How to Use $30 Dimmable LED Bulbs to get Into Studio Still Life Photography for Cheap

If you’re just getting into studio photography, trying to figure out how to light, shoot and set up your shots can be both frustrating and expensive. After all, if you’re trying to take high-quality studio shots, you need high end strobes and all sorts of other gear, right?

Maybe not. Of course high end equipment helps, but in the video above, photographer Alex Koloskov of Photigy shows you how you can light studio still life shots using a few $30 dimmable LED bulbs instead of strobes.

Admittedly, the point of the video is rendered a tiny bit moot when you realize that Koloskov has chosen to take his sample shots with a medium format camera that costs just a tad more than those $30 bulbs, but there is still lots to learn here if you ignore that fact.

In the 11 minute video — the first in a series he is creating to help photographers who are just getting started in studio still photography — he talks about the bulbs and how you can set them up, shows you his setup for photographing a vase of flowers, and then goes through the final shots with you.

Check out the full video at the top or head over to Photigy for more info on where you can get these light bulbs for yourself.