New to Lighting

[Jayel]

As the title says, I'm new to lighting. I'm finally getting comfortable with my camera (Nikon D60, built-in-flash) and I want to start with portraits. I have a backdrop stand with a white backdrop, and 2 small 50-watt lights, the kind you could use for product photography.

Could anyone give me a little advise on what inexpensive lighting equipment that I can use? Any advice will be greatly appreciated.

Also, I was thinking of getting a flash unit that looks pretty decent.
(Rokinon iTTL Nikon-compatible Power Zoom Flash)

Does anyone know if this unit is any good?

Thanks again...

Jayel

[Jayel]

wow... two weeks, not one response.

My fault for expecting to be treated like everyone else.

goodbye forever.

[i speak in math]

Originally Posted by Jayel

wow... two weeks, not one response.

My fault for expecting to be treated like everyone else.

goodbye forever.

never saw your post originally but it doesn't help that there is a ton of stuff to go over when talking about lighting. I usually suggest going through the strobist lighting 101 and 102 series and actually try all the lessons as you read them.

Originally Posted by Jayel

As the title says, I'm new to lighting. I'm finally getting comfortable with my camera (Nikon D60, built-in-flash) and I want to start with portraits. I have a backdrop stand with a white backdrop, and 2 small 50-watt lights, the kind you could use for product photography.

Could anyone give me a little advise on what inexpensive lighting equipment that I can use? Any advice will be greatly appreciated.

Also, I was thinking of getting a flash unit that looks pretty decent.
(Rokinon iTTL Nikon-compatible Power Zoom Flash)

Does anyone know if this unit is any good?

Thanks again...

Jayel

Some problems with what you describe here: 2 50 watt lights won't do anything, especially if you are using the pop-up flash. Not only will they not put out much light at all (which will require a long exposure, not good for portraits) but they will likely be a different color than your flash, leading to unfixable color balance issues.

You want to do portraits? You're gonna need some light, be it a speedlight ala strobist, or a studio light, like an alienbee. You'll probably need 2 or even 3 lights total, one for key, one for fill and one to separate the hair from the background. You're gonna need a light stand to hold them up. You're gonna need something to modify the light, softbox for soft even light or reflective umbrella for soft but contrasty light, etc...You'll probably want to trigger them wirelessly so you'll want some pocket wizards, cactus triggers v5 or yonguo rf-603's.

More important than any of that is the knowledge of how light works. How to light things and what lighting style works with each subjects face or body. How to pose the model. An intricate knowledge of your camera gear and lighting gear to make changes quickly and on the fly.

Basically, your question was extremely vague. No one knew what to say because lighting is a huge can of worms.

[zona5101]

Originally Posted by Jayel

wow... two weeks, not one response.

My fault for expecting to be treated like everyone else.

goodbye forever.

never saw the original, pages fill up pretty quickly. sometimes posts get to the 2nd or 3rd page in a blink and are buried. But if your photography is anywhere near as good as your drama, you'll be just fine.