Set Up A Photography Studio With Equipment - On A Budget

Vinyl is the classic background material - here you will learn about different vinyl options and their pros and cons, to help you decide what kind of background you need. Do you want to hear about our biggest mistake? These tips will help you avoid wasting money on the wrong type of vinyl.

We're not done with backgrounds yet! There are many other types of backgrounds such as pop-ups, faux flooring and gel options that will give your images an extra dimension. 

German efficiency at its best! Learn everything you need to know about organizing your studio and keeping things tidy. Also, you will get to know about a wide range of prop ideas to differentiate your photoshoots from the everyday 'boring studio photography'.

Lighting is critical to your success in the studio, and luckily there are many options to choose from. In this lecture you will learn about the different lighting options that are available to you for your studio project. Only have a small budget? No problem! You will get to know brand options that are suitable for any wallet such as Yongnuo, Paul C Buff. And if you want to invest more, we have you covered with higher end brands as well.

If you come from natural light photography, don't let the idea of studio strobe scare you away. If you want to know what all those buttons and knobs are, Matt shows you how to operate a Bowens Gemini studio strobe, and how a softbox attaches to it. The principles apply to any type of strobe.

Your studio lights need to be the main source of light so you can fully control the outcome of the shot. How? You will learn in this lecture all about light metering, why to shoot RAW, and how to balance against the ambient light that exists in your room (if any). This section is a walk through of different lighting options with the resulting images shown on screen to illustrate the examples.

You can achieve a lot of great results with just one light. Here Sandy explains how the light can be positioned versus the direction in which the subject faces, and the different effects it produces: short lighting vs broad lighting.

More options with just the one light: feathering and specularity, and how to change the light intensity on your background using the inverse square law principle.

The beauty dish is an oft misunderstood modifier that can help produce outstanding images when used correctly. In this lecture Sandy explains the beauty dish and how it works with a honeycomb grid and 'shower cap' diffuser.

Sandy's favorite modifier! Here you will learn how this narrow softbox can help produce dramatic images that will make your portfolio stand out from the crowd.

In the previous examples a small square softbox was used. Here you will learn why a large softbox can be a great addition to your studio.

The final example with just one light will take you through 'hard light' - using the kit reflector dish and the effect it creates on the subject's face.

Now that you have learned about what you can do with one studio light, you are ready to experiment with the second or 'fill' light. Sandy covers what to avoid at all costs and how catchlights in the subject's eye should be positioned in the most flattering way.

Ever wanted to understand the typical studio set up? Here you will learn all about 3 point lighting.

A quick fast forward look at how to mount a large vinyl background onto the stand.

Putting it all together with 4 lights - here you will learn how to achieve the famous 'high key' effect with a white background.

Bonus hack - if you only have two lights and one big softbox, you can still get a high key effect for headshots!

You don't necessarily need a huge space to create a photography studio. This lecture is a deep dive into the requirements of the room itself to help you weigh the options: size, ceiling height, type of floor, access... which is most important? 

You will learn how you can create a pros/cons list to evaluate the best place to create your photography studio. We will help you identify your needs so you can avoid the dreaded feeling of 'buyer's remorse'.

No studio is complete without clamps, duck tape and a selection of other useful items - if you want to find out how to keep the studio running smoothly, this video is essential.

Well done, you made it! Now you are ready to put all this knowledge into action and get your studio up and running.