Building a studio in my home: I have had many friends, friends of friends and of course relatives asking me to take formal portraits for everything except weddings. I refuse to do...

tramsey Loc: Texas

I have had many friends, friends of friends and of course relatives asking me to take formal portraits for everything except weddings. I refuse to do weddings. I will be working in a 12x12 room with a window to the East. I would like to know some of the priorities, the how to do, and lighting. I have a D7100 with a 18-300mm lens at the present. I have done a little portrait work only outside though. The people I did it for said they were more than satisfied with what I had done. I thought I was a total failure. I think they were just being nice. Anything you can suggest will be more greatly appreciated.

thanks in advance

rjaywallace Loc: Wisconsin

You might take a look at some prime lenses - 50mm, 85mm, 105mm. Check YouTube for videos on portrait studio photography. YouTube also has an estimated (Lol) bizzillion videos on lighting techniques.

tramsey Loc: Texas

rjaywallace wrote:

You might take a look at some prime lenses - 50mm, 85mm, 105mm. Check YouTube for videos on portrait studio photography. YouTube also has an estimated (Lol) bizzillion videos on lighting techniques.

I was considering the 105. I would really like a Nikon lens but they are over a grand. B&H has a Sigma 105 2.5. They also rated it as macro. I think I would like that because I could keep a little distance between myself and my subject. What would you think of a fast zoom something like a 20-105?

SharpShooter Loc: NorCal

tramsey wrote:

I have had many friends, friends of friends and of... (show quote)

Tramesy, I don't think you have enough room unless you're only going to do head shots. The good thing is you have the room for 9' paper. I rarely put a subject closer than 4' to my background whim h won't leave you much room to shoot except with a wider zoom. I that space your modifiers will need to stay pretty small especially if you only have a an 8' ceiling. Ideally you would have a center located doorway you can shoot trough. Ideally you can hang both black and white(or grey) seamless paper that you can just pull down as needed. Will save a ton of work and time. You'll need a hard floor.
I'm sure you'll get plenty of help with lenses and lights! Good luck
SS

Billy Bob

think about this. http://www.photography-lighting.com/green-screen-wizard-free-download.html

GENorkus Loc: Washington Twp, Michigan

rjaywallace wrote:

You might take a look at some prime lenses - 50mm, 85mm, 105mm. Check YouTube for videos on portrait studio photography. YouTube also has an estimated (Lol) bizzillion videos on lighting techniques.

Agreed, or look into a mid range tele-zoom.

The 300mm portion of your lens is a bit strong for portraits in a 12 foot room.

Figure a "model" will often need to be a few feet from the background and you still need room for you to move around in. That only gives you a roughfly four feet to play with.

GoofyNewfie Loc: Kansas City

SharpShooter wrote:

Tramesy, I don't think you have enough room unless you're only going to do head shots. The good thing is you have the room for 9' paper. I rarely put a subject closer than 4' to my background whim h won't leave you much room to shoot except with a wider zoom. .........SS

Good point.
Ideally, you would want the background in the BACKGROUND.
Commonly overlooked is the need to have room to light the background separately.

GENorkus Loc: Washington Twp, Michigan

GoofyNewfie wrote:

Good point.
Ideally, you would want the background in the BACKGROUND.
Commonly overlooked is the need to have room to light the background separately.

Sorry, I didn't notice the other similar responce by Goofy.

pfrancke Loc: cold Maine

tramsey wrote:

I have had many friends, friends of friends and of... (show quote)

I have no advise, but I do offer that this is an awesome adventure that you are setting out on. I know you will do a great job, there is a reason that your friends are relying on you. They like what you do!

rjaywallace Loc: Wisconsin

tramsey wrote:

I was considering the 105. I would really like a Nikon lens but they are over a grand. B&H has a Sigma 105 2.5. They also rated it as macro. I think I would like that because I could keep a little distance between myself and my subject. What would you think of a fast zoom something like a 20-105?

Re: Nikon lenses being over $1,000 - don't forget to check for "refurbs" on the Nikon site (as well as on B&H and Adorama) and for Used on the KEH, B&H and Adorama sites. There is HIGH QUALITY gear available at quite reasonable prices if you have the patience to look for it. Regards, Ralph

wj cody Loc: springfield illinois

12x12 is small, but doable. you want a 6' backdrop and 2 lights for 3/4 profile or full facial pictures. i recommend smith victor photofloods. while strobe seems to be the latest fad, photofloods deliver constant light, enabling you to position them to avoid shadow. you also want a good hand held light meter and a good solid tripod. this will allow you to take your time, and make quality exposures. i would avoid 3 light systems, as they needlessly complicate the lighting setup.
good luck with your endeavour!

wolfman

I would suggest looking at Paul C Buff Alien Bees, plenty of power and reasonably priced. They also have a good selection of light modifiers and accessories.

rpavich Loc: West Virginia

12' x 12' is TINY. It will be hard to keep light from spilling where you don't want it to.

Really, other than the hassle of being in such a small area, it's no different than outside, there is nothing special to know if you've been doing this already.

forjava Loc: Half Moon Bay, CA

I'm curious about this POV: You'll need a hard floor. .
I put stiff, interlocking black, rubber-like squares on my small studio floor.
In case of dropping things.

SharpShooter wrote:

Tramesy, I don't think you have enough room unless... (show quote)

forjava Loc: Half Moon Bay, CA

I think this is a great suggestion.

One caution: I bought my first strobe, an AB400 from this company.
Got this model least-power (W/s) model to not overwhelm the scene with lighting.
I even discussed this issue with Melissa.

Nevertheless, I found the lowest power setting to be too much, in many cases.
Right now, I'm looking to upgrade to their Einstein strobes with smaller power increments, a better profile of flash duration, and lower power choices.

We'll see.

wolfman wrote:

I would suggest looking at Paul C Buff Alien Bees, plenty of power and reasonably priced. They also have a good selection of light modifiers and accessories.