How to Create a Background Photo Studio at Home

A home-based photography studio doesn't need ornate equipment or sets.

Professional photography studios are swimming in expensive equipment. Many amateur photographers or aspiring professional photographers need to start small. For simple photography, such as a still life, a photographer does not need a lot of equipment. With a few cheap pieces of material, it is possible to set up a basic photography studio at home.

Things You'll Need

• Paper
• Tape
• Place with even light and shade

Instructions

1. Set up your studio in a place with shade and even lighting. This could be a corner of a well-lit room, but the ideal location is outdoors, such as under a tree or on a deck.

2. Hang a piece of solid-colored paper from a tree or a wall with duct tape or masking tape. The paper should extend to and cover part of the floor. Place an object on the paper to test whether its length is adequate.

3. Tape the paper to the cement, wood or tile on the ground once you have determined its length is adequate.

4. Create a lightbox if there is no adequate area inside or outside your home. Ask your local grocery or hardware store for spare boxes. Take the box home and cut squares out of three of the four sides, as well as the top. Those squares should leave only an inch-wide perimeter intact on each side. Do not cut a hole out of the bottom of the box.

5. Place your lightbox on a table or on the floor. Tape a piece of light-colored fabric over the only solid side of the box, making sure it extends over the box's "floor." Tape the fabric to the floor of the box, as well.

6. Place a desk lamp with a bright bulb over the hole in the top of the box to light it. Position your camera facing the backdrop, place the object you want to photograph inside the lightbox and start taking pictures.

Tips & Warnings

• If your photo studio is indoors, do a few test shots to check the lighting. Indoor lights and natural lights can create glare, which can ruin plenty of photographs. Block out the light from the windows by covering them with dark sheets. If that does not help, aim any adjustable indoor lights at the ceiling and let the light bounce off it.

• If the floor of your home-based photography studio is anything under than grass or dirt, cover it with a tarp if you have chosen to paint your background. This will ensure that no paint chips damage your floor.

References

• DIY Photography: Studio Lighting: Really Cheap Homemade DIY Studio: No Lighting Needed
• Digital Photography School; How to Make an Inexpensive Light Tent; Darren Rowse
• ForPhotography.com: Setting Up Your Home-Based Photography Studio