BaseXStudio™ kit with GreenScreen 2 x 40x40 65W

The BaseXStudio™ kit with GreenScreen is designed for users who want to achieve TV-like effects (virtual television studio) or professional film sets in a home environment. Surprisingly, this kit, combined with freely available computer programs (e.g., the free version of DaVinci Resolve), enables such effects. Additionally, YouTube offers practical and informative tutorials on achieving specific results.

The kit includes essential elements for building a photographic studio at home - a background hanging set, basic background, and lighting. The green background meets the requirements for color keying. The light's power allows photography ranging from close-ups (portrait, detail) to half-close-ups (bust). For inanimate nature, the frame is limited only by the width of the background. The kit can also be used for filming (live, stream, remote learning), requiring higher sensitivities.

Blue box (also known as bluescreen, GreenScreen, chroma key) is an image processing technique that replaces a background of relatively uniform color (originally blue, hence the name) with any other image. It's widely used in television (most commonly during weather forecasts and news programs) and film (to place actors in computer-generated environments). The background color is usually blue or green as they are considered least similar to skin tone and rarely appear in costumes and props.

In digital video recording, color is represented by three numbers indicating the brightness of the color components (RGB). The blue box effect is achieved by simply comparing these values at different points in the recording with the background color. If the colors match (exactly or within a certain margin), that point in the recording is replaced by an alternative background.

A person participating in a blue box recording should not wear clothing of a similar color to the background, as it will be replaced by the alternative image. They also shouldn't hold objects of such color. This can be used to create an effect of an invisible character, for example, wearing an invisibility hat.

In some Polish TV channels (e.g., TVP, TVN Meteo Active), blue box is used for weather forecasts. Public television used blue box in the 1990s-1992 to generate a uniform blue background and display animations next to the presenter. From 1997 to 2002, it was used in the same program to generate a newsroom image behind the presenter. Source: Wikipedia.

The lighting used in the kit is classic studio continuous lighting - single-bulb softbox lamps on lighting stands. The softboxes are equipped with PureLight™ photographic bulbs with standardized parameters (color temperature 5500K and color rendering index CRI >90). Softboxes are a basic element of a photographic studio, used to change the light's properties: size of the glowing surface, intensity, and direction of light. This type of lamp is increasingly popular in video productions. It also serves as an excellent alternative to kinoflo lamps.

Softboxes soften tonal transitions between light and shadow. Light is evenly distributed within the softbox and maintains equal power across the entire diffuser surface. The outside of the softbox is matte black, preventing it from reflecting other lights' shine. Folding and unfolding are exceptionally simple, and when folded, the softbox takes up little space. High-quality materials ensure trouble-free operation for years. Designed and made to safely work with fluorescent bulbs.

The BaseXStudio™ kit uses at least two lamps due to mutual shadow compensation - one lamp serves as the main light source, while the other is a fill light. The power of the used bulbs is given in the technical specification (below).

The BaseXStudio™ kit includes classic studio continuous lighting, i.e., single-bulb softbox lamps on lighting stands. Softboxes are basic photographic studio elements that aim to change the light's properties: size of the glowing surface, intensity, and direction of light. Lamps of this type gain increasing popularity in video productions. They also serve as an excellent alternative to kinoflo lamps. The BaseXStudio™ kit uses two lamps due to mutual shadow compensation - one lamp serves as the main light source, while the other is a fill light. The fixture's dome is finished with silver material inside. Light is evenly distributed within the softbox and maintains equal power across the entire diffuser surface. The outside of the softbox is matte black, preventing it from reflecting other lights' shine.

The lamps are equipped with PureLight™ photographic bulbs with an E27 base and standardized parameters (neutral color temperature of 5500K and a color rendering index CRI >90). Thanks to the natural color reproduction, the bulb doesn't introduce any color bias. The generated light stream, obtained after about 90 seconds from turning on, amounts to 3900 lumens and corresponds (approximately) to a 325W halogen bulb.
Folding and unfolding of the softbox is exceptionally simple, and when folded, it takes up little space. High-quality materials ensure trouble-free operation for years.

The maximum height of a single stand is 230cm. The recommended working height is 220 cm. The stand has convenient section clamps and a studio head with a universal thread of 1/4".
The telescopic mechanism provides a wide range of stand operation (78-230 cm, adjustable to any height) and various applications. The leg spread (from foot to foot) is 75cm.
The stands work perfectly not only with softboxes but also with flashlights and continuous lights, halogen lamps.

The background hanging kit consists of two CGLS-816B studio stands and a foldable dual-element bar attached to them. The frame allows for suspending various photographic backgrounds (cardboard, vinyl, or fabric) up to 5 kg and with a maximum width of 165 cm. Backgrounds can be suspended at heights ranging from 83 cm to 205 cm.
The bar is attached to the stands using butterfly nuts, preventing it from lifting when raising the background upwards. Unrolling the background from the roll is blocked by plugging in two handles (frogs) included with the kit.

The width and length of the fabric on the roll are sufficient to create a continuous background without folds (cyclorama) for photographing a silhouette. The cardboard roll protects against creases during transport or storage. Potential creases can be easily removed by steaming or wetting the background. The perforated texture of the background minimizes reflections from strong light sources. The cardboard roll, on which the background is wound, serves as a base for easy storage and transportation of the background, allowing it to be hung on a studio bar or with T-type hangers. We strongly recommend simultaneously purchasing a background suspension system, significantly improving work quality in the studio and the achieved effects.

Creative use of the background requires the photographer or camera operator to plan the frame and the desired effect after keying. Of course, you'll need a computer with appropriate software for this. The good news is that there are free versions of software available on the market that allow image keying in both photography and film. For those starting work with green background as greenscreen, we highly recommend materials published on YouTube.

Note regarding fabric texture - people encountering photographic polypropylene backgrounds for the first time fear that the background's texture will be visible in photos. In real conditions, the object remains about 50 cm away from the background, which, combined with shallow depth of field, causes the background texture to blur.

Choosing lighting power

When selecting lighting for a photographic studio, ensure the right amount of light needed to achieve your goal. The Home Photographic Studio kits may contain (depending on the version) from 2 to 16 bulbs.

• Inanimate nature doesn't require strong light.
  If you're photographing an inanimate object, you can freely use single-bulb lamps. In product photography, exposure time is arbitrary and can always be adjusted for proper exposure. A tripod will come in handy.
• Beware of people (and animals).
  During the photography of people and animals, exposure time is limited. Especially when photographing children or active animals, significantly more light is required. Single-bulb lamps will pass the test at short distances (approx. 0.5 m).
• The wider the frame - the more bulbs.
  You can assume that for a portrait, you can use two single-bulb lamps. During close-up photography, the distance between the softbox and the face is small, ensuring proper exposure. Increasing the frame very quickly forces an increase in light quantity.
• Fashion on live models.
  If you plan to photograph fashion with a model (male or female), choose kits with two or more four-bulb softboxes.