Home studio setting. What else do I need?

badboy1984

badboy1984

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I'm about to setup a home studio to mess around and practicing off camera flash technique etc with my friend. This is not for professional work, maybe some family portrait stuff like that. Nothing is being paid.

Here is what we got atm regard of light units. We planning to use bunch of flash gun since we got couple of flash units.

1x SB910
2x SB700
1x Metz 50 AF1
1x Yongnuo (don't know what model)

We looking to buy 6x Yonguo RF603N to trigger the flash and for spares as well.

We already ordered some backdrop to shoot with. We got some reflectors but no softbox or umbrella etc.

was wondering whats a decent budget soft box/umbrella we should get and also any extra equipment we need to start off with?
 
You don't need that many triggers, I'm sure everything but the Metz has an optical slave.

Stands, and for that many lights, maybe some other type of mounts, short stands etc.

As for softboxes, don't buy cheap, research exactly what you want and get one with a good quality deep grid (money better spent than on half a dozen brollies and a cheap softbox)
As for brollies etc buy a selection to learn how they work, but be aware that shoot through softboxes in a small space are fairly useless for control.

Don't forget flashgun adaptors for your lightstands.
 
grey card / light meter?
 
I was half tempting for those cheap ebay stuff but pull off at the end. Rather get a decent soft box then nothing. Thanks Phil, it seems i keep missing those small little things like flash gun adapter for the light stand etc lol.

I think i will buy some lightstand to start off first and see how it goes then add soft box/brollies to the mix when i feel i need it.

I know i will need it in the future but want to start off with basic setup like camera, flash gun and backdrop and see what i can create first then throw in more stuff in the mix.

Don't want to buy bunch of stuff that i don't know how it works first. Maybe flashgun and reflector to start off with first.

I use soft box for video before but not bouncing the flash on it.
 
Get at least one softbox, I guarantee you won't like the light from a bare flashgun and you don't want to be waiting a further week to put your mistake right.
 
ok Phil, so a softbox would be better to diffuse the light or a umbrella? or i need both.
 
badboy1984 said:
ok Phil, so a softbox would be better to diffuse the light or a umbrella? or i need both.
Click to expand...

You'll eventually end up with lots of both;)

But as a start, think of what happens when light hits a shoot through umbrella in a small space, about 60% of the light goes through the umbrella and hits the subject directly as a nice soft light source. The other 40% bounces back out of the reflector in all directions, then bounces off the wall floor and ceiling and some of it will be bound to land on your subject (having been changed in colour by whatever it's bounced off).

Lets assume that the reason you're setting up a studio is to control the light that lands on your subject ;)

What do you think of shoot through brollies in a small space?

In a larger space, or where you have access to lots of flags and time to set them up, the problem can be controlled. They're good outside too.

Reflective umbrellas are easier to control, but aren't as soft, in basic terms, a soft box is a reflective umbrella with a diffuser on the front.
 
I kinda understand the use of soft box, cos light will get bounce on the reflect service but a white diffuse at the front of the softbox will soften the light before it hits the subject. Haven't use brollies before so i need to look into it. Is just when i do a search on the internet/youtube stuff their are many different type of setup. I think softbox and brollies is the way to experiment with things first.
 
Everything is ordered now.

- Light stands for the Flashgun
- hotshoe/umbrella adapters for the flash/brollies
- backdrop stands
- white backdrop 3m x 6m (not massive but will do for start)
- Yongnuo RF603N radio triggers
- soft umbrella
- reflect umbrella.

Hopefully this will give me something to start off with first before adding more stuff to the mix. Hopefully enough to start learning etc.

Should be able to do some simple portrait.
 
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