off camera flash

Morning all, I'm after some recommendations for some lighting stands and modifiers to play about with that won't break the bank. What would I need to get started? I've already got a couple of speedlites, but is there much difference between a £50 light stand and a £100 light stand? It's...

This evening I have tried out some self portrait work. The way I created this image was using off camera flash at the 4-5 oclock position. I used a bare flash head. the flash was zoomed in to 200mm which gave me a narrow beam of light. The way I fired the camera was with a remote trigger which...

Hi everyone, this was my first time using a speedlite so I'd really like some constructive C&C and also general advice please. I think I did 'ok' but ok isn't good enough for me. The thing I'm unhappy with is the shadows. They make the photo look very harsh and messy. What do you think? Also...

In my search for info on studio grids / honeycombs I found this handy guide to making your own speedlight grids. http://www.granjow.net/grid.html Lots of handy instruction photos.

Would love C&C on this image from a technical view. I know already the client loves it, and it's one of their favourite images. How about your views from a technical side? Many thanks for your time in advance...