CharleyL
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When shooting in my studio, I most always use studio flash. In order to have full control of the light for the photos, but still have room light enough to be able to see and move around safely, I keep the center ceiling light on and adjust the F-Stopsetting of the camera in use just high enough so that the camera sees nothing, or nearly so with the ceiling light on, but with no flash. A test shot or two without flash, but the environment lights on will find this setting quickly. It's good when the resulting image is totally black, but shiny objects in the shot can sometimes cause problems, requiring a slightly higher F-Stop setting. For my studio and center ceiling light, which is a flat round panel in the center of the ceiling and located frequently above, or nearly so, my camera position, I usually end up with F-8 or maybe F-9. As long as you have a totally black or very nearly so test shot with the room light on but no flash, you will then have full control of the flash and how it affects your shots.
Then I decide how much background blur I want and I may raise or lower this F-Stop setting with the flash operating, to get the result that I want, but if I want going lower than this for less focal depth and more background blur, I then need to turn off the ceiling light to work with the lower settings and not have interference from that (those) lights. Turning off the ceiling light while shooting is unsafe, but leaving it on at low F-Stop settings causes the ceiling light to interfere with my shoot when I want to achieve full control of the power of my strobe lights and no uncontrolled lights affecting my shots.
To solve this problem, I have remote controlled this LED ceiling light, with a remote switch attached to each camera stand, my computer table, the original light switch position at the door, and to a toolbox on wheels camera left where I frequently park the camera, if it's hand held, when a short break from shooting is needed and both hands need to be doing something other than holding a camera, as shooting in total darkness is the only way to be able to use a lower F-Stop and not have this ceiling light affecting the shots.
So, with a light switch within easy reach of wherever I am, I can turn the light off for the shots and then quickly turn it back on before me or my model, or anyone else needs to move around. This is the almost perfect solution, at least when needing very low F-Stop settings for the shoot. I never have to move around in the dark to find the light switch and turn it back on.
These remote switches are available reasonably from Amazon and look like the rectangular rocker type wall switches with wall plates, but are only about 3/8" thick, with battery included. I attach them with Velcro so I can easily remove them when it's battery replacement time. Just one small cylindrical cell is required in each and my cells are several years old and still working. They come with a backing plate that st designed to attach to the screw holes of an electrical wall box, so the one replacing the original switch at the door attaches there very easily and covers the exposed wiring inside the box. The battery is enclosed under a small sliding plastic cover so removing the remote switch assembly must be done to access this battery cover. Removing the remote switch to change batteries only requires lifting and unhooking it from the base metal cover over the electrical box. Replacing it after battery change is just as easy.
A receiver module needs to be placed, either inside the ceiling light electrical box or inside this original wall switch box. This decision will need to be made, depending on how the original switch is wired. A professional electrician will know where it will need to go and how to connect it. I am a licensed professional electrician and engineer (EE), so this wasn't a problem for me, The manual included is good, but the wire color codes don't match the USA standard wiring color codes. Follow the information in the manual for this.
Teaching the receiver for each remote switch is necessary when first setting this up. A small red LED and a button are located on the receiver module. You push and hold this button until the LED starts flashing. You will have about 10 seconds to activate a remote switch to complete the teaching function for that switch. The LED will flash brightly then go off, indicating that the teaching process for that switch is complete. You can then release the remote switch. Do this again to teach the receiver for each remote switch and they will all (up to 8) now control the light On and Off without wires. Place them wherever they will be needed, or just keep one portable so you can set it close by wherever you will be. Remember to include ordering one of these remotes for the original wall switch location, since the original wall switch can no longer be used. All switches for this room light will need to be remote switches now.
I frequently make use of the inverse square law of light to create black backgrounds, but sometimes a black or grey background is needed too. Learning how light behaves and the use of the inverse square law of light (not the math, just how it diminishes and spreads between the source and subject) is the next big thing that you will need to learn about achieving good photography, after you become proficient with your camera controls. Light power and effective distance. Learn how light behaves and you will up your photography game considerably. This is true for studio work as well as outdoors. Learn to control and use Sunlight, and it will save you from trying to overpower it with big, expensive, and very heavy lights.
Charley
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I like the limited dof, and lighting.
I think these look great. I particularly like them because they don't look like typical self portraits but instead you look like someone is photographing you. Not sure if that's good or bad but I really like them.