Advice needed on studio setup please

Hello

Have been lucky enough to be given a large room by a mate that I can use as a studio in a really cool London location and am being hassled by mates and some budding models I know to shoot some decent porfolio shots for them.

Thing is I don't have much recent portraiture experience and really need some advice mainly on the basic minimum equipment that I need to start up with...

I only have a digital SLR now (Pentax ist*DS) as sold my other cameras when skint at Uni.

I don't have much cash for startup so really want to know what are the basics I could get away with in order to produce good basic results....

All suggestions very much appreciated ! ( I don't even own a suitable tripod at the mo !)

It's all about light.

Ideally you need two powerful studio flashes with brollies or softboxes and a smaller one to do duty as a hairlight or whatever.

However, a simple but powerful manual flashgun used with a reflector can do wonders. Just make sure you mount it OFF the camera and diffuse the light in some way. Manual exposure is usually best in the studio.

Don't even think about Halogen. You'll need about 2KW minimum, and that means a lot of heat.

A digital camera is better than film because you have instant feedback on how your pictures are turning out.

Good luck.

Try to get at least two flashes with umbrellas that you can use in a 1:3 ratio. Charge a minimal ammount for your first portraits and use the cash to get a decent four light set (main, fill, hair, background). Then you'll be off and running.

Of course, if the studio is small this could be a problem because once you get up a good speed running you'll hit a wall. Maybe you should consider getting up and walking. Probably safer, and you'll avoid hitting your head on the wall and annoying the neighbors.