Photo Lights

[furrycelt]

I am a photographer (and throughout my 20's I was a professional stage lighting designer), so you guys feel free to ask me anything.

Those links are good. You don't have to spend alot of money (or any) to get good lighting for photography. The important thing to remember about making light hard or soft is the "size" of the light source (not brightness, how it is focused, distance, type, etc.). A bank of fluorescent tubes would have a size of 8 square-feet, while a standard type A light bulb has a size of 3 square-inches (approximately). The light bulb will give much harsher shadows and reflections then the 8 square-foot source. You can also take a "small" light source and bounce the light off of a surface to increase its "size". From a photographer's point-of-view the reflector is now the light source.

Also note that the light can become too soft and the details of the subject will lose definition. The best thing is to have a mix of hard and soft light for most subjects.

-ian

[Southern Breeze]

Thanks for the info. I take around 250-300 pics a week at work for referance. (I'm a landscape designer).When it come to using lights and other paraphernalia I'm a beginner.

[arrogcow]

Easiest thing to do to get a large source of light is go to Target and buy a couple of white Chinese lanterns. The lantern is (or was) $5.00 and $5.00 for the light socket for a 12" lantern. Great for soft sources of light. I use larger ones (18"- 30") on professional film and video shoots all the time.

Adam

[pdcorlis]

Looks like you've had plenty of good advice here - but I thought I'd throw my two cents worth in as a photography teacher. Here's another link:

http://www.pbase.com/wlhuber/light_box_light_tent

Good Luck!

[Southern Breeze]

Looks like you've had plenty of good advice here - but I thought I'd throw my two cents worth in as a photography teacher. Here's another link:

http://www.pbase.com/wlhuber/light_box_light_tent

Good Luck!

Thanks for the link. Any and all tips, tricks and advice are apreciated.

[Mr. Kilt]

Cool links, guys! I've been thinking about building something for awhile now.

[Freelander Sporrano]

Good Idea this one I'm going to have a try.Thanks