egarrard
01-20-2004, 04:42 PM
http://www.lonestardigital.com/affordable_lighting.htm
When it comes to any kind of photography, nothing is more important than good lighting. Lighting is "everything". It makes all the difference between a getting a good picture and a poor picture.
Most of the photography I do is candid, grabbing the spark of the moment, spontaneous by nature. So most of the time, I have to make do with the lighting situation at hand.
I don't do much studio type work requiring special lighting. But there are times I need more than available light or the camera's flash unit... an occasional family portrait, a product shot here and there for the website, that sort of thing.
When I walked through the lighting display area at Home Depot, the wheels & gears in my head started clicking.
http://www.lonestardigital.com/accessories/Home_Studio_Lights.jpg
Pictured above are 2 sets of stand-mounted 1000 watt quartz halogen work lights ($29.95 ea.) and 2 sets of floor model 500 watt quartz halogen work lights ($14.95 ea.) from Home Depot.
For a total of around $90, I have 3,000 watts of lights available for special photo projects.
The first thing I did was to remove the metal cages from the front of the glass covers over the lamps. (They throw out a grid like shadow pattern.)
If the brightness of 500 watts per bulb blows you away, price shop for 100 to 300 watt replacement bulbs. I've seen them as low as $4.00 each, and you can choose your own intensity for the job at hand.
They may not be perfect, but you can't beat the price...
If you don't have a camera that will do preset measured white balance, "incandescent" white balance is a workable option. If you leave your camera on auto white balance, the color balance might be off.
When it comes to any kind of photography, nothing is more important than good lighting. Lighting is "everything". It makes all the difference between a getting a good picture and a poor picture.
Most of the photography I do is candid, grabbing the spark of the moment, spontaneous by nature. So most of the time, I have to make do with the lighting situation at hand.
I don't do much studio type work requiring special lighting. But there are times I need more than available light or the camera's flash unit... an occasional family portrait, a product shot here and there for the website, that sort of thing.
When I walked through the lighting display area at Home Depot, the wheels & gears in my head started clicking.
http://www.lonestardigital.com/accessories/Home_Studio_Lights.jpg
Pictured above are 2 sets of stand-mounted 1000 watt quartz halogen work lights ($29.95 ea.) and 2 sets of floor model 500 watt quartz halogen work lights ($14.95 ea.) from Home Depot.
For a total of around $90, I have 3,000 watts of lights available for special photo projects.
The first thing I did was to remove the metal cages from the front of the glass covers over the lamps. (They throw out a grid like shadow pattern.)
If the brightness of 500 watts per bulb blows you away, price shop for 100 to 300 watt replacement bulbs. I've seen them as low as $4.00 each, and you can choose your own intensity for the job at hand.
They may not be perfect, but you can't beat the price...
If you don't have a camera that will do preset measured white balance, "incandescent" white balance is a workable option. If you leave your camera on auto white balance, the color balance might be off.