How to Turn Any Room in Your House into a Photography Studio?

In This Post:
Space Considerations for Home Studio
Buying Photography Gear 
Choosing Lights for a Photography Studio
Deciding Backdrop for Home Studio
Dos and don’ts of designing

Just like our past posts on setting up a gaming room and an immersive theatre at home, we are now presenting a brand new guide on how to set up a photography studio at home.

If you have a passion for photography, you might have dreamt about having your own studio at some point to practice your skills. However, finding a dedicated space for a studio can be a little overwhelming for beginners and novice artists. Fret not! You can easily turn the extra space in your house or even a living room into a workshop with our simple DIY home photography studio guide.

Let’s get clicking! 

Setting Up a Photography Studio at Home – Some Key Considerations and Tips 

You can create the best photo studio setup without any hassles with our simple DIY home photography studio guide. We have divided our guide into different parts, where we will discuss everything in detail – from lighting to backdrop: 

• Space Considerations for Home Studio
• Buying Photography Gear 
• Choosing Lights for a Photography Studio
• Deciding Backdrop for Home Studio

Space Considerations for Home Studio 

First things first: Figure out the extra space in your house or the room where you want to set up a home photography studio. It can be anywhere from the main living room to a spare room, all you need is to make sure that the space isn’t being used for any other purpose once you have transformed it into a photography studio. 

Remember, it is not necessary to have a big space. You can convert any spare space into a photography studio as long as it isn’t going to be used by another family member and is in a completely isolated area in your house. However, setting up a photography studio in small spaces can be quite challenging since the art demands a great deal of flexibility, and being creative in a limited space means that you will have to make a lot of compromises. 

Moreover, the size of your home photography studio also impacts the light in your photos. Controlling artificial light in a large room is easier while sticking to window lighting in small spaces is the best option. 

The question still remains: how big should your home photography studio be? 

To put things to perspective, you should target a space where you can fit all your equipment and have ample space to move around comfortably. Since you are not going to need a lot of equipment, even a 100 sq ft room is enough to fit all your gear. 

Buying Photography Gear 

Once you have decided an appropriate space for setting up a home photo studio, the next thing you need is photography gear. If you have already bought the tools and equipment, you can skip this step and move on. 

There are tonnes of options in the market, and it is almost a challenge to decide on a particular camera or the associated accessories. So, figure out the critical gear first. Here’s a simple checklist for basic photography equipment for a designing a home studio: 

• Backdrop
• Camera
• Fans
• Flash Trigger
• Furniture
• Light Modifiers 
• Light Stands
• Lights
• Step Ladders
• Wire Extensions

Some of the above-mentioned tools are completely optional such as furniture, fans, step ladders, and wire extensions. Meanwhile, you cannot create a photo studio setup without cameras, backdrops, and light equipment.

Choosing Lights for a Photography Studio

Choosing appropriate lighting while designing a home studio might be a daunting task, especially when you have not done it before. When it comes to setting up a photography studio, make sure the equipment is exactly according to your needs. 

Do not spend a lot of money on a light that you’ll never use. Shortlist your options according to your needs. Think about your theme and the type of pictures you are going to take. Ask yourself: Are you open to experimenting, or are you just sticking to portraits for a while? Do you like working with natural light, or do you like dramatic effects? 

When it comes to studio lights, there’s a vivid spectrum. We have picked the two most popular options and discussed them below:

Speed lights

• Perfect for small studios
• Lightweight and portable
• Hard to shoot in burst 
• Affordable

Studio Flashes 

• Available with built-in modelling light
• Powerful light and includes an AC plug 
• Heavy and bulky 
• Expensive 

Pro Tip: Although you need at least three lights, we’d recommend starting with just one. It will help you learn the basics and figure out what works best in your setup.  

Choosing Backdrops for Home Studio 

The backdrop is a quintessential part of creating a photography studio at home. There are two most popular types of backgrounds for photography studios, including a collapsible portrait backdrop and a professional backdrop, which is supported by a rail system. 

To begin with, a collapsible background is relatively cheap and is most suitable for single person portraits. Just like the name implies, a collapsible background can be folded in a compact package and moved from one spot to another. Also, it is made of tissue and will crease quite easily. In case you are opting for a temporary setup, it is the best option for it. 

On the other hand, a professional portrait background is either made of paper, vinyl, or tissue, and it is available in various sizes. The only drawback of this backdrop is that it is heavy and bulky, and it cannot be carried around. 

Now that you have a better understanding of the basics of designing a home studio, let’s go over some dos and don’ts of this process to help you make the most of it. 

Dos and Don’ts of Setting up a Home Studio

For your convenience, we have compiled  all the dos and don’ts of setting up a photography studio at home and presented them in the table below:

This brings us to the end of our post on the beginner’s guide to building a home studio. We have mentioned all the necessary information that you should consider before converting the available space into a photography studio. If you have any further questions or comments, write to us at blog@zameen.com. Before we sign-off, we’d like to mention a few things. 

If you are looking to convert your living room into a photography studio, there are some facts that you should know. To begin with, technology is constantly evolving, and the way we see things today might not be the same tomorrow. Meanwhile, the electronic market is bustling with many gadgets that can make things easier for you, even when you have no basic knowledge. With so many options available on the spectrum, deciding what kind of equipment can be good for your needs and budget can be a little difficult. So, we recommend only buying things that will last for at least 5 years and do not make your studio appear outdated. Moreover, seeking help from representatives of different companies at stores and experts is also a great idea to shortlist your options. 

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