Recommendations for studio lighting

We are thinking of setting up a makeshift studio in the basement. Most of the threads I have found here recommend the Alienbees, Calumet Genesis or Flashpoint strobes. However, I would like to start off by using my 580EX II and Sigma EF 530 flash units in order to save money (still need a couple of lenses and a new computer). I'm thinking I'll need a couple of stands, brackets and umbrellas as well as a background of some sort. Any recommendations?

I'd like to keep costs to around $300. I found this on B&H: http://www.bhphotovide​o.com …Flash_Umbrella_​Mount.html. That would work with my flashes right? I don't know where to start for the background though. What type of material and what colour?

This would be for very infrequent use so I don't need a lot of power or fast recycle times. Not looking to turn this into a career at this point.

I have that set (umbrella and stand), and they work well. Not the best I'm sure, but ok for starting out.

I bought white and black muslin at the fabric store, but haven't tried it out yet, so I can't help you there. Check amazon for some bg kits. there are several on there.

I snapped a leg off one of my "impact" brand stands the second time I opened it, so be careful with that.

32 inch umbrellas are really small and in my opinion not worth buying. Westcott makes a couple really great collapsable 43 inch bounce and shoot though umbrellas. I'm a huge fan of them especially at less than $20 a pop.

http://www.bhphotovide​o.com …Umbrella_Collap​sible.html

Steve Kaeser has some really good quality background stands/kits and they can be found pretty inexpensively online. I've got a couple of his 10'x20' muslins and have been very pleased.

http://www.skaeser.com …OUND+SUPPORT+SY​STEMS:KITS

Go to a fabric store and by about 6 yards of a white, black, or gray frabric that is 120" wide. Should run about $4.00 a yard.
Then go to Home Depot or similar and get a 10Ft length of PVC tubing about 1.5" in dia. and figure out how to mount it to a wall in your shooting room. That's your background.

42" or larger shoot through umbrellas, proper stands and adapter mounts at Calumet, Adorama or B&H will work.

Here is a link that describes how I use flash and umbrellas to emulate window light.

Using a monolight such as an AB800 is a straight forward substitution for the speedlite.

How's this setup look to you?

Lightstands, umbrellas and brackets: http://www.bhphotovide​o.com …Flash_Umbrella_​Mount.html
Replace one of the 32" umbrellas with this 45" for my main light: http://www.bhphotovide​o.com …Convertible_Umb​rella.html
Background support system: http://www.bhphotovide​o.com …round_Support_S​ystem.html
Double sided muslin (grey): http://www.bhphotovide​o.com …e_Muslin_Backdr​op_10.html
Total $293.84 + tax and shipping.

The nearest fabric store is a 4 hour drive away so that isn't going to happen until May when the roads are clear. I figure the double sided grey muslin will be a little more versatile since a lot of our subjects (dogs) are either black, white or black and white.

And if I choose to upgrade to some studio strobes eventually, all of this will still work right?

That looks like a reasonable kit.
10x12 may be a bit short. I had a dog pull a background of the wall with his antics.
I would use 10x20.
Another option is 10x12 and a reflective board on the floor for some more dramatic shots. Although if main subject matter is pets that probably won't work well.

There is a really good pet photographer here in Chicago who does almost everything on a grey background.

Remember, if using Speedlites to get them back far enough and the zoom set wide enough to fill the umbrella.

Thanks for the input!

With a 10x20, the subject would basically be standing on the background right?

thegrandpoohbah wrote in post #11753990
Thanks for the input!

With a 10x20, the subject would basically be standing on the background right?

Yes, that is the idea with backgrounds for full-length shots - and I'm guessing with dogs, you'll be doing more full body/full-length shots.

This way, the color behind the subject is the same as the floor. The background cloth (or paper) is curved from the backdrop to the floor so that you don't have a distinct line where they meet. This removes some distractions in the background/surrounding​s.

Depending on how you want the shot to look, this is how to accomplish that sort of look.

Thanks for the input everyone. I've revised my setup and will be getting this instead of the seperate background stand and muslin: http://www.bhphotovide​o.com …tand_with_Rever​sible.html. I am hoping to place the order this week.

So it turns out this town has a little quilt shop and I was able to get a 9' x 20' sheet of white quilt backing material. A $20 curtain rod kit from the local bargain store and I have myself a starting point for a studio. Just have to order the light stands and umbrellas now...

thegrandpoohbah wrote in post #11874955
So it turns out this town has a little quilt shop and I was able to get a 9' x 20' sheet of white quilt backing material.

Just curious...would you care to share how much the quilt backing cost? I've had the same idea but that is a bit difficult to find here in Germany - and when I did find places that had something similar, the cost was much higher than I expected.

Also, is the piece one solid piece or does is have a seam?

One piece solid. It was a bit pricey, I paid $114 for it. But that's about what they cost at B&H and this way I don't pay shipping. I live in a small town in Northern Canada so options are limited and shipping things up here can be expensive. I have a friend who sews and is finishing the seams for me and making a rod pocket on top to hang it up. I'll post some pictures of the set-up once it is done.

thegrandpoohbah wrote in post #11879414
One piece solid. It was a bit pricey, I paid $114 for it. But that's about what they cost at B&H and this way I don't pay shipping. I live in a small town in Northern Canada so options are limited and shipping things up here can be expensive. I have a friend who sews and is finishing the seams for me and making a rod pocket on top to hang it up. I'll post some pictures of the set-up once it is done.

Not so bad - about what I found as well. It just shows that the added cost of the ready made ones are not from the finished seams and rod pocket. Wide fabric (>5 feet) is more expesive that one might think.

thegrandpoohbah wrote in post #11743700
We are thinking of setting up a makeshift studio in the basement.

What is critically important in making good portraits is space to work in.

You will want to have the camera a minimum of six feet or so and up to ten feet from your portrait subject. This is so that you can get a pleasing perspective of your subject's faces and bodies in your images. See below for a link that will explain this better.

You will want at least six feet between the subject and the background so that you can light the background separately from the subject and so that you can keep the background somewhat out of focus (so that wrinkles are not blatantly visible, for example).

You will typically want to have the lights at a position higher than the subject's face. In other words, you will want at least 8-foot ceiling height.

For more information on perspective and how to control it, please read our "sticky" (now found in the General Photography Talk forum) tutorial titled Perspective Control in Images - Focal Length or Distance?.

Thanks for the tips Skip. The space is the basement rec room/living room. My backdrop will be hung from a curtain rod on one wall and I have about 22' of space to the other wall so I should be able to achieve enough separation between background, subject and camera. The issue will be the ceiling height, I've only got 86" to work with (damned drop ceiling!).