- Oct 29, 2004
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I've noticed a lot of amateur and a few pros on this site exchanging info. I thought I'd start a thread on ways to get excellent results without having to buy expensive accessories.
Here are a few things I do when shooting for myself.
1. Instead of spendng $60 for a reflector to bounce light onto a subject, cover one side a piece of 3'X3' stiff pure white cardboard or foam board (round shape preferred, but a rectangle will do) with the matte side of a sheet of heavily crinkled tin foil. It will bounce diffused light onto your subject. Use the silver side for a specular look, use the white side for a softer white light. Cost - $2.00
2. Cover your lens front with a stretched piece of nylon pantyhose (single ply) or material with large, loose structure and thin fibers. Use white or black colors. This is a great softening filter, and once you find what works, it can save you $35-$100 over the cost of a softening filter if you are still shooting film. Cost - nothing, worn out hose has plenty of usable space left.
3. Those el cheapo tin shop lights you get at home centers with the silver metal shades work great for black & white photography. Shine them through a soft white material (thin white sheet works) onto your subject to cut down on the harsh light. Experiment. Be very careful - those lights get hot and there is some risk of fire if the bulbs touch something flammable. Cost - I've seen the incadescent models for $8 each, the brighter (and much hotter) halogens run about $20 each.
Anyway, what do you do? I have a ton of expensive stuff I bring on the job because this is my profession (sometimes the image created by expensive stuff is part of a strategy to boost your credibility), but I like kicking around with homemade stuff whenver I get the chance.
Here are a few things I do when shooting for myself.
1. Instead of spendng $60 for a reflector to bounce light onto a subject, cover one side a piece of 3'X3' stiff pure white cardboard or foam board (round shape preferred, but a rectangle will do) with the matte side of a sheet of heavily crinkled tin foil. It will bounce diffused light onto your subject. Use the silver side for a specular look, use the white side for a softer white light. Cost - $2.00
2. Cover your lens front with a stretched piece of nylon pantyhose (single ply) or material with large, loose structure and thin fibers. Use white or black colors. This is a great softening filter, and once you find what works, it can save you $35-$100 over the cost of a softening filter if you are still shooting film. Cost - nothing, worn out hose has plenty of usable space left.
3. Those el cheapo tin shop lights you get at home centers with the silver metal shades work great for black & white photography. Shine them through a soft white material (thin white sheet works) onto your subject to cut down on the harsh light. Experiment. Be very careful - those lights get hot and there is some risk of fire if the bulbs touch something flammable. Cost - I've seen the incadescent models for $8 each, the brighter (and much hotter) halogens run about $20 each.
Anyway, what do you do? I have a ton of expensive stuff I bring on the job because this is my profession (sometimes the image created by expensive stuff is part of a strategy to boost your credibility), but I like kicking around with homemade stuff whenver I get the chance.
