.

HOSTED PHOTO
please log in to view hosted photos in full size.

That looks like a single person background only to me, no way will you get a family in there. And you can never have too much power, lights can be dialed down.

well, yeah you can but that's already debated in the d2-d4 threads.

hawk911 wrote in post #5535604
well, yeah you can but that's already debated in the d2-d4 threads.

Yes I read those threads but there seemed to be some pretty strong opinion on both sides so I'm still not too sure.

I didn't read those thread, i'd like to move the flame war over here, please.

tim wrote in post #5542236
I didn't read those thread, i'd like to move the flame war over here, please.

Yeah there seems to be a bit of that going on....

JasonW wrote in post #5534624
Yeah I am a little worried about that. The picture below shows one being used for full length shots so I should be Ok with 2 people.

Hosted photo: posted by JasonW in
./showthread.php?p=553​4624&i=i29105966
forum: Flash and Studio Lighting

A family is going to be tight but I expect to do mainly kids so it will definitely be ok for that. I was looking also at a 3m wide stand and drape some vinyl or PVC material for white and velvet for black but the lastolite solution seems much neater...

I think that you would be challenged to crop to certain sizes with the setup seen in the picture without having to clone in some background. Especially if you have a tall subject/model.

jdouglas003 wrote in post #5545458
I think that you would be challenged to crop to certain sizes with the setup seen in the picture without having to clone in some background. Especially if you have a tall subject/model.

The other option is to use a stand like a Manfrotto 314 kit and then hang a separate background. The question is what... Any suggestions for white and black backgrounds? I know paper seems to be quite common but is there anything better to use?

tim wrote in post #5528969
Should be ok. I have AB800s, 320 true WS, 800 pretend WS (no idea what that is), they're fine for the studio. Get another little slave light as a hair light if you want, they're pretty cheap. More power wouldn't be a bad thing, but you'll probably be ok. You can use up to ISO400 and still get very clean studio shots.

50cm is WAY too small for a soft box. Get one between 1 and 1.5 meters on the longest side for your main light, maybe a little smaller as fill. Umbrellas I wouldn't bother with.

Hi Tim,

It should be noted that it's not a good idea to mix strobes. Using strobes from the same manufacturer is better than mixing brands but it's important to understand that you will not have proportional modeling lights for WYSIWYG.

Alien Bees makes it easy to mix power levels because the design uses standard incandescent bulbs that can be swapped out for a proportional setup. Most other brands and models (Elinchrom D-Lites) do not give you this ability and it's generally recommended to assemble a kit with the same strobe. You'll also experience some odd color temperatures when mixing.

My recommendation, if you're thinking of getting D-Lite's (which I own and love) is to get the kit that makes the most sense for you (D-LIte 2 or 4) and then if and when you feel the need for additional strobes, either buy a single of what you already have or buy another kit and sell off what you don't need.

For most people working in home and small studios, the D-Lite 2 is more than enough power and also lets you drop the power down so you can shoot at wider apertures for shallow depth of field.. If you have too much power you'll find that you need to start using ND gels or an ND filter on the lens to bring things down to a usable level.

tim wrote in post #5534791
That looks like a single person background only to me, no way will you get a family in there. And you can never have too much power, lights can be dialed down.

Not always Tim. This is a common misconception and I see lots of people buying too much power rather than the right amount.