Studio photography
Albert Pedrosa
Photo Mania
RECENTLY, after a long absence in a studio, I had the chance to assemble my light stands and bring to life my light modifiers. Genesis Raña of UVNS asked me to shoot their ad for their fashion immersion course. The last time I was shooting in a studio was probably a year ago. It felt good to be back.
One of the things I love most when shooting in a studio is the level of comfort. Free from any weather condition being in an air-conditioned room, you can get as
Makeup: Jessie Glova
Admodels: Stylefirm
Locale: UVNS
OC – obsessive compulsive – as you can be with your lights. Everything can be controlled.
However, one of the challenges when shooting in a studio is set design. This means that the backdrop, props and all the elements that are included in the set must be brought in. This would mean handling and transporting all the hardwares. You also need to consider that you have to bring them all back after the shoot.
In spite of all the disadvantages when shooting in a studio, I’d still prefer to do my shots inside a studio. Even if I have to bring in tons of equipment. Although there will come a time when it can be boring, it’s all a challenge of creativity.
When learning studio lighting, it’s important to understand how light behaves. It can be hard, soft, tinted, warm or the cold kind of light. Modifiers are used to alter the quality of light coming from a strobe. It all depends on how you want the image to come out.
It takes a lot of testing and practice to get a sense of how a light differs from another. For example, in my case, it took more than a year of experience to differentiate the quality of light between a beauty dish and a softbox. No matter how many explanations I get from other photographers and from the net, experience will be the best teacher.
Every time I get into a studio with all the lights that I have, it always seems that it’s never enough. The learning never ceases. The more you do it, the more lighting challenges you. Sometimes an inch of movement in your lighting will make or break the shot. Note that lighting is just one area to master – there’s also the handling of the model and the posing that needs to be considered.
Keep on shooting everyone! photomania.sunstar@gmail.com / www.grp.ph/forum
