Cheap Lighting for portraits??

[acedrew]

I've done a lot of experimenting with Constant lights for portraits. I like them because there is no recharge time (important with kids esp), setup is a snap (because what you see is what you get), and they're actually cheaper than strobes. Main downside? indoor only, and you have to have power! I have 4 10" Clamp Lights available at Home Depot for $7-8 apiece. I use n:vision compact fluorescent bulbs, also available at Home Depot, they're 5500K, CRI in the low 90s, and $8 for 2 28Watt Bulbs(marketed as 100W incandescent replacements) The color quality is awesome and there is no flicker, even with shutter speeds of 1/8000! Also, they're approx them same color temp as your flash, so you can mix the two with no problems! Now, you can do a lot with just the clamp lights, but to really get fashion quality results, you need to build some form of diffuser for them. I've found that the white ripstop nylon that fabric stores sell as "kite fabric" works great! Just cut out some pieces and stick them on with rubber bands! They'll cut back about 1-2 stops of light, but the soft light they throw is great!! It make the light come from a 10" circle instead of just the size of the bulb.

I've also built some more advanced stuff with 48" fluorescent tubes, but the CFLs do such a great job, it's hard to recommend anything else!

These were taken with my lights, some with diffusers and some without.



Andrew Rodgers
Perfected Perspectives -- Photography by Andrew Rodgers