How do you make a home-made photoshoot look professional?

Question

Does anybody know how to make a photoshoot at home look professional? I'm thinking black sheets and lights..? I don't know, help please!

Answer 1

Backdrop and lighting are a great start.

I would stay away from 110 or small digital.

A great fusion of subject, lighting, format, and composition define "professional". It can be done at home.

Concentrate mostly on composition and lighting; get those elements right, and any picture, regardless of hardware, will look "Pro".

Answer 2

I'm assuming you mean a portrait or a tabletop shoot -- anything else is well beyond what you can do in the average home.

Here's a cheap but effective home portrait studio:

- Hang a sheet on the wall (well behind the subject so it'll be blurry)

- Buy a couple of pieces of white foamcore (art supply store) to use as reflectors (put aluminum foil on them for even more reflection)

- Put a bounce-head flash on your camera and set it to bounce light off the ceiling

- Place the reflectors to give the effect you want. You can also bounce light off them

- Another alternative is to buy a couple of 250-watt shop lamps, but I find they generate far too much heat and require color correction

For tabletop, your best bet is to buy a Light Tent. They cost a bit but they'll solve all your lighting worries.

Hope this helps.

Answer 3

I would tell you that all relies in light and your personal eye, most of all.
It does not matter which background or camera you have. Surely they make a positive addition to the beauty of a shot, but you can take amazing pictures even with an old Holga, and natural light. All that matters is to get the moods of the situations, and to use the "ingredients" (camera, natural light, no background maybe) you have wisely. You will succeed.
Hope I was helpful.

Answer 4

Because in professional photos they photoshop and edit it a whole bunch. The other one was probably not photoshopped or only a little bit. I think she is pretty but she is way to over rated in my oppionion. There are tons of girls out there that have blue or green eyes with dark hair. Its not rare really anymore. Thats the only reason she became famous and i think its kinda dumb.

Answer 5

Put a white cardboard or paper in the background. You can also put a cloth on it, I gather you might not have a DSLR or external flash so light up the background with 1 or 2 lights, then front with 1 light (table lamp, etc can do), then shoot with flash.

Answer 6

Here's a good lighting guide:
http://www.efplighting.com/

Quick pointers: use natural sunlight when possible (you can control it with filters). Reflectors can be used to cut down on costly lighting. For quick portraits even a simple piece of white paper or a polystyrene sheet under your chin (not directly!) can enhance lighting.
De-focus the background by standing about five feet away from it and having the camera another 8-10 feet from you. When the camera focuses on you it will defocus the background and highlight you (you need manual focus for this).

Answer 7

Tripod, lights, flash/s. Clean backgrounds, correct focal lenghts. A sound knowledge of photography and portraiture. Hire a professional is best - they know what they are doing.

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