turning a storage room into a photo studio

02/17/2011 10:12:38 AM · #1

I work at a printing company in the prepress department. Our use of photography has grown to something that is required more and more. Up to this point I have used viewing booths and very spur-of -the-moment setups that have turned out OK for what they needed.

My lighting has been pretty much florescent lights (in a viewing booth or just in the office) and sometimes a speedlight. But now it looks like we might be getting a bit more serious and I'm hoping I can start something from the ground up. We have a room here that could be used as a studio - The room is about 28' x 20' but will also more than likely need to be used for some storage as well so maybe I should plan on using about 15x20.

I'm looking for advice on lighting and backdrops. The subjects I'm typically shooting are as follows:
posters (that I usually adhere to wall)
framed artwork
Small logo'd office products (cups, pens, keychains, etc.)
Larger products (banners, umbrellas)
Stuffed (dead) animals â�¦ yes this is starting to sound like a joke ;)

I would also like to be able to shoot employee portraits on demand.

I'm looking for ideas on specific lighting setups / products that could be somewhat permanent but also adjustable for different subjects.
I also would like to know what people think about different backdrop setups.
The lenses I will be using (at least to start) are listed in my profile.

Any thoughts would be greatly appreciated.

Message edited by author 2011-02-18 12:11:50.

Canon EF 24-105mm f/4.0L IS

02/18/2011 12:12:13 PM · #2

bump

robs

Canon EOS R6 Mk II

02/18/2011 12:53:03 PM · #3

Since no one has had a whack......

For the small stuff a light tent of some sort and maybe some sort of light table for setup.

For the large stuff... depends (those framed things with glass will be more of an issue... dunno... couple of decently large softboxes with a stack of flags & stuff like a hardware shop for mounting on stands or whatnot to get them into place (some timber, plexi, screws e.t.c.).

scalvert

Canon EOS-5D Mark III

Canon EF 24-105mm f/4.0L IS

02/18/2011 01:00:13 PM · #4

I had similar requirements at my last office, minus the dead animals and the space (against my recommendations, they cut the room to a nearly useless 8x8'.

I suggest 2-3 AlienBees lights with wireless trigger, at least one large softbox or brolly, a small light tent, a reflector, Savage background stand with a black muslin and white and gray rolls of paper. You surely already have Foamcore and cardboard to use as flags.

02/18/2011 02:31:20 PM · #5

Ha! Yeah I've been so much foamcore I could have built a studio out of it.
Thanks guys! THis will help a bunch.

Originally posted by scalvert:

I suggest 2-3 AlienBees lights with wireless trigger, at least one large softbox or brolly, a small light tent, a reflector, Savage background stand with a black muslin and white and gray rolls of paper. You surely already have Foamcore and cardboard to use as flags.

Panasonic LUMIX DMC-LX100

03/04/2011 11:51:16 AM · #6

I haven't had too much time to look into this but my personality has me all over the place â�¦ thinking too much I suppose since I really want to make it happen but I know the initial proposal will make all the difference as to whether it does â�¦

Here are a few options I'm looking at:

cowboy studio light kit
This is a kit that seems almost too cheap and I don't want to buy junk to start out but I like that it comes with the barn-doors and gels.

The AlienBees setup is a more pricey but I did add in the remote receivers and triggers (but has no snoot, gels or barndoors:
B400 White Studio Flash $224.95 ea.
B800 White Studio Flash $279.95 ea.
CSRB CyberSync Battery Powered Trigger Receiver $69.95 ea. 2 $139.90
CST CyberSync Trigger Transmitter $59.95 ea. 1 $59.95
LS3050 10-foot General Purpose Stand $39.95 ea. 2 $79.90
U48SW 48-inch Silver/White Umbrella $29.95 ea. 1 $29.95
U48TWB 48-inch Shoot-Thru Umbrella $29.95 ea. 1 $29.95
After a modest discount that is $838.55!

Then there is this one that seems like a nice versatile option:
Smith Victor portrait kit

As for the backdrop and light tent, still looking around.
Anyone have thoughts on these?

spiritualspatula

Nikon AF-S NIKKOR 24-70mm f/2.8G ED

03/04/2011 12:47:01 PM · #7

The Cowboy kit is a lot lower in power than either of the other two options you're looking at (it's the same total as the AB setup but lower for each light (but you get another one) so it's going to be fundamentally different in that respect for capabilities). Remember with AB's you'll get a discount on all modifiers for each light you get, stackable up to 30% I think, and that's good for a time period following the purchase if I remember corrently.
Not sure what the time frame is on this, but Strobist is busy remodeling his garage and may have pieces of good information for you as he gets more into it.

And I gotta ask... why are you taking pictures of stuffed animals for a printing company?

Message edited by author 2011-03-04 12:48:49.