Dennis Mount Joy

I own a Nikon D40 with a 18-55mm lens/wide angle and macro lens. I have taken beautiful photos outside with natural light, but when it comes to taking nice portraits at home-it doesn’t look right. I would like to take photographs and have Rembrandt lighting on my subjects. I would like the opinions of photographers/graphic designers-and anyone else that seriously knows. Thank you very much for your input.

you don’t have to spend big money on studio style lighting. you can achieve all you want to with a couple of secondhand speed lights, shoot through umbrellas off ebay and some practice.

check out the book mentioned on the link below – it will teach you all you need to know about lighting on the cheap.

Im really into music, and would like to start an independent record label at some point, and I heard that making a recording studio and recording stuff for myself first is the best way to get started. So basically im asking what would I need exactly to start one??

- Id want to sell my services to others also once I got good at it, etc.

I am gonna learn how to play guitar, and keyboard eventually and i sing so im thinking about doing acoustic/indie or something. But yea.

I might talk to one of my friends about getting in on this. We still have a long time because were both Juniors in highschool, so we’ve got awhile to think about this, i was just curious.

Making an independent record label is one of my biggest goals lol.

I was gonna go to college for Audio Engineering, but then someone told me that if I just got some recording equipment and learned how to use it then I didnt need a degree to actually do it as a business, and that id only need a degree to teach or something.

Awesome Brian!

I TOTALLY agree with your last paragraph. I’ve been a recording engineer for over 13 years, and I never went to school for it. Buying your own gear, playing with it and challenging yourself with it by recording others is the way to fly.

There are 4 basic parts to every recording studio:

1 Something to plug in (what are you recording, mics, guitars, keyboards, etc.)

2 Something to plug it in TO- (audio interfaces, midi interfaces, computers, etc.)

3 Something to do with it once it’s plugged in (recording software, plugins etc.)

4 A way to hear what you’ve plugged in. (speakers & headphones)

On my new website I made 4 instructional videos which go over each of these parts. They’re free!

http://homerecordingstudiodesign.com

Best, Erik

what is a good way to start/set-up a home recording studio for vocals/rapping?

Greetings,

I see this question posted all the time.

First, it really depends on what you wish to do. If, for example, only you and your friends will ever hear the recording, then a cheap USB microphone and some free recording software is all that you need. You can make some great stuff that will impress your family and friends.

If, on the other hand, your goal is to go professional then I would suggest going to a real recording studio. See, recording is an art. It wasn’t until sometime after my 75 album that I felt I had things pretty much under control. It takes years of full time dedication and study to be able to make a proper recording, even for hip hop.

It is also cheaper to go to a recording studio. I don’t care what anyone on yahoo says, you can’t build anything worth using for less than 15k. That will barely get you something able to produce a product that people wont laugh about. If you plan on working with the public then just go ahead and bump up your budget to about 100k. That is about the minimum you’ll need to do a studio that can do hip hop and work with the public.

I would suggest that you clearly post your objectives and your budget and then we’ll be better equipped to answer your question.

Good luck

Like how people have a real studio built in there basement with the glass windows and the recording room and all of the buttons for the engineer to use in one room. Who do I contact about having that built in my house?

a true recording studio is built in specific ways if it is done correctly. if you are looking for someone that can build it for you I could contact a professional company that does that specific type of work. Just so you know to do it right it is NOT going to be cheap, then the cost of all the recording equipment can add up quick too.

sound proofing and deadening is important.

I recently started rapping and i kinda wanna make my music known maybe get a cd out but I don’t really wanna go to a studio I have a Dell inspiron with vista and 3 gb of ram so I am pretty sure i have the computer for it but What equipment do I need to make my own Beats and record with good quality trying to stay pretty cheap too so….? any Advice?

To start, all you need is a mic and a USB audio interface:

http://www.zzounds.com/item–LEXALPHA

http://www.zzounds.com/item–SAMR11

If you don’t have anything to play beats:

http://www.zzounds.com/item–ZOMMRT223

I have written some songs and recorded them roughly on a myspace page. You can check it out on:

http://www.myspace.com/littlebluelines.

I’m thinking about investing a bit of money to buy a portable studio, but

1. Do you think I have the talent to do something with my music?

2. What do you think of my music?

3. What’s the best recording method, studio or portable?
sorry new link

http://www.myspace.com/littlebluelines

Keep on truckin’!

Love,
Snag

I wish to set up a small music studio. I have a few things which I’ve bought over a number of months. But, I’m not too sure what else I may need to get started.
I have at the moment Cubase 3SX, Oxygen 8 Keyboard, Yamaha TG100 Tone generator.

Is there anything else which I need just to get basically started?

Well, start creating music already. What I think is really needed is a computer and software. Then you get headphones/speakers, midi keyboard, better audio card/amp, microphone, anything you feel like you need it. Buy what you really need and don’t buy anything too expensive. Good luck

I plan on doing some recording in the future and I would like some advice on the different aspects of doing home recordings.

What is the best environment? (Size of room, composition of walls, echo/reverb, etc.)

What is the best equipment? (Microphones, computer recording station, software) I’ll be recording vocals, acoustic guitar, piano and various electric instruments.

I’ve been using Adobe Audition which works great but I’m curious as to what the alternatives are and what are their pros and cons.

For the basics on setting up a home recording studio, check out this article: http://www.articlecube.com/Article/How-To-Build-A-Home-Recording-Studio/49379
Once you’ve read this, you’ll have a nice foundation. Audition is a nice program and can achieve professional results like many other multitrack recording software programs out there. However, I recommend getting a copy of Pro Tools as your main recording software for a few reasons. First, it is the industry standard in recording. Many major label records have been recorded on Pro Tools. Second, it’s easy to use and there’s plenty of support an tutorials available on the market to get you up an running in no time (see: http://cgi.ebay.com/Brainwerks-PRO-TOOLS-7-LE-M-Powered-HD-Tutorial-Video_W0QQitemZ260085583899QQihZ016QQcategoryZ41786QQtcZphotoQQcmdZViewItem ) Third, it’s easily portable to other studios that have Pro Tools (and many studios do!). This gives you the ability to record a session at home with your guitar and piano; save that session to disk; go to another studio with a nice drum and vocal room (if you choose) and pull the same session up on Pro Tools and add those elements. Then, you can take that session home to arrange and mix your project. Or you could send your Pro Tools session to professional mix engineer, to have it mixed. The sky’s the limit. The problem with other programs like Audition is that not as many studios use it (even though it’s a good program) so being able to transfer Audition sessions from studio to studio many not be as easy, because that studio will need to have Audition installed on their system (which many studios don’t). Another great point to add is that you can now get Pro Tools for around $250, making it very affordable for anyone who wants to put together a home studio. http://www.homerecorder.com/products/software/recording/protoolsmpowered.html
Hope this helps. Good luck!

I looking to build a home recording studio. What are the the most important things i need to buy? What is the first step in purchasing? Where can i get the best deals.

I don’t really know about recording studio, but a good starting point would be err…maybe a recording software.

Hey there, I am building a basic home recording studio. I was wondering if Cubase VST 4 is a good recording/mixing software? And if EMU 0404 Sound Card is a good sound card? I will be recording through a 8 channel mixer. ( 6 mono, 2 sterio) or else a 12 channel with a midi in and out. Is it a good idea to hook it straight up to your computer too?

…anyways thats it. Thanks for the help!

sounds like you’re off to a good start.

The sound card is a PCI interface with your computer so you’ll just need to make sure you have an open slot for it. It looks like you will have the L/R input and L/R outputs you need to go to and from the mixing console.

Speaking of mixers, just make sure that you have enough mic preamps to handle all the inputs you want. For example, if you want 2 mics you’ll need 2 mic preamp inputs. You’ll also need 1 for every guitar with pickups that you plan on recording direct into the mixer (and also a DI Box to bring the output signal to a low impedance form that the mixer can use cleanly).

The MIDI input/output on the sound card will give you the capability to add a synthesizer, drum machine, or other MIDI device into the mix which should give you some nice additional capability.

As far as the recording software… that version of Cubase is a few years old, but all that means is that it shouldn’t cost an arm and a leg. The s/w really comes down to personal preference as many different programs provide very similar functionality.

The main output from the mixer will go into the sound card mounted in your computer via 1/4" TS instrument cables. The sound card provides the analog/digital conversion between the electrical signal from the mixer and the digital signal the computer understands. In the same way the output from the sound card will go into one of your channels on your mixer (one of the stereo non-mic preamped inputs) so you can hear the recording upon playback.

In short it sounds like you have a very good starting point for your basic setup. Add a few studio monitors, a couple mics, and some inspiration and you should be well on your way