# quick softbox lighting setup



## live4soccer7 (Sep 13, 2010)

I am looking for get a professional grade softbox setup for taking photographs of small items, anything from the size of a piece of grain up to the size of a cereal box. Any recommendations on boxes, lights, backdrops etc.... I will use it for green screen shots, and also for black and/white backgrounds as well.

Thanks for any input.


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## KmH (Sep 13, 2010)

> I am looking for get a professional grade softbox setup...


 
How much of your money can we spend on a pro setup?

A pro friend of mine shoots "anything from the size of a piece of grain up to the size of a cereal box" and has about $30,000 invested in lighting gear, including his grip gear (lighting rigging equipment). That $$$ amount doesn't include his cameras/lenses.

Will you be shooting 135 equivelent, medium, or large format?


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## PhotoFly (Sep 14, 2010)

Go on eBay. There are some great deals on softboxes there.


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## live4soccer7 (Sep 14, 2010)

Ok, well then not quite that pro. lol. I was thinking of something that will get me some really professional looking product images. I've owned an online store for quite some time now and need to upgrade the quality of that part of the business. I do a lot of pretty small items. 

I guess something between 200-500 would be acceptable for my applications. I'm looking for the best bang for my buck and didn't want to go out and just buy some kit off ebay and not know anything about it. I was hoping I could get some lighting suggestions/setups, soft box, suggested materials, and other items....


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## mrmacedonian (Sep 14, 2010)

If you're doing web stuff than this should be plenty. There are 48" and 28" from just a brief search. I'm sure you could find something to fit your needs 

Smith-Victor Kit with 48" Light Tent 

Smith-Victor Kit with 28" Light Tent 

Either of those should dramatically increase the quality of your photos, unless you're already using three light sources that are properly diffused..


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## live4soccer7 (Sep 14, 2010)

Thanks for the info!! They look like pretty good setups. What kind of a backdrop piece would you recommend? Material type? I want several colors, but noticed they usually come in kits that way. I think a solid looking backdrop would be nice, especially for a white background and green for making a transparent background in an image editing program.


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