The Nikon D7000 is a really versatile camera, and the D7100 is going to be even better. So many new owners are going to rush off to their studio as soon as they have opened the box, to try their new camera out. Of course, if you are shooting still-life or portraiture, it is usually best to shoot in natural light and, if that isn't possible, perhaps with some fill-in from the pop-up flash, or a single flash gun fired remotely. Once you are familiar with your equipment you can get some superb results with surprisingly little supporting gadgetry. But if you want to take it a stage further, how should you set up a home studio? 
If you are setting up your studio at home, the ideal scenario is to have a room specifically put aside for your photography. It should have plenty of space, a high ceiling and be at least 5 meters long. Paint the walls a color that doesn't reflect too much - black is ideal, but if you have to share the room, then gray would be OK. Cover the windows with blackout material to ensure that the light can't get in and also cover the doors to prevent further contamination. Ideally you only want to have the light that is under your control to be effecting your images. You will also need a good supply of electrical sockets.
Controlling the light is one of the primary requirements for every photographer. Once you have excluded all other sources, you can concentrate on how you are going to illuminate your subject. There are two kinds of studio lighting systems - continuous or strobe. Continuous lights come in two flavors - tungsten and fluorescent. Tungsten lights are also known as 'hot lights' as they do give out a lot of heat, which can be a problem if your subject has to sit under them for any length of time. they also give of a warm, reddish glow that is very complimentary to skin tones and so tends to look like natural light.
Fluorescent lights have a more blueish tinge and give the sort of light most associated with pack shots or realistic still lifes. They tend not to emit so much heat as the tungstens. Of course, any light can be corrected with white balance, but ideally you want to work with the lighting rather than trying to compensate against it in all the time. Setting white balance is another thing to think about and sooner or later you will forget to do it and find yourself trying to photoshop it in.
The main benefit of continuous lighting is that you can easily see how it affects the subject as you set it up. This means that there are fewer surprises through the viewfinder and it allows you to worry about content and composition rather than wondering if the flash just went off or not. However, it isn't really compatible with action shots, where the subject may be moving around. And they do give off quite a bit of heat. It is most appropriate for portrait and still-life photography - and also video.
Strobe lighting can offer much more flexibility. You can adjust the intensity of your light to suit your needs, which means that you have more control over your shutter speeds. However, because of the blast that comes out of the strobes, they do take a short time to recharge, which can be frustrating.
If you are using two lights, I would suggest you use a soft box as the main light and the other light for the background. As the name suggests, the light from the soft box is less harsh and more even. It would be a wise investment to get some barn doors for the second light to help target the light from it more effectively. Set up your trigger on the front light and ensure that you have a trigger on both lights so that they both fire at the same time. Most decent lighting systems have built in slaves these days. Keep the soft box at least 2 meters away from the subject so that you keep the detail, and about 1 meter from the background so that the light spreads evenly.
I would be shooting at ISO 200, 125/ f8. It is a great starting point as you will get good graduation from lower ISO and F8 is about the optimum aperture for most lenses. If you put the light at 45 degrees angle to the subject you will get good shadow detail on the face but always be careful where the shadow falls and make sure it doesn't go across the nose as this is very unflattering. If this is happening bring the light back towards you (and the camera) and it will go away. Always go for the main types of shot first, full length then half length and head and shoulders, you can start to vary your shots once you get into the shoot. Having your subject standing square to the camera is often not very flattering, just a slight angle tends to work better. When you get more aquainted and confident with your set up then you can start to add more lights, adding a hair light/ backlight/ and using a 3 to 1 lighting ratio will be the next step for you.
If you are setting up your studio at home, the ideal scenario is to have a room specifically put aside for your photography. It should have plenty of space, a high ceiling and be at least 5 meters long. Paint the walls a color that doesn't reflect too much - black is ideal, but if you have to share the room, then gray would be OK. Cover the windows with blackout material to ensure that the light can't get in and also cover the doors to prevent further contamination. Ideally you only want to have the light that is under your control to be effecting your images. You will also need a good supply of electrical sockets.
Controlling the light is one of the primary requirements for every photographer. Once you have excluded all other sources, you can concentrate on how you are going to illuminate your subject. There are two kinds of studio lighting systems - continuous or strobe. Continuous lights come in two flavors - tungsten and fluorescent. Tungsten lights are also known as 'hot lights' as they do give out a lot of heat, which can be a problem if your subject has to sit under them for any length of time. they also give of a warm, reddish glow that is very complimentary to skin tones and so tends to look like natural light.
Fluorescent lights have a more blueish tinge and give the sort of light most associated with pack shots or realistic still lifes. They tend not to emit so much heat as the tungstens. Of course, any light can be corrected with white balance, but ideally you want to work with the lighting rather than trying to compensate against it in all the time. Setting white balance is another thing to think about and sooner or later you will forget to do it and find yourself trying to photoshop it in.
The main benefit of continuous lighting is that you can easily see how it affects the subject as you set it up. This means that there are fewer surprises through the viewfinder and it allows you to worry about content and composition rather than wondering if the flash just went off or not. However, it isn't really compatible with action shots, where the subject may be moving around. And they do give off quite a bit of heat. It is most appropriate for portrait and still-life photography - and also video.
Strobe lighting can offer much more flexibility. You can adjust the intensity of your light to suit your needs, which means that you have more control over your shutter speeds. However, because of the blast that comes out of the strobes, they do take a short time to recharge, which can be frustrating.
If you are using two lights, I would suggest you use a soft box as the main light and the other light for the background. As the name suggests, the light from the soft box is less harsh and more even. It would be a wise investment to get some barn doors for the second light to help target the light from it more effectively. Set up your trigger on the front light and ensure that you have a trigger on both lights so that they both fire at the same time. Most decent lighting systems have built in slaves these days. Keep the soft box at least 2 meters away from the subject so that you keep the detail, and about 1 meter from the background so that the light spreads evenly.
I would be shooting at ISO 200, 125/ f8. It is a great starting point as you will get good graduation from lower ISO and F8 is about the optimum aperture for most lenses. If you put the light at 45 degrees angle to the subject you will get good shadow detail on the face but always be careful where the shadow falls and make sure it doesn't go across the nose as this is very unflattering. If this is happening bring the light back towards you (and the camera) and it will go away. Always go for the main types of shot first, full length then half length and head and shoulders, you can start to vary your shots once you get into the shoot. Having your subject standing square to the camera is often not very flattering, just a slight angle tends to work better. When you get more aquainted and confident with your set up then you can start to add more lights, adding a hair light/ backlight/ and using a 3 to 1 lighting ratio will be the next step for you.
About the Author:
Jeremy Bayston has worked in the photographic industry for over twenty years. He has a particular interest in digital cameras and photography. Learn more about the new Nikon D7100 and its release date from his website. Regularly updated with news and advice, it can help you get better pictures from your D7100.
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