I have worked in countless studios, even though my work usually makes me work “on location”, ie, on exterior or interior locations outside the studio. But working in the studio is very convenient for many reasons, and one of the reasons is the possibility of completely controlling the light.
My first task as director of photography for the studios that the editorial group Hymsa Edipresse, now fusioned with the RBA Group, had in Barcelona was to equip the studios with the most efficient infrastructure. This to be able to realize the different types of photography a publishing company with more than 15 headers could need. It can be everything from baby pictures to pictures of photomodels, decoration or plates of food, still lifes or portraits. The different magazines required a wide range of equipment for the photo shooting, for lighting and props.
The still lifes of food require little space, but sometimes it is important that it looks like the photo has been taken on another location and not in a studio. For this it is good to have sets that allow you to put the plate in context.
Another important aspect is to work with the most efficient equipments for each job. An optical bank as the Cambo Ultima 35 is essential for solving many problems that still lifes can imply, as it is a flexible camera that can solve the problems with depth of field and perspective distortion, among other things. The great advantage of this camera is that it is adaptable to medium format digital backs or 35 mm cameras. Hence, to have the versatility that an equipment of 35 mm SLR gives you, such as the Canon Mark III or the quality of a medium format camera like the Hasselblad, completes the kit of versatility and quality. If we also can count on a good monitor like the excellent ones that the wide range of Eizo offers, even better!
What about lighting?
The big brands have a great variety of accessories. In this way the choice for a studio where many different types of pictures are being made should be the brand who’s accessories can meet all your needs concerning lighting techniques. They should have everything from fiber optic accessories to ring flashes, gobo projectors to large windows. And they should also have a service center near, and should be fast and effective!
Finally, having a small carpentry atelier for mounting sets is useful for interior photos as for fashion magazine covers, and is another of the equipments that makes the work more fluid and faster in a big studio.
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