Still waiting for a batch of bushes but close enough to move the board into the studio.
Frank,
Can you tell me more about the lighting you use? Both the overhead light and the ones on the tripods? How do you manage to get a daylight effect with these?
I am getting ready to purchase some lighting that will be on tripods and would appreciate any advice you can give.
Thanks,
Mark
I'm a fan of video lights over strobes for miniature photography since it allows you to evaluate the lighting prior to taking the photos. The trade-off is longer exposures on your pictures but this isn't a problem because the camera is on a tripod and the scene is static. My pictures range between 4-8 second exposure. Part of the long exposure is due to the small aperture (f16-f22) which is required to get a sufficient depth of field.
Most lights these days can produce natural looking light 5000-6000 kelvin (sunlight) which is what you want. I try to avoid direct light on the scene unless the background demands it. For instance, if the background is clear sky with shadows indicating light from the right then that requires direct lighting from the right. In that case I would use a light on the right side of the scene for direct lighting and the second light pointed at the ceiling for fill. Just light real life, direct lighting causes harsh shadows and washout. There's a reason movie companies prefer to shoot in the morning and evening light. I prefer indirect light like you get with overcast. With cloud cover sunlight is diffused and distributed evenly over the sky. To simulate this you need to point you lights at a white ceiling and use the reflected light to light the scene. This is similar to using a bounce flash on a camera. You'll see much better results without harsh direct light.
The ceiling light is only used for setup as it is too bright. I do sometimes allow natural light from the window into the room as fill light.
In my nature photography as well I much prefer the diffuse light and interesting brooding cloud patterns to blue sky.
