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How to make just a single light look like many for photos and video

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For some of us, especially when we’re just starting out, we’re limited on gear. Maybe we can only afford a single light or perhaps we can afford more, but we want to experiment with just one before laying down a huge amount of cash. Either way, having just a single light for our work is not uncommon. It is possible to make one light look like many though.

In this video, filmmaker Brandon Li shows us a technique for multiplying a single light using multiple takes and compositing. It’s a technique that we’ve seen used a lot in photography, particularly product photography, but not that often with video – especially when you’ve got a moving camera.

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Nine steps to shoot an epic beer commercial on a budget

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You know how beer commercials instantly make you wanna crack open a cold one? If you’re into commercial video and photography, Justin Jones and Ted Sim of Indy Mogul will show you how to create your own. In this video, they share nine steps to shooting a beer commercial on a budget, yet making it look epic.

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Four ideas for recreating Hollywood shots with stuff you have at home

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A lack of gear or budget is frustrating, but it shouldn’t stop you from creating. To help you get stunning shots even on a tight budget, Dan Mace has prepared a fun and useful video. He recreated four shots from movies and TV shows with almost no budget. Mainly he used objects he found around his house and he even acted as his own stuntman. So, if you need low-budget filmmaking ideas, check out his video below.

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Seven tips for shooting a pro-looking product video on a tight budget

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I just love low-budget ideas that still get you great results. Partly because my gear budget is low, and partly because I simply enjoy experimenting. If you’re anything like me, you’ll love this video from Justin Jones and Ted Sim of Indy Mogul. They share seven tips for shooting a commercial like a boss, even if money’s tight.

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Five epic camera movements you can pull off with your 360 camera and $0 budget

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We love DIY camera tricks, and 360˚ cameras open up a whole new world of possibilities. Director and filmmaker Karen X. Cheng has some brilliant ideas for camera movements that look darn epic, yet they require virtually no budget. Grab your 360˚ camera, some stuff you probably have at home, and let’s dive in!

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Seven tips for successful filmmaking even when your budget is zero

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When you want to shoot a passion project, a low budget can often be an obstacle, for both filmmakers and photographers. But there are ways to overcome it and bring your project to life even if the money is tight. In this video, Sherif Mokbel of THE DP JOURNEY shares seven tips for shooting with the budget as low as zero. He focuses on filmmaking and shares examples from his own and other filmmakers’ videos for even more inspiration. But, some of these tips can also be applied to photographers, so make sure to check them out even if you shoot stills.

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How to get professional ink in water commercial photos with almost no budget

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In honor of Inktober, Isaac Alvarez of UNPLUG Production made his own ink-related project. But rather than making an ink drawing, he focused on commercial watch photography. He used only a simple two-light setup and some super-cheap items, most of which we all have lying around the house. Despite the low-budget setup, the results are professional-looking, so let’s dive in and see how he did it.

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This is how you remake a Hollywood blockbuster with zero budget

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Even if you have a limited budget, you can still recreate the look of some famous movies and TV shows if you have enough imagination. But guys from Studio 188 are taking these recreations to a whole new (and utterly hilarious) level. They create low-budget trailers for famous movies and TV series. Actually, zero-budget could be a better description, since they use nothing but household items and their imagination. Terminator 2, Star Wars, Game of Thrones, you name it – they can recreate it, and make you laugh out loud when you see the result.

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Filmmakers, here’s how to create a realistic war scene on a tight budget

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Last month, I’m sure that Avengers: Endgame and Game of Thrones were pretty much all that occupied anyone’s Facebook feeds. Both have inspired a massive number of memes, but they have also inspired Film Riot’s Ryan Connolly to create budget-friendly filmmaking tutorials.

After he showed you how to get the Game of Thrones look on a budget, here are some ideas on how to shoot a realistic war scene. It was inspired by Avengers: Endgame, and while it’s shot with a totally DIY approach, it still looks really good! All it takes is some dirt, fake blood, some lights and a minimal amount of special effects.

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