what equipment do I need in a photo studio?
February 252010
I love photography.
I own a Nikon D40x digital camera.
I want to transform an empty room into a photo studio.
I’m not sure which equipment pieces are necessary -I’m a total newbie at this.
I know I need a couple of umbrellas, lights,and a backdrop but I know there’s more to it.
but I’m not sure which ones are necessary for beginners…
Also, I’m looking towards finding reasonably priced items.
help please!
I"m glad Andre mentioned strobist. Their site is here:
http://www.strobist.com
It gives some examples of equipment you can purchase to get you started.
Lighting is something you can grow into, especially when on a budget. Lots of photographers get good results with one light, for example. To me, it is better to buy one light that is a little better than two that are underpowered.
Light stand
Umbrella (shoot through or relector) or softbox
Strobe
Some way to trigger (either a sync cord, which means you will need to buy a hotshoe adapter for your D40X, or a wireless trigger/receiver)
If you use a strobe designed with a hot shoe, you may need to purchase an adapter to connect it to the light stand.
Besides browsing online camera stores (which can be intimidating because they read profession (read: Expensive) gear, try looking through eBay. With eBay, it is easy to go TOO cheap. But you can at least look at the offerings as see what the equipment looks like.
February 26th, 2010 at 4:05 am
Its going to be expensive no matter how you cut it. The cheapest way to go is to buy speedlights like the Nikon SB series, older ones like the SB-24 work fine. You will need 2 or 3 of them. Then you are going to need 2 or 3 light stands and umbrella brackets to go with each of those. Then you need umbrellas, at least one that is shoot through and nothing bigger than 43". Lastly you will need flash triggers and receivers alienbees cybersyncs are the best value. Impact makes the brackets, good stands and umbrellas. You will want stands that are 8′ or higher. White umbrellas with removable black backs are good. Before you do anything though, read the strobist blog, specifically the lighting 101, it will explain everything in greater detail.
References :
February 26th, 2010 at 4:55 am
I"m glad Andre mentioned strobist. Their site is here:
http://www.strobist.com
It gives some examples of equipment you can purchase to get you started.
Lighting is something you can grow into, especially when on a budget. Lots of photographers get good results with one light, for example. To me, it is better to buy one light that is a little better than two that are underpowered.
Light stand
Umbrella (shoot through or relector) or softbox
Strobe
Some way to trigger (either a sync cord, which means you will need to buy a hotshoe adapter for your D40X, or a wireless trigger/receiver)
If you use a strobe designed with a hot shoe, you may need to purchase an adapter to connect it to the light stand.
Besides browsing online camera stores (which can be intimidating because they read profession (read: Expensive) gear, try looking through eBay. With eBay, it is easy to go TOO cheap. But you can at least look at the offerings as see what the equipment looks like.
References :