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Best lighting setup for a small room

  • 07-04-2011 11:03am
    #1
    Auldfella
    Closed Accounts Posts: 11 ✭


    Hi,
    We want to set up lighting studio in a portacabin but we're worried about overhead lighting in a room that has a ceiling height of approximately 8 feet. What is the best setup to deal with this? Is there a slimline ceiling mounted light we can get that holds a fluorescent daylight bulb? Thanks in advance.


Comments

  • #2
    kelly1
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 5,026 ✭✭✭kelly1


    What are you trying to light? Ceiling lighting doesn't sound great.


  • #3
    Auldfella
    Closed Accounts Posts: 11 ✭Auldfella


    kelly1 wrote: »
    What are you trying to light? Ceiling lighting doesn't sound great.

    Hi Kelly1, we're trying to photograph garments on mannequins, e.g. coats, trousers, etc. We're extreme novices at this but have decided to dive right in and try to learn on the job, any advice would be gratefully received!


  • #4
    kelly1
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 5,026 ✭✭✭kelly1


    Ideally you'd want studio lights with softboxes or umbrellas, which you can hire if you want to do a good job. Failing that you might be able to use floodlights on a stand or photograph the items near a very large window and use a large white surface as a reflector.


  • #5
    Auldfella
    Closed Accounts Posts: 11 ✭Auldfella


    We got this complete kit:

    http://www.backdropsource.co.uk/Productinfo.asp?id=1072&pname=heavy-duty-white-backdrop-with-support-system-and-boom-light-kits

    The boom light shade is quite large and this is where our problem lies. If we painted the ceiling pure white and point a light at the ceiling would that have as much effect?


  • #6
    kelly1
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 5,026 ✭✭✭kelly1


    I can't see that working. Do the 2 softboxes not do the trick? How are you triggering the flashes?


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  • #7
    Auldfella
    Closed Accounts Posts: 11 ✭Auldfella


    The only flash we have is on the 550D. We want to able to Photoshop, (at which we are also extreme novices!), out the background of these photos so that the image is floating on the web page, but at the minute we're getting too much shadow on the backdrop which is making this extremely difficult and tedious.

    Could it be that I just don't have the camera set up properly? I've been working with the automatic setting and the portrait setting so far, and I've experimented a bit with the A-DEP setting and the background/foreground intensity but I'm not having the effect that I want.


  • #8
    kelly1
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 5,026 ✭✭✭kelly1


    Auldfella wrote: »
    The only flash we have is on the 550D. We want to able to Photoshop, (at which we are also extreme novices!), out the background of these photos so that the image is floating on the web page, but at the minute we're getting too much shadow on the backdrop which is making this extremely difficult and tedious.

    Could it be that I just don't have the camera set up properly? I've been working with the automatic setting and the portrait setting so far, and I've experimented a bit with the A-DEP setting and the background/foreground intensity but I'm not having the effect that I want.

    Ah, I presumed that kit included strobes with the softboxes! The built-in flash is next to useless so you either need to get flash-heads/strobes or a few continuous lights. Have you a large window you can work at? And do you have a tripod?


  • #9
    Auldfella
    Closed Accounts Posts: 11 ✭Auldfella


    Each of the lights has a Daylight continuous bulb, is this not sufficient? Yes we have a tripod.


  • #10
    kelly1
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 5,026 ✭✭✭kelly1


    Auldfella wrote: »
    Each of the lights has a Daylight continuous bulb, is this not sufficient? Yes we have a tripod.
    OK, do you have 3 lights? 2 softboxes with lights and 1 boom with a light?

    If so, you could put a softbox on each side of the subject at a 45 degree angle to the camera and use the light on the boom to light the background. That could work. Can you change the power of the lights?


  • #11
    Auldfella
    Closed Accounts Posts: 11 ✭Auldfella


    Can't change the power of the lights I'm afraid. Are you saying that we should put the boom light directly behind the subject & at ceiling height pointing down at the backdrop? If so this would bring me back to the original problem as the boom light itself would be in the photograph due to the low ceiling.


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  • #12
    kelly1
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 5,026 ✭✭✭kelly1


    Auldfella wrote: »
    Can't change the power of the lights I'm afraid. Are you saying that we should put the boom light directly behind the subject & at ceiling height pointing down at the backdrop? If so this would bring me back to the original problem as the boom light itself would be in the photograph due to the low ceiling.
    OK, I see. Can you move it off to one side and still point it at the middle of the backdrop?


  • #13
    Auldfella
    Closed Accounts Posts: 11 ✭Auldfella


    Yep, that shouldn't be a problem, do you think that should work?


  • #14
    kelly1
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 5,026 ✭✭✭kelly1


    Auldfella wrote: »
    Yep, that shouldn't be a problem, do you think that should work?
    you'll only find out when you try it. I'd also recommend using custom white balance and shoot raw. Do you know how to use CWB?


  • #15
    Auldfella
    Closed Accounts Posts: 11 ✭Auldfella


    kelly1 wrote: »
    you'll only find out when you try it. I'd also recommend using custom white balance and shoot raw. Do you know how to use CWB?

    Nope, but I'll do a bit of experimenting if you suggest. Are there any tutorial web sites that you'd recommend?


  • #16
    kelly1
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 5,026 ✭✭✭kelly1


    Auldfella wrote: »
    Nope, but I'll do a bit of experimenting if you suggest. Are there any tutorial web sites that you'd recommend?

    It's simple really. You take a photo of a white page which is lit by your lights and with that photo selected, go into the menu system and select custom white balance and press the set button. This will make you whites pure white and remove any colour cast from the lights.


  • #17
    Ballyman
    Banned (with Prison Access) Posts: 1,822 ✭✭✭Ballyman


    Auldfella wrote: »
    Nope, but I'll do a bit of experimenting if you suggest. Are there any tutorial web sites that you'd recommend?

    If I were you I would pay a photographer to come along for a few hours and he could go through it with you and show you how to set up the lights etc and you could then have a crack at it yourself in future.

    It will take you a long time to do it yourself without any help as your experience level seems to be pretty low at this kind of stuff?

    If you want, you can PM me your details and I can go through some of it with you.


  • #18
    Auldfella
    Closed Accounts Posts: 11 ✭Auldfella


    kelly1 wrote: »
    It's simple really. You take a photo of a white page which is lit by your lights and with that photo selected, go into the menu system and select custom white balance and press the set button. This will make you whites pure white and remove any colour cast from the lights.

    That sounds pretty straightforward, I'll give that a go and let you know how I get on, thanks for all your help so far.:)


  • #19
    Auldfella
    Closed Accounts Posts: 11 ✭Auldfella


    Ballyman wrote: »
    If I were you I would pay a photographer to come along for a few hours and he could go through it with you and show you how to set up the lights etc and you could then have a crack at it yourself in future.

    It will take you a long time to do it yourself without any help as your experience level seems to be pretty low at this kind of stuff?

    If you want, you can PM me your details and I can go through some of it with you.

    I think we'll probably end up doing that Ballyman. We're just like a man who doesn't know where he's going but refuses to ask directions, eventually I'm going to give in and roll down the window!:)

    Thanks for your offer of help, I'll take you up on that and get in touch with you soon.


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