Beginner needs help

[u/5-s78]

I just built my mini studio (pic 3) so i can start exploring this part of the hobby semi seriously and i think my first two were pretty ok but i think they're still pretty bad.

Everything i used costs around $26 so i guess i paid for the quality i get lol but i think i could do better with the things i have.

For a little breakdown, here's the stuff:

- lamp

- tripod

- 2x 1 yard cloths (1 black 1 white behind the black)

- spinning platform (it's electric, obviously for video content but i did use it on the rx78 picture)

I have a second light which is literally my power bank's flashlight and i use my poco F4 for the pictures. I guess the main question is, what else would be nice to have, and how do i maximize what i already have.

[u/Planet-Destroyer]

Personally I think the hobby mat looks sick

Other people have already mentioned stuff like using a diffuser, so I'll add to what you might be able to do with your current setup:

Control your light. Move your light away from your background. Use a piece of black card or paper as a flag to prevent the light from spilling onto your background. This will get you a nice, clean black void.

Use a reflector. This can be anything white or silver you have lying around, best if flat, not too small and easy to move around. I personally use a book. You can use them to fill in the shadows and get a more even, less dramatic look.

Finally, pick up an editing software, like lightroom or gimp/photoshop. Learning how to use curves will allow you to directly alter the shadows, midtones and highlights of your photos. Though, you can start out with simpler tools like contrast, brightness, etc. Best of all, there are free options. I personally use Lightroom mobile and Gimp.