Help wanted please

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zebedee1973

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6
Name
Sarah
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Hi, I am fairly new to "decent" photography, have always been a bit of a shooter for the family and my kids but have decieded that I would like to start doing it in a more professional (I use the term loosely) manner. Any help with what equipment I would need with regards to lights, backgrounds, reflectors etc would be appreciated. I am hoping to be able to set something up in either my lounge or conservatory.
Many thanks in advance.
 
What is it exactly you want to start doing? If you're looking to buy kit, a pair of flash-guns are pretty versatile, and a decent 50mm f/1.8 lens would at least get you on the right path with portraits.
 
Thanks for your reply. I am looking to start taking some portraits. Children, couples, babies etc Just really something to get me started but all I really know is how to use my camera. I enjoy taking photos of my kids, wildlife and scenery but thought I may be able to start putting my hobby to some use and make a little money. Any help with regards to what kind of lights, reflectors and anything else I may need would help. Thanks.
 
I have just bought the Canon 1100D and have a couple of lenses, one being an 18-55, so hopefully on the right track!?
 
No problem :) I'd start with some natural-light portraits to be honest as it means you don't need any other kit, just a window you can pose people near to. Shoot with the aperture wide open against a neutral wall and you're set.

The lights we have in our studio are Bowens, but to be honest you can get similar results these days with flash-guns provided you know how to use them. They're cheaper and you can take them anywhere, as they're battery-operated.

I'm sure the kit lens is good, and you can probably take some nice portraits with it. I'd look into something like an f/1.8 lens as it means you can experiment with some very shalow depth of field images; it's all about making your images look different.
 
2 x Portaflash 336v lights
2 x Portaflash 203w lights
1 x Courtney light Meter
1 x Cobra Flashmate
2 x stands
2 x umbrellas
1 x small reflector
1 x large reflector with stand
1 x backdrop
This is a kit I have seen second hand - is this something that would help?
I will certainly look into a f/1.8 lens as I will probably need all the help I can get.
Love your website, some very amazing photos!!
 
If I remember rightly it's about £40 buts it's on eBay so could go up. I will keep an eye on it but I don't want to spend too much on things that are either not necessary or I know nothing about.
 
At £40 it's worth a punt as there's a lot of little things (the reflectors and backdrop) that are handy, and for a four-light set-up it's pretty good. For a cheap studio though, you could get away with painting a wall white and using a couple of flashes to blow the highlights. You could then use your flashes anywhere you wanted.
 
Thank you very much for all your help Circuit Hero. I will certainly take it on board and see what happens with the auction. Thanks again.
 
zebedee1973 said:
Thank you very much for all your help Circuit Hero. I will certainly take it on board and see what happens with the auction. Thanks again.
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For £40, go for it. You'd pay at least ten times that for a new outfit. But, the key to studio photography is much more about understanding how light works, different modifiers, and experience. If you know what you're doing with that kit, you could get some great results.

As a comment, the conservatory is a super location for a lot of portraiture, but not for using lights. Use it for available light, learn how to use a basic reflector like one of those fold-up white/silver jobbies. You can do so much using just that and some sound technique. From a marketing perspective though, it doesn't look too impressive in operation like a set of big umbrellas etc, if that's what your clients expect.

Problem with the conservatory is that in daylight it will wash out the effect of the lights, and at night you could get all sorts of strange reflections bouncing around the glass. Chances are it will pick up the flash and bounce the light back from uncontrollable directions.
 
I've found the short tutorials on this forum very helpful! Alot more dumbed down and straight forward than any book I've looked at but my brain struggles to withhold lots of info!! Much cheaper than buying lots of books!! And my local library only has 1 book!!
 
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