studio lighting

I'm setting up a new studio in my home for a digital and film camera
and wanted to know which lights are necessary and which are the best.
What is the best placement for them for portraiture? This is for
families, children, seniors and babies. Any response would be greatly
appreciated, thanx!!!

In article ,
says...

I'm setting up a new studio in my home for a digital and film camera
and wanted to know which lights are necessary and which are the best.
What is the best placement for them for portraiture? This is for
families, children, seniors and babies. Any response would be greatly
appreciated, thanx!!!

For people in formal portraiture, you will want strobe. Depending on the size
of the group, three - four instruments should work. Depending on your budget,
I'd look for something to give you at least f/8 with your camera(s).

One instrument for Key approximately 45 degrees to side, one Fill on the other
side, and one Hair light from above and behind. You might want to consider a
Background light low and behind the subject(s) pointed at your background, if
using a cloth, or seamless.

One less expensive way to modify the light is to use very large reflective
white dishes (reflectors) on the Key and Fill, and clip diffusion material
over these to suit. You will also determine the ratio of these two lights, i.
e. 2:1 where you can either adjust the head output, or vary the distance for
the same effect. The hair light should be a little bit "harder," or less
diffused that the other two. Background light can be as hard, or as soft as
you deem necessary. Good modeling lights in the heads is very useful to help
you see an approximatation of your lighting, but Polaroids, or studying your
monitor will help even more.

Practice with your gear with friends and hone your skills, before you start
selling your service. It will also help build your portfolio.

Experiment with different ratio of Fill v Key, as well as Hair, and also
Background.

A good studio strobe set should be stands (tall enough to do all you will
need), maybe a boom for hair, or gear to adapt a stand to a boom, low stand
for Background, a power pack that allows variable power to each head, and of
course the heads themselves, a stand for background cloth, or seamless, and
the cloth, or seamless paper.

Hunt

Hunt wrote:

In article ,
says...

I'm setting up a new studio in my home for a digital and film camera
and wanted to know which lights are necessary and which are the best.
What is the best placement for them for portraiture? This is for
families, children, seniors and babies. Any response would be greatly
appreciated, thanx!!!

For people in formal portraiture, you will want strobe. Depending on the size
of the group, three - four instruments should work. Depending on your budget,
I'd look for something to give you at least f/8 with your camera(s).

look at

http://www.alienbees.com
http://www.whitelightning.com

low prices, reasonable quality and flexibility, good support.



One instrument for Key approximately 45 degrees to side, one Fill on the other
side, and one Hair light from above and behind. You might want to consider a
Background light low and behind the subject(s) pointed at your background, if
using a cloth, or seamless.

One less expensive way to modify the light is to use very large reflective
white dishes (reflectors) on the Key and Fill, and clip diffusion material
over these to suit. You will also determine the ratio of these two lights, i.
e. 2:1 where you can either adjust the head output, or vary the distance for
the same effect. The hair light should be a little bit "harder," or less
diffused that the other two. Background light can be as hard, or as soft as
you deem necessary. Good modeling lights in the heads is very useful to help
you see an approximatation of your lighting, but Polaroids, or studying your
monitor will help even more.

Practice with your gear with friends and hone your skills, before you start
selling your service. It will also help build your portfolio.

Experiment with different ratio of Fill v Key, as well as Hair, and also
Background.

A good studio strobe set should be stands (tall enough to do all you will
need), maybe a boom for hair, or gear to adapt a stand to a boom, low stand
for Background, a power pack that allows variable power to each head, and of
course the heads themselves, a stand for background cloth, or seamless, and
the cloth, or seamless paper.

Hunt

Hunt wrote:

In article ,
says...

I'm setting up a new studio in my home for a digital and film camera
and wanted to know which lights are necessary and which are the best.
What is the best placement for them for portraiture? This is for
families, children, seniors and babies. Any response would be greatly
appreciated, thanx!!!

For people in formal portraiture, you will want strobe. Depending on the size
of the group, three - four instruments should work. Depending on your budget,
I'd look for something to give you at least f/8 with your camera(s).

look at

http://www.alienbees.com
http://www.whitelightning.com

low prices, reasonable quality and flexibility, good support.



One instrument for Key approximately 45 degrees to side, one Fill on the other
side, and one Hair light from above and behind. You might want to consider a
Background light low and behind the subject(s) pointed at your background, if
using a cloth, or seamless.

One less expensive way to modify the light is to use very large reflective
white dishes (reflectors) on the Key and Fill, and clip diffusion material
over these to suit. You will also determine the ratio of these two lights, i.
e. 2:1 where you can either adjust the head output, or vary the distance for
the same effect. The hair light should be a little bit "harder," or less
diffused that the other two. Background light can be as hard, or as soft as
you deem necessary. Good modeling lights in the heads is very useful to help
you see an approximatation of your lighting, but Polaroids, or studying your
monitor will help even more.

Practice with your gear with friends and hone your skills, before you start
selling your service. It will also help build your portfolio.

Experiment with different ratio of Fill v Key, as well as Hair, and also
Background.

A good studio strobe set should be stands (tall enough to do all you will
need), maybe a boom for hair, or gear to adapt a stand to a boom, low stand
for Background, a power pack that allows variable power to each head, and of
course the heads themselves, a stand for background cloth, or seamless, and
the cloth, or seamless paper.

Hunt

Here is a list of books, including ones on lighting:
http://www.chapelhillnoir.com/mani/books/mbooks.html
You can't really go wrong with White Lightnings for lights. They are
relatively inexpensive but the flash tubes last a long time. They are also
solidly built and I'm told that they now take standard accessories - back
when I used lights yu had to but special fittings - which I never did.

--
http://www.chapelhillnoir.com
home of The Camera-ist's Manifesto
The Improved Links Pages are at
http://www.chapelhillnoir.com/links/mlinks00.html
A sample chapter from "Haight-Ashbury" is at
http://www.chapelhillnoir.com/writ/hait/hatitl.html

"carolyn" wrote in message
om...
I'm setting up a new studio in my home for a digital and film camera
and wanted to know which lights are necessary and which are the best.
What is the best placement for them for portraiture? This is for
families, children, seniors and babies. Any response would be greatly
appreciated, thanx!!!

Here is a list of books, including ones on lighting:
http://www.chapelhillnoir.com/mani/books/mbooks.html
You can't really go wrong with White Lightnings for lights. They are
relatively inexpensive but the flash tubes last a long time. They are also
solidly built and I'm told that they now take standard accessories - back
when I used lights yu had to but special fittings - which I never did.

--
http://www.chapelhillnoir.com
home of The Camera-ist's Manifesto
The Improved Links Pages are at
http://www.chapelhillnoir.com/links/mlinks00.html
A sample chapter from "Haight-Ashbury" is at
http://www.chapelhillnoir.com/writ/hait/hatitl.html

"carolyn" wrote in message
om...
I'm setting up a new studio in my home for a digital and film camera
and wanted to know which lights are necessary and which are the best.
What is the best placement for them for portraiture? This is for
families, children, seniors and babies. Any response would be greatly
appreciated, thanx!!!

(carolyn) writes:

I'm setting up a new studio in my home for a digital and film camera
and wanted to know which lights are necessary and which are the
best. What is the best placement for them for portraiture? This is
for families, children, seniors and babies. Any response would be
greatly appreciated, thanx!!!

Strobes are preferred to hot lights for portraiture generally -- less
hot for the subjects (and photographer), and stops motion better.

In addition to the lights themselves, the light *modifiers* are
important. You really want at least 1 big soft-box setup I think.
And you probably need a snoot or grid for the hair light.

(Leaving out lots of basics that I see have already been covered by
others.)
--
David Dyer-Bennet, , http://www.dd-b.net/dd-b/
RKBA: http://noguns-nomoney.com/ http://www.dd-b.net/carry/
Pics: http://dd-b.lighthunters.net/ http://www.dd-b.net/dd-b/SnapshotAlbum/
Dragaera/Steven Brust: http://dragaera.info/

(carolyn) writes:

I'm setting up a new studio in my home for a digital and film camera
and wanted to know which lights are necessary and which are the
best. What is the best placement for them for portraiture? This is
for families, children, seniors and babies. Any response would be
greatly appreciated, thanx!!!

Strobes are preferred to hot lights for portraiture generally -- less
hot for the subjects (and photographer), and stops motion better.

In addition to the lights themselves, the light *modifiers* are
important. You really want at least 1 big soft-box setup I think.
And you probably need a snoot or grid for the hair light.

(Leaving out lots of basics that I see have already been covered by
others.)
--
David Dyer-Bennet, , http://www.dd-b.net/dd-b/
RKBA: http://noguns-nomoney.com/ http://www.dd-b.net/carry/
Pics: http://dd-b.lighthunters.net/ http://www.dd-b.net/dd-b/SnapshotAlbum/
Dragaera/Steven Brust: http://dragaera.info/

way too much quoting....and the link should be...

http://www.alienbees.com
http://www.white-lightning.com

way too much quoting....and the link should be...

http://www.alienbees.com
http://www.white-lightning.com