Studio Lighting Workshop

I went for a $55 Basic Studio Lightings Introduction Workshop today.

It was all the way at Geylang. Took me 1 h 15 min to get there in the morning. It struck me that I could hop on the Circle Line when the MRT voice-over announced,"Bishan". I got out of the train, had a quick glance at the clock and saw that it was about 9.05am. I thought I would be there at 9.30am. I was even picturing how early I was at the studio and feeling so pleased with myself for being an early bird.

However, when I reached Aljunied, I was shocked to read the time on the clock that it was already 9.40am! And I had just hit the platform!

I had to ask for the direction to the correct bus-stop from the MRT staff.

Then, I alighted a stop early, upon seeing a 7-eleven, since the workshop confirmation email mentioned that I should alight at the stop where there is a 7-eleven and Watson's store.

It turned out that there were quite a few 7-elevens at that stretch of road. So I had to walk in to the nearest 7-eleven to ask if there was a Watson's around.

The staff confirmed that it was 'further down', so I had to take another bus, panicking all the time while waiting for it.

When I finally alighted at my desired stop, I went round those shophouses trying to look for the studio.

My only consolation was I managed to find the studio on the dot!

It was quite a dingy studio, almost like an attic - it really had an attic roof structure, very high ceiling.

However, the session was rather fruitful although I must say I already knew some of the things the guy mentioned since I have been reading up on lighting stuff diligently. The 2 or 3 guys running the studio were very helpful. It was supposed to be a 3-hour workshop but they allowed us to stay back to make loads of enquiries ie. what kinda softbox to buy (the dimension, the brand), what kinda strobes to buy (how many watts for children photography, full-length portraiture, the reliable brands), whether Elinchrom D-Lite series is worth the bucks, what are the alternative cheaper strobes etc.

After all the talk, the studio guys are prepping the place for a practical session

The hair lights

The backlight

Trainees trying out the light meter and adjusting the strobe light knob to suit the metering

Adjusting the softbox - "The subject must stand in the centre of the softbox."

High key with pure white background

High key with played-down white background

Mid-key for a moody feel

Changing the set to a low key setting

"The suit blends into the background."

The problem was solved by using a honeycomb to light up the background

The softbox was shifted in such a way to light up the guy's face on one side only, supposedly for a 'Terminator' feel, but I didn't fancy it.
Overall, I thought the workshop was quite educational. I was glad I didn't buy any lightings without going for a workshop as the lighting kit I was eyeing was, according to the workshop guy, not as great as people make out to be.

At least now I know the dimension and brand of the softbox I want to get ie. 80 x 120cm Photoflex, and 600 watt strobe/s.

I feel that I still have some things to read up on and make comparisons on the product and prices before I make up my mind to invest in a set of system. Already, I am starting to wonder if Nikon had been a good choice after all. I notice that most professional photographers use a Canon, and 5D at that. However, I need to remind myself that the weight was the first thing that mattered to me, and it still matters to me now. D90 was THE camera for me because of its lightweight. Even if I want to change the system, I should wait till I really have a business up and running before I do just that.

I hope that my dream home studio will really come true soon.