Studio from scratch help required.

[ding76uk]

This may seem a strange one, but i am looking for all the costs involved in building a studio, save the initial building costs.

I am after size (inc ideal ceiling height) and an idea of what equipment to put into it to become a good quality studio.

I am working on this for a skatepark I helped build which are a registered charity and are looking towards building extensions to the facility to provide art workshops to children. We already offer screen printing and spray can art workshops and want to extend to photography. We would like the studio to be rentable to people as well, as in Lincolnshire there are very few studios and some that are there are not the best. This would also create a revenue stream in terms of the studio being used by the public.

Ideally then without going over the top, what would be in a high quality studio near you that you would look to rent? How many heads? What kind of backdrops, etc. etc.

I have to put together a proposal for this to go into our next business plan, and although at very early stages things are looking promising.

Anyone from companies out there, what are the chances of a project like this getting any sort of sponsorship / discount on products in the current financial climate?

 

[lawrie29]

Can't help, but good luck with it, sounds like it could be a lot of fun.

 

[Garry Edwards]

It depends.

Ceiling height - as much as possible, personally I would say a minimum of 10'
Size - again, as much as possible. More space will allow a wider range of photography and will make things much easier. Having said that, there are people who produce good work in incredibly small spaces - they just can't take on as wide a range of work.
Equipment for your own use - say a minimum of a 2 head kit. More will make life more complicated but will greatly increase the ease with which you can produce creative results, and again will increase the range of work you can do.
For a hire studio though, people will probably expect maybe 6 heads + a wide range of light shapers (even if some don't know how to use them)

Sponsorship? Not from us, but a discount may be possible. Talk to me once you've got further along the line, or better still, if you're visiting Focus, call in to see us at stand F32 and talk to the boss - he's nicer than me...

 

[ding76uk]

Cheers for that Garry, great of you! Not going to focus as would have cost me about £150 all in and need a new bag, so the money I save not going pays for it. Awaiting the announcement of that new Lencarta products though.

I was thinking ceiling height about 12 - 14ft

Size I know is relative, but in terms of a average, good quality studio.

I was thinking 7 or 8 metres by 5 or 6 metres in terms of size, but wanted to see what others though would be a good size.

I am looking for suggestions of what would be needed. Was thinking infinity curve built in, with background support system and a series of paper backdrops.

Lighting Mods would be softboxes, beauty dishes, grids, etc.

The main thing I am looking at is other stuff that I will have totally forgotten about, stands, etc. etc.

In the proposal I am putting in that average rental is up to £150 a day, or £30 an hour ish. Do these rates seem sound?

Lights I was thinking 5 heads of the same spec. would be more than enough.

If I was to budget for stands and other equipment such as reflectors, grip, etc. What would I be looking at? I need just ball parks now as this is early stages and the proposal is going to look at the viability, but there seems to be virtually no studios in lincolnshire and therefore this should be an easyish proposition.

Keep it coming!

 

[Garry Edwards]

That would be a decent size studio, not sure that you'd get £150 a day though, I could be wrong but most seem to be a bit cheaper - your area may be different.

Paper backgrounds are probably your best option in terms of ease of use/quality but are expensive, especially when there are people around who don't have to pay for the replacements. Muslin is a much cheaper option, but the prices have rocketed because of cotton prices.

Stands - say £30 - £45 each. I doubt whether anything cheaper would be stable enough in this environment, and for H&S reasons you should consider wheels and weights for them too.

You should definately get some reflectors but they don't cost a lot. A decent flash meter too, the Sekonics are popular but don't bounce well, it may be worth spending more and getting a Kenko (the new Minolta)

 

[lawrie29]

If it helps, Jessops have air damped light stands at £19.99each at the moment...