Lighting help

[samutsim]

Hello,
I am looking for some ideas and tips for lighting. I am starting out with photography and don't own any studio equipment and don't plan to start a business soon, so don't plan on buying any anytime soon.
I volunteer at a local animal shelter and help take photos of the animals to help them get adopted. The shelter wanted to do some studio-esque shots for the dogs and I wanted to help them out since they don't have the finances to hire a professional.
We have an outdoor area that we are planning to use, have a backdrop and some natural lighting. I was planning on making two softboxes with Home Depot lights and cardboard boxes and putting them on a stand or something, one on each side and maybe having a light in the back behind the backdrop to eliminate shadows.
Is there anything else that you would suggest? Am I thinking in the right direction or am I completely off?
I would highly appreciate any input I can get, but please be kind!

[zona5101]

home made softboxes out of cardboard used outside around animals... doesn't sound like a good mix. Why not use use the natural light and if you need a little fill use a reflector? Seems to me to be a fairly dynamic situation and I would want to go with the K.I.S.S. principle.

[metallion58]

This might help.

[samutsim]

Originally Posted by zona5101

home made softboxes out of cardboard used outside around animals... doesn't sound like a good mix. Why not use use the natural light and if you need a little fill use a reflector? Seems to me to be a fairly dynamic situation and I would want to go with the K.I.S.S. principle.

Thank you for taking the time out to respond. The K.I.S.S. principle sounds great. I might just invest in an external flash. I don't want to deliver subpar results. I know I can compose and process, but I am still not comfortable with studio lighting.

Originally Posted by metallion58

This might help.

Thank you! I appreciate the tip! I have seen this and this was my backup plan. I was hoping the softboxes would do it. But I think Bruce is right, it is too dynamic a situation to go with cardboard softboxes.