Goin' Ghetto -- Pray for Me!

[Wynder]

Well, after the frustration of photographing kids in the house with less than desirable lighting (e.g. small, antsy children + slow shutter speeds = blurry pictures), I decided to work myself up ghetto studio lighting on a budget.

So, I hit Lowes last night. I picked up a bag of concrete (wait for it), some empty paint cans and two 8' lengths of 1"x2" wood. I mixed the concrete and poured it into three of the empty paint cans. I cut one piece of wood down to about 7' and stuck that into the first paint can. I cut the other down 5' and stuck that in can number two. I took the two remnants and placed those in the third can of concrete. When these cure, they'll act as my light stands.

Also at Lowes, I picked up one 10 1/2" reflector clamp light and two 8 1/2" reflector clamp lights to act as main/key and fill lights. I purchased a pack of Compact Florescent light bulbs measured at 6500K (couldn't find 5500K) and tested them. My initial thoughts were that the light was blueish and on the harsh side, so when I get home tonight, I'm going to paint the inside of the reflector dishes with white primer. I do have a 22" bounce/diffuser to help with fill, feathering and diffusion.

I'll probably also purchase a bit of white muslin or other pure white material to clamp onto the reflector and further diffuse the light. A couple of extension cords and a powerstrip later and I think I'll be in good shape!

Any thoughts, warnings, suggestions or criticisms?

[xxpinballxx]

I've done the same thing as far as using these clamp style lamps.....
I also found a couple clear bowl lids that fit the diameter. Then got me some colored tissue paper to act like gels to create different colored lighting.
worked great and saved me hundreds cause i had the reflector lamps and just needed bulbs instead of a complete lighting set.

[KodiakStar]

I have one, but didn't think of painting the inside white. That will be my next task. Haven't really used it much, but made a "ringlight" cover for it using an disposable alumn pan, can see the result in this shot sorta..

[seansheridan]

This works pretty good, for the amount of money spent! I was playing around with the same lights, just last night. Though mine are the smaller 6" lights. I might have to make a run and pick up some of the larger ones today. Make sure you set the WB on your camera to 6500 K and things won't look so blue, except to your eye.

"Ghetto" Butterfly lighting. 1 high, 1 low. No Diffusion

[Wynder]

Originally Posted by seansheridan

This works pretty good, for the amount of money spent! I was playing around with the same lights, just last night. Though mine are the smaller 6" lights. I might have to make a run and pick up some of the larger ones today. Make sure you set the WB on your camera to 6500 K and things won't look so blue, except to your eye.

"Ghetto" Butterfly lighting. 1 high, 1 low. No Diffusion

When I can, I always try to set a custom white balance -- I also shoot in RAW. So, break it down for the newbie -- what's "Butterfly Lighting"?

[seansheridan]

As is fit for this thread topic, I think that I use the term Butterfly lighting in the most "Ghetto" way possible. The idea is that your main(key) light is directly in front of your subject, above your camera. This creates a "flattering" shadow below the face, in line with the nose. You can also fill in this shadow with a reflector or another light, which I did. Can't wait to see how your shots come out!