WWYD with this

[Kwarta]

So my DH and I have decided to convert an old Grainery in to my studio. I am looking for Ideas/suggestions. Any help is much appreciated. The Dimensions from the office door to the south wall is 19.5 and from the east to west wall is 15.2

http://kapturedbykristina.smugmug.com/photos/898806060_GFh4F-M.jpg


http://kapturedbykristina.smugmug.com/photos/898805869_i8GTY-M.jpg

http://kapturedbykristina.smugmug.com/photos/898805742_9eYbY-M.jpg

http://kapturedbykristina.smugmug.com/photos/898805461_2w6Qm-M.jpg

[Art Scott]

How digital are you wanting to go......background wise..........do you already have lights......and studio equipment....
I like the openess of the ceiling.......Ok...the office is on the north side...so bg's go on south wall (bgs on a ceiling mounted roller system.
bg lights on c-stands and a couple coming from rafters.......front lighting...hung from rafters...if you have the finances...get a track system
so that the lights can move and no electrical on floor for clients.......my main bg would be to paint the floor and wall either blk or wht....
I am a huge fan of blk bg's and coloring them with gelled bg lights...then the east and west walls use them for small head and shoulder painted
bg's (I really don't care for painted bg's but clients do...)........you really don't have a waiting area...so maybe office could be at home and
what you have dubbed as office could be the waitng room............just a thought.

Good Luck and besure to let us see the finished product.

[Kwarta]

I have nothing yet. I started out being a natural light photog. I have been debating on installing windows or not. If I do put in windows where to put them. This is gonna be a long process for me as I will get things here and there. I love the idea of starting with a blank canvas. Thanks Art for you ideas.

[Art Scott]

Windows.....if you have good light from the west.....I thnk I would go there,
as more people will be shot during sunset than sunrise??
Northern light is not a possible because of Office area......Sky lights are another
option..........

[BradfordBenn]

To me another key question is what are you wanting to shoot in there? Different subjects will have different needs.

[Kwarta]

To me another key question is what are you wanting to shoot in there? Different subjects will have different needs.

Babies, Families, and Seniors. Probably mostly seniors.

[Art Scott]

To me another key question is what are you wanting to shoot in there? Different subjects will have different needs.

Mostly in the props area...not really in the general studio set up........

What is it like outside the grainery......landscape wise.......good enuff for outdoor shooting??

[Kwarta]

I have 6.5 acres of trees, water etc. I live on a small farm/ranch.

[Art Scott]

I have 6.5 acres of trees, water etc. I live on a small farm/ranch.

OOOOOOOH Baby......that just screams outdoor shooting to the HILT!!!!
So after the intial start up of the studio then you can work on outdoor scenery......
make sure each outside wall has several outdoor electrical receptacles for outdoor shooting with studio
flashes..........put them in now so you do not have to punch thru the sheetrock on the inside later.......

[Angelo]

the office occupies the north end of the structure which is unfortunate because getting northern light into the space would be wonderful.
if this were my space I'd rip down the office wall and install a large glass lite in the north wall to fill the space with soft light. The north wall is a gable end (non supporting wall) so cutting a pane in would be fairly simple.

[sweet caroline]

My dream is to have a studio that allows tons of natural light in. Tear down the office wall, put in a huge window, and then set up an office area in the corner. If you keep it looking nice and organized, I think it's not a big deal to have it open to the studio space. I would also think seriously about some sky lights.

[Kwarta]

See I had talked to some about the office wall. It unfortunately is a load bearing wall. So I am stuck with what I got. So any idea's on where to put windows with the structure the way it is.

the office occupies the north end of the structure which is unfortunate because getting northern light into the space would be wonderful.
if this were my space I'd rip down the office wall and install a large glass lite in the north wall to fill the space with soft light. The north wall is a gable end (non supporting wall) so cutting a pane in would be fairly simple.

[Wil Davis]

Is it in ND?

Are you planning to use it year round? Are you planning to insulate the walls & roof?

Just wondered…

:thumb

- Wil

[Kwarta]

Yup, yup and yup...

Is it in ND?

Are you planning to use it year round? Are you planning to insulate the walls & roof?

Just wondered…

:thumb

- Wil

[Angelo]

See I had talked to some about the office wall. It unfortunately is a load bearing wall. So I am stuck with what I got. So any idea's on where to put windows with the structure the way it is.

someone is pulling the wool over your eyes. I can say with 99.999% accuracy that office wall is NOT load bearing.

In this type of construction and in this particular instance, your east and west walls are supporting the roof. The cross tie beam in the center of the space is what keeps the tops of those two walls from pushing outward under the pressure of the downward force of the roof.

I'll venture a guess there's another cross tie at the top of the office wall which would have to remain but the rest can be removed.

.

[divamum]

I haven't the faintest idea what to do with it, but I'm green with envy! Oooohhh all that natural light..... :bow

[BeachBill]

After viewing Zack Arias' studio lighting workshop this past weekend, I would suggest white seamless for the backdrop. You can get white, gray and black BGs out of it just based on lighting setup.

You can purchase the videos of the weekend workshop at http://creativelive.com/courses/zack_arias/

I say they would be worth your time and money to purchase and watch, especially with the blank canvas you have to start from. He goes over studio design/layout and lighting. All good stuff.