Studio lighting for Digital Images for Online Clothing Store

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mamchat

Member
We are an online designer clothing business and take our own digital photos of both half and full body shots. We are not professional photographers and are learning as much as we can as we go. Our studio is 12 x 16. We were first using Novotron halogen lights (two lamps, each w/one 500 W and one 250W) per a local recommendation. We hate this setup, as the lamps really heat up the room, with dark and shadowed images, with a brownish yellow tint. We are looking at fluorescent continuous cool lights, but are confused as to what we actually need for clear photos with lighting that is not too harsh with depth behind the model. We have been told that two soft boxes with 1-2 fill lights with an umbrella and barn door for the back lights will do. One pro tells us 1600W system will do, while another says we need 3000W. And what brand & where to buy? Our budget is only $600-700. We only shoot 2-3 days per month.
Any advice and information you can give us will be most helpful. Also, one of our models has dark black skin and any advice you can give for shooting black skin as compared to our fairer Caucasian models will be appreciated.
 
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Something about black text on a gray background is causing an ocular meltdown with me, can't really focus on the post. Could be a lighting issue or my eyes are getting way old:)
 
Well the first thing that I would tell you is to ditch the hot lights and look into some studio strobes. This would allow you to get more light output , not having to worry about tripping the breaker and be much safer in the long run.

In regards to shooting dark black skin versus lighter skin I would say just adjust exposure accordingly and don't put them in all white outfits.

What type of camera are you using to take these photos ? What color is the backdrop that you are using ? How is your ability with post processing of the images ?
 
mamchat I bought this set from Steve Keaser on ebay and I love this set of cool lights for the price of $629. It has spring loaded stands and the quality is fine. I have used mine for 1.5 years with no problems at all. Each light has six lights and are controled by three switches that shut off two at a time. It puts out 2100 watts of light which should be fine for what you need. There very bright even with the softboxes. Steve will sell you a extra light with softbox separately if you need it, but you need to ask to talk to him to do this. I got a couple of extra sandbags thrown in as well. I find these lights fine for for all skin colors and they are daylight 5100K temperature lights. If your going to screen them then you should use green screen for the darker models. How you back light the darker models will help with the key and there are plenty of articles on google that you can read about this process. Pixelcorps or dvgarage.com has plugings for photoshop and final cut pro and after effects. There are lots of companies that make plugins for Photoshop to due this.

http://cgi.ebay.com/CONTINUOUS-LIGH...photoQQcmdZViewItemQQ_trksidZp1742.m153.l1262

Good Luck
 
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Mino said:
Something about black text on a gray background is causing an ocular meltdown with me, can't really focus on the post. Could be a lighting issue or my eyes are getting way old:)
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Sorry about that! You are right, it is hard on the eyes! I changed the text to white. Thank you!
 
SilverWolf said:
Well the first thing that I would tell you is to ditch the hot lights and look into some studio strobes. This would allow you to get more light output , not having to worry about tripping the breaker and be much safer in the long run.

In regards to shooting dark black skin versus lighter skin I would say just adjust exposure accordingly and don't put them in all white outfits.

What type of camera are you using to take these photos ? What color is the backdrop that you are using ? How is your ability with post processing of the images ?
Click to expand...


We are using a Canon Rebel XTi, but are looking to get another camera. Any recommendations? Our backdrop is paper in a soft white and another in medium gray. We are using adobe photoshop for editing
We appreciate your reply
 
Thanks for helping my eyes out:) I tend to agree with SilverWolf and hope he's right as I'm investing in a couple of strobes very soon. If nothing else, your studio would remain cooler. You would also have a very portable system allowing you to shoot outside the studio. Your budget though may dictate the direction you take here. I have no experience shooting dark skin but again SilverWolf seems to have the right idea IMO.
 
If you are using a Rebel XTi you should be fine. That camera has all of the manual controls that you would need to get great images. In regards to studio strobes I suggest Alienbee strobes. All the photos on my website www.antarhanif.com were done with these lights. If you are going to get a softbox I recommend Photoflex. You can find some really good deals on Ebay. Just remember to buy the speedring from the Alienbee website for the softbox. If you want to go another route you can get an umbrella instead. If you do this get at least the 48inch umbrella
 
I don't know how much you are looking to spend, but you could do a lot with a few cheap Strobist light kits. In a controlled area they would produce more than enough light to shoot what you are looking for.

MPEX sells these things in kits. It might be what your are looking for.
 
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