Hi

Capture · Jun 9, 2006

Hi, my name is Rachel. Brand new here.

I am interested in getting into photography, portraits mainly. I am looking for a good online course that I can take. I am a mother to a 2 year old monster and I just cant be going to and from school. So online is my option right now. I spoke with a lady last night and she gave me some information about the materials you need to start school : Camera ( in which she suggested the Canon 20D) , Lenses, Filters,& Lights & Umbrellas. I am looking to do this from my home, I have a beautiful yard and would love to take outdoor portraits and I also have a huge basement in which I would like to set up a studio. I would be doing digital photography, so I would also need an awesome printer.

Anyway, I would appreciate any and all comments you have referring to online schools, equipment and such.

Thanks

-Rachel

Big Mike · Jun 9, 2006

Welcome to the forum, I'm sure you can find lots of great information around here.

I suggest finding some good books on portrait photography. The most important thing is lighting.

Don Simon · Jun 9, 2006

Hi there. When you say you want to get into photography, do you mean get into it as a hobby, or professionally? If it's the former (i.e. if you don't have much experience) then you probably don't need the 20D. Of course if you can comfortably afford it then go for it, it's a great choice, but something cheaper like the 350D would also be perfectly adequate.

In terms of lenses, for portraits 50 to 135mm would seem a good range to me. You could go for several prime (fixed focal length) lenses, e.g. 50, 85, 135, or get a zoom with that sort of range on it. Either way you'll want lenses with a large maximum aperture (smaller f-number); this will let you blur the background. Obviously different lenses will have different characteristics, for example sharpness, bokeh, colour rendition... and I know nothing about Canon lenses so I'll let someone else take it from there.

Soocom1 · Jun 9, 2006

Greetings…. Welcome to the forum.

If you go with the setup you stated great!

Some items to think about when setting up a portrait studio in the back yard.

Try these links for info:

http://www.warehousephoto.com/CAT/BOOKWED.htm

http://photographytips.com/page.cfm/368

http://www.livingpictures.org/portraitphotography.htm

[ame="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1584280123/002-3304914-2872054?v=glance&n=283155"]http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1584280123/002-3304914-2872054?v=glance&n=283155[/ame]

http://www.worldwidelearn.com/online-courses/photography-courses.htm

http://www.photolinks.com/Photography_Classes.html

Not only will you need the various items you mentioned, you won’t be able to get all at once, but think about these (not necessarily in order):

1: Clamps. Get as many and various sizes as you can. They come in VERY handy.
2: Props. Get some from the Family Dollar store. The stuff that looks like cheap lawn decorations… (pillars and the like, NOT Pink Flamencos!)
3: Chair, pedestal (see above), Candle sticks, etc.
4: Background muslin, stands.
5: Boom(s). This for lights, cameras and reflectors. Something like this:
http://cgi.ebay.com/HEAVY-DUTY-PHOTO-PHOTOGRAPHY-BOOM-LIGHT-COMBO-STAND_W0QQitemZ7625551335QQihZ017QQcategoryZ88666QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem and http://cgi.ebay.com/ASSIA-BACKGROUND-BACKDROP-STAND-MUSLIN-CANVAS-PAPER_W0QQitemZ7627949024QQihZ017QQcategoryZ79006QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

6: Soft lights/Soft boxes.
7: Mirrors. As props, lighting uses, and for makeup.
8: Little amenities for the customer to feel comfortable, and especially for kiddies.

Good luck.