controlling light in an amateur hot-shoe flash basement studio: how?

[taner]

Hi there

 

First, I am going to need you to get over the 'cheesy' posing going on

in the sample shot below... I know, I am asking for too much. O.K.,

laugh it up!

 

Well, if you are done, here is the short version of my question:

 

Do you have any suggestions for controlling the light that spills

all-over the place with shoe-mounted flashes/umbrellas set-ups? Cheap,

or maybe, homemade alternatives for grids/honeycombs, snoots,

barndoors, etc? Any links? Thank You very much.

 

And here is a bit more info about what I want to do, and my set-up:

 

I have decided to branch into more studio-like, artificial lighting

photography in the basement studio I am trying to put together. I know

what I do not like - the 'craft' type, 'affordable', cliche-ridden

portrait photography (I know that these are big words coming from the

person who presented you the shot below... I am into a more dramatic,

more 'Greccoish' shall we say, look ( http://www.michaelgrecco.com/ ).

 

The problem? How does one begin experimenting with such a look if all

he/she has are the items listed below:

 

* Canon XT/350D (x1.6 crop frame DSLR), 50mm/1.8 and 20mm/2.8 (these

provide 80mm and 32mm perspectives)

* Manfrotto tripod and ballhead

* Two Manfrotto light stands with umbrealla adapters (I can fire two

flashes into a single umbrella if I need to)

* Two 45 inch convertible (bounce or shoot-through) Photoflex Umbrellas

* Two early 80s auto-thyristor type shoe mount flashes (Sunpak 344D

and Hanimex TZ3600 - neither has adjustable power - auto or full power

manual), and one Canon 430EX shoe mount flash - E-TTLII or adjustable

manual output down to 1/64)

* Photoshop 7

 

Soft and diffused light? I get reasonably soft light with the above

gear for tightly composed full length shots, and very soft light for

upper body shots and beyond. For full length shots, I am able to shoot

at f/4.5-5.6 - ISO 100 (ISO 200 no problem really), and f/8-11 - ISO

100 for upper body/head and shoulders shots.

 

As you have figured out already from the numbers/specs above, my

usable studio space is limited: 2.6m/8.5 feet by 3.2m/10.5 feet, with

2.3m/7.5 feet net ceiling height.

 

But what about controlling the light that is spilling all-over? 'Real'

studio gear is obviously one option... One that I cannot afford now.

For some, Photshop is the way to go (and the least fun if you ask me).

Thanks for any input, especially from those who have been there, done

that. Cheers.<div></div>

[taner]

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[taner]

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[danny_liao]

Michael Grecco loves to use grids to achieve his dramatic lighting. I use to love his work, but now i find his use of grids overkill. Anyway, he uses and swears by Dyna lite equipment. It will be hard to achieve his lighting style with shoe mount flashes. I think the best way for you to control lighting with those kind of flash units is to use a lot of flags, card boards, or foam boards. OR save up and invest in some lights. Dyna lights are not as expensive as other brands.

[taner]

Thank you Danny. Flags, card boards, or foam boards: this is it - I am looking for creative ideas around these and similar methods. I was hoping that somebody would have links to photos, diagrams, etc. of such set-ups used by amateurs. I know enough to understand the concepts, but without 'visual hints', it is a bit difficult to be that creative, especially if one is not very handy and does not originally come from a 'do it yourself' culture.