When I first started shooting people I went out and bought myself a snazzy background stand and a background, another flash, a stand, more umbrellas then had a great mini-movable studio. I also had ‘creepy’ written all over it.
The problem with equipment and a home studio is that if you want a model to come to your home you need to step back and think about how awkward that may be for them, yea awkward huh? If you don’t have access to a professional studio don’t despair, there’s plenty of fantastic outdoor locations right down the street from you, literally – it’s all about looking at everything as a potential photo shoot location.