New Studio - Day 1 **NSFW images added**

Snapper73

Snapper73

Suspended / Banned
Messages
1,496
Name
Scott
Edit My Images
Yes
Well got my keys to my new office which is going to be my new play room for studio work. Its about 380sqf but the only down side is the height of the ceilings at only 7f 3in tall but at the price i'm paying for it i can live with it. Its right on the high street of Torquay so will be looking into making some money from it also when I get things set up. Its a nice clean warm place so just have to get the lights in there and my 10ft x 20ft vinyl back drop.

Here is a few pictures and hopefully update as it goes. :)

There is also another thread I'm running (http://www.talkphotography.co.uk/forums/showthread.php?t=167492) asking for advise on lighting so this is the room so feel free to advise on a a flash light setup also.

dsc6618z.jpg


dsc6619.jpg


dsc6620k.jpg


dsc6622.jpg
 
How much does that cost to rent then? if you don't mind me asking..:)
 
be interesting to see how you fit it out...
 
Cheap?

We were looking at an area in a warehouse (about 1600sq ft) with 15 ft high roof to fit out for a studio and it was only going to cost us £60 per week for rent and rates. Of course heating would be on top and we'd have our own DSL line in but still, 4 times the space you have at 75% of the cost?

Is Torquay really that pricy?
 
neo2810 said:
Cheap?

We were looking at an area in a warehouse (about 1600sq ft) with 15 ft high roof to fit out for a studio and it was only going to cost us £60 per week for rent and rates. Of course heating would be on top and we'd have our own DSL line in but still, 4 times the space you have at 75% of the cost?

Is Torquay really that pricy?
Click to expand...


Yeh could have got a large space outside of town with no heating but i've had a works places before and heating them cost lots and was horrid coming into a cold space. In the future i'm hoping to shoot family portraits with kids etc and the last thing you want is a cold place plus I can walk out side straight into the general public to hand out fliers and welcome them in. :)
 
I'd like to do this sort of thing, I have my eye on a small office but can't afford it yet, need the mobile side of the business to pick up first.
 
The roof is a suspended ceiling by the look of it? You could probably take that out and get another foot and a half/2 foot of height - or does the rent agreement not let you do that sort of stuff?

James
 
I did have a look but its not really worth it, cant see me shooting many 7ft people and most portrait stuff will be sitting down. You dont see many studio shots with lots of negative space above there heads ;)

Jamesbuk said:
The roof is a suspended ceiling by the look of it? You could probably take that out and get another foot and a half/2 foot of height - or does the rent agreement not let you do that sort of stuff?

James
Click to expand...
 
Snapper73 said:
I did have a look but its not really worth it, cant see me shooting many 7ft people and most portrait stuff will be sitting down. You dont see many studio shots with lots of negative space above there heads ;)
Click to expand...

if you check out the white bg posts on zack arias's blog he mentions cropping in white or black space, so as long as you have about 2 free inches there you can make as much as you want as long as the tone is even
 
david1701 said:
if you check out the white bg posts on zack arias's blog he mentions cropping in white or black space, so as long as you have about 2 free inches there you can make as much as you want as long as the tone is even
Click to expand...

Yeh i like that guy remember him from the one-light DVD i watched.
 
I'd love to have a space like this, theres a chance ill be moving to a town center flat shortly and might see if I can afford one with a spare room big enough for a little studio, although I obviously wont be using it for business use:nono:

Best of luck with this, be great to see pics from the progression as you fit it out!
 
I reckon you'll need a minimum of 4 lights. :lol:

And answer my last PM :p
 
david1701 said:
if you check out the white bg posts on zack arias's blog he mentions cropping in white or black space, so as long as you have about 2 free inches there you can make as much as you want as long as the tone is even
Click to expand...

But you can't paste in real space...
And height is needed to allow creative light placement. I don't want to put you off, but with the suspended ceiling in place you'll be very limited for height
 
I did have a look but its not really worth it, cant see me shooting many 7ft people and most portrait stuff will be sitting down. You dont see many studio shots with lots of negative space above there heads
Click to expand...

That may be so, and if you're only doing standard portraits, you'll be fine. But what you'll soon find, when you want to try something different and get creative with the lighting, is you've run out of room.

My first studio only had 7' ceiling and I was cursing it after 3 months, luckily I was able to move to the next door unit with 12' ceilings.

Anyway just something to bear in mind :thumbs:
 
A nice looking space with bags of potential, what colour vinyl drop are you using and why?
 
treeman said:
That may be so, and if you're only doing standard portraits, you'll be fine. But what you'll soon find, when you want to try something different and get creative with the lighting, is you've run out of room.

My first studio only had 7' ceiling and I was cursing it after 3 months, luckily I was able to move to the next door unit with 12' ceilings.

Anyway just something to bear in mind :thumbs:
Click to expand...

Yeh I did think long and hard about this but I do a lot of location fashion stuff outside so when I need the space I have masses of it. :)
 
The roof space will be a pain . BUT I am sure you will be able to work around that. I only have 7' in height myself it does restict what you can do but you just work with what you have .

All the best for the future mate. " if you think i can ever help just ask mate"

md :thumbs:
 
Nice looking space and I agree you would want at least 4 lights although you may be able to get away with 3 and a good sized reflector.

@..MD.. - What do you use on your floor to get the reflection? I've been looking for something in the UK that I can use and that looks nice (ref the images in your gallery).
 
Garry Edwards said:
But you can't paste in real space...
And height is needed to allow creative light placement. I don't want to put you off, but with the suspended ceiling in place you'll be very limited for height
Click to expand...

HI Garry can tell me more about the light placement. Do you mean having light high up and facing down on the subject to create different affects or do you mean the space for the light to travel around.
 
neo2810 said:
Cheap?

We were looking at an area in a warehouse (about 1600sq ft) with 15 ft high roof to fit out for a studio and it was only going to cost us £60 per week for rent and rates. Of course heating would be on top and we'd have our own DSL line in but still, 4 times the space you have at 75% of the cost?

Is Torquay really that pricy?
Click to expand...
well, locally to here (Oxfordshire) you are looking at about £9 + per Sq ft p.a - and that would still be cheap, for rent, rates on top

L
 
Snapper73 said:
HI Garry can tell me more about the light placement. Do you mean having light high up and facing down on the subject to create different affects or do you mean the space for the light to travel around.
Click to expand...
It could be anything really.
Typically, beginners just have a softbox or umbrella light each side of the subject (comes from reading consumer photography magazines and looking at too many websites:'() but hopefully most people come to realise that there's far more to lighting...
You might want to put a beauty dish or fresnel spot high up facing your model. Or a honeycombed light or reflector high above and behind/side of your subject as a hairlight
Or a honeycombed light, reflective umbrella light or softbox high above the background to put a streak of light or a graduated light on the background, or to backlight the floor.

Or just about anything else, the possibilities are endless if you have the space.

Of course, you'll be able to create most of these effects with a low ceiling if your subject is never standing up, but that will limit the type of shots you can take
 
Garry Edwards said:
It could be anything really.
Typically, beginners just have a softbox or umbrella light each side of the subject (comes from reading consumer photography magazines and looking at too many websites:'() but hopefully most people come to realise that there's far more to lighting...
You might want to put a beauty dish or fresnel spot high up facing your model. Or a honeycombed light or reflector high above and behind/side of your subject as a hairlight
Or a honeycombed light, reflective umbrella light or softbox high above the background to put a streak of light or a graduated light on the background, or to backlight the floor.

Or just about anything else, the possibilities are endless if you have the space.

Of course, you'll be able to create most of these effects with a low ceiling if your subject is never standing up, but that will limit the type of shots you can take
Click to expand...

Thanks for info Gary and I know there is a lot to learn with studio lighting and think this place will be a good start to learn the basic's. I've got my Nikon SB900's which I can clamp up into the false ceiling if I need a light from above I know they are no 500J's but cant see me shooting many group shots quiet yet. The idea is for me to have a place where I can learn but also if need be make some pocket money from it also doing portraits etc :)
 
Snapper73 said:
Thanks for info Gary and I know there is a lot to learn with studio lighting and think this place will be a good start to learn the basic's. I've got my Nikon SB900's which I can clamp up into the false ceiling if I need a light from above I know they are no 500J's but cant see me shooting many group shots quiet yet. The idea is for me to have a place where I can learn but also if need be make some pocket money from it also doing portraits etc :)
Click to expand...
I don't want to be negative about this, I just tell it like it is so that people can either make what I think are the right decisions or at least understand the limitations of their space/equipment/whatever.

Yes, you can put a SB900 or 2 into the false ceiling space, or for less money you could put a much more powerful and much more controllable studio flash head there instead, to light the backdrop or create a permanent hairlight if required. If you spend more money you could also control the power (although not the direction or the modifier fitted to it) from your laptop. Fixed lights aren't ideal but there's a lot better than nothing.
I know a guy who turns out stunning low key artistic nudes in his tiny basement, in pretty impossible conditions. Mind you, he has a PhD in physics, it's his understanding of light that helps him, not his shooting space that stops him.

Small spaces/low ceilings limit the range or work that can be carried out, not the quality of that work
 
TBH I think you should heed the good advice here, if you want to do more than quite limited amateur style snaps ;)

The height is too low and you need to get that ceiling out, at least above the lighting area. Your £700 budget for lights on the other thread is too low - it needs to double at least. Plus the cost of ancilliaries.

The walls and ceiling are too light and they look warm/cream but that could be just your pics - that will upset your lighting and create a cast. You can remove casts in post processing but colour will never be absolutely accurate if that is critical, and the cast will vary according to different set ups. Bit of paint, curtains or screens will sort that. You need a hard floor or heels will go through the background. A small area of hardboard/plywood over carpet is maybe all you need.

A hot shoe gun is no subsitute for the power, quick recycling, control and durability of a studio unit. They are very handy for all sorts of things, and obviously really come into their own on location, but they are rarely the weapon of choice when there is an alternative.

But none of these things are deal breakers - it will just take a bit more money and effort :thumbs:

HTH :)
 
Ok just a up date. Just for a very quick test I have used my Nikon Flashes just to see what the vinyl background is like. Only had a hour so did a quick test using the remote shutter, got to get my studio lights in there then we should be rock & rolling. Please note I did not even have time to adjust the falsh output on the flashes so don't give me a hard time on how bad they are i'm just giving you a sense of space.

dsc6653.jpg


dsc6658.jpg


dsc6667u.jpg
 
Great shots and the set-up looks excellent. Have a similar place opened near me and need to book some time in to work up there.
 
treeman said:
Well that's gotta be better than that ugly bloke you dragged off the street ;)

So what lights did you decide to go for?
Click to expand...

Going for 2 x Bowens Gemini 400s & 2 x 200s & lots of extra's softboxes etc

Its someone local to me so can pick them up.
 
Looks ideal for starting out, good luck :thumbs:
If you ever consider renting out studio time let me know. I shoot mainly on location but i'm looking for some studio hire for rainy days and dark evenings throughout the winter.
 
hi fella, all the best with the studio.

Just looking at the space. Is it just the one room?

Loose the ceiling even it is only 1.5ft gained. Get a mono rail system to hang your lights. Keeps the floor space clear. Use wall mount boom arms.

Also what space do you have for a work station/Office space. And you will need a changing room. Families like to bring 2/3 changes of clothing to a shoot.

Models will need make up and changing area?
 
:thumbs:


md
 
Expect to see some pictures soon from the newly equipped Studio.

Scott has just been down and bought my Bowens Gemini Outfit 2x 400s & 2x 200s complete with all the modifiers I had as well as my 6x7 Lastolite HiLite and train, modelling stool and my light table.

Nice chap and I wish him well with his venture. :clap:

Just got to sell my Minolta Spotmeter F and I can get my 7D. :thumbs:
 
EdBray said:
Expect to see some pictures soon from the newly equipped Studio.

Scott has just been down and bought my Bowens Gemini Outfit 2x 400s & 2x 200s complete with all the modifiers I had as well as my 6x7 Lastolite HiLite and train, modelling stool and my light table.

Nice chap and I wish him well with his venture. :clap:

Just got to sell my Minolta Spotmeter F and I can get my 7D. :thumbs:
Click to expand...

Thanks for the Gear Eddie was really nice meeting you and for all your help.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top