Home Studio

A few people have been asking me about my home studio set-up, I've written a few emails, so I'm going to post this instead, save me time in the future! Further questions of course more than welcome.

Currently I don't have a studio, but below is what I had, and can be very easily be set up again with the right space. This was the master bedroom of my apartment (before rent went up and I lost it!) so wasn't a massive room, a bit longer would have been nice, but it worked. I have set it up now and then for shoots where the location and space allows.

MAIN GEAR

• 2x Elinchrom D-Lite4 400Ws 
• Lastolite HiLite 7" x 6"

EXTRA GEAR

• Lastolite HiLite Bottletop Cover With Train 6`x7` - Black
• Interfit Stellar Flood Light - 500 Watts (& Floor Stand)
• Nikon Speedlight SB-800 (with snoots, honeycombs etc.)
• Various folding reflectors
• Homemade reflectors
• Whiteboards 
• Whiteboards covered in emergency blankets

The setup is great, I couldn't ask for more in my needs for a studio, it also all collapses down making in extremely portable and storable. The D-Lite pack down in to a couple of cases, both of which I put in a larger case. The HiLite is like one of those pop up tents so also folds down nicely.

Sample shots

With the white train

With home made background

DIY accessories
I picked up some cheap white boards in a DIY store which are great for adding some extra bounce from the sides. I do a lot of camping and fishing, so when tidying up my gear bag I realised an emergency blanket was perfect for wrapping around one the white boards. It results in a very nice and warm reflector. I also keep one in the camera bag for lighting and real emergencies when shooting outdoors! They only cost a few euro so well worth getting a few.

Emergency blanket as a dress!

You can get emergency blankets here:

• Silver Blanket
• Gold Blanket