1st light box!

[Christian_V]

So I constructed my first light box. I just thought I would post the process, some of the lessons learned, and some finished photos in case anyone else is interested in trying it out themselves. I followed the directions I found on Badger and Blade by someone else who was taking fantastic photos of their razors and was kind enough to post directions. I wish I knew where the thread is...

Anyhow I used a 16" x 16" x 16" box. I cut open one side and lined the interior with white construction paper. Then I cut two windows and covered them with wax paper to diffuse the light. All you need to light this thing are a couple of lamps but here's the thing, it is important to pick up some Daylight simulating bulbs. Incandescent bulbs will create a yellow hue to all of your pics which doesn't look polished. I suppose if you knew how to change your white balance this could be worked around but I am not skillful enough with my camera to figure that out. I also placed a book in the middle and used that as my "stage"

I used a Canon 20D EOS camera.

Anyhow, I'd like to thank the amazing, helpful community of Badger and Blade for inspiring me to do any of this. If anyone recommends any tricks to fine tune or beautify these pics let me know, I'm still learning all of this and open to suggestions.

Here's the rig:



And some finished shots of my 1978 Gillette Super-Adjustable Black Beauty.

View attachment 368135 View attachment 368137

 

[fast14riot]

Looks good! Try painting the inside of the box white or glueing some white paper inside, it will help reflect the light all around.


-Xander

 

[celestino]

Looks great and might be giving me some ideas as I still don't have one!

 

[Christian_V]

Fast14riot. That's a good idea. Whiting out the sides and top would probably give me more light. I could use just a hair more light.

Celestino. Total materials were maybe 12 bucks. Try it out man I'd love to see what images you create with it!

 

[cb91710]

Good job. Maybe consider one more light on top.
That's a great start though!

 

[Ecl]

Try moving the lights forward a bit and angling them so they point toward the center of the back of the box. This will get more light on the front of the subject, rather than the sides. Doesn't have to be major, just a couple of inches.

 

[AABCDS]

I have those same $8.00 Ikea lights for my light box! I was too lazy to build my own so I bought this one from Amazon:

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B003QA1VEK/ref=oh_details_o00_s00_i00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

 

[grinbergs]

I have a similar light box made out of a black Ikea box with holes in it. I use light sources from three different directions. Mostly I take photos of my little model cars in it but it works well for shaving gear as well.

The box:

And one example of the results:

I use a glass sheet shelf from a IKEA cabinet for the mirrored effect.

 

[blary54]

Nice. But put a white piece of paper in back and at the bottom creating an arc. That way the background is just white.
Like this:

Better yet go-to a fabric store and buy a white piece of felt.

 

[Christian_V]

Blary that pic looks sharp! You're right about the long piece of paper or fabric. I noticed later on that the "horizon lines" weren't matching up and it bothered me. I also want an additional light up top. Thanks for the pointers I will modify my box this weekend for sure

 

[Sawblade]

Check secondhand stores for used picture frames, you can usually find an 11x14 for a couple of bucks, then just scavenge the glass.

Also, I'm partial to foam core poster board. You can move it around however you want. Also, some black doesn't hurt when you're shooting reflective surfaces because it shows everything.

DSC_5478.jpg by Shane3v3, on Flickr

 

[rxonmymind]

Not bad! Looking pretty good.

 

[bmilcs]

I bought all the materials for my first like box and it's 20 x 20 x 24. I was thinking about keeping the flaps on the top n bottom, and cutting off the roof of it completely to make it a square. Also I wanted to keep the open window small for maximum light reflection. Will having the entire roof cut out make it too flimsy?

 

[bmilcs]

Oh and I picked up this vintage camera at a tag sale for $20. Anyone know anything about it?

 

[cb91710]

I think so.

On the size of the openings, it's a double edged sword.
Small openings provide for more interior reflective area. This is a good thing. The more light you can get bouncing around inside the box, the more evenly lighted the subject will be, and the softer the shadows will be.
Small openings reduce your flexibility for light placement. This can be an issue with larger subjects like the flower vase above.

 

[cb91710]

View attachment 373921

Oh and I picked up this vintage camera at a tag sale for $20. Anyone know anything about it?

Sweet. 2.25-Square twin-lens reflex.

Mom had one. The large negatives (60mm vs the usual 35mm) make for a very fine resolution image suitable for posters.
Film size is "120"
Changing film outdoors is tricky. It's not a cartridge/can like 126/110 or 35mm, so you can't simply open the camera and pop a new one in.
The film is on a spool, and the spool must be unwrapped, loaded into the camera, and secured to the takeup spool in complete darkness.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Twin_Lens_Reflex_camera

$20? If it works, you may have found yourself a small treasure:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rolleicord

 

[Rudy Vey]

That's a great find for $20!!
Some info can be found here:
http://www.rolleiclub.com/cameras/tlr/info/rolleicord.shtml

I used to use a RolleiFlex for some years in the early-late 70's - great cameras!!

 

[cb91710]

So it's a III, IV, V, or Va
The Vb doesn't have the marks below "Rolliecord"
The IIe and earlier don't have the triangular logo on the top.
Va only has one knob on the right side (that we can't see).

 

[grinbergs]

On the size of the openings, it's a double edged sword.
Small openings provide for more interior reflective area. This is a good thing. The more light you can get bouncing around inside the box, the more evenly lighted the subject will be, and the softer the shadows will be.
Small openings reduce your flexibility for light placement. This can be an issue with larger subjects like the flower vase above.

Nice thread, and I am reading with great interest.

I agree, the path I chose was to have small openings since I generally use the lightbox to shoot similar objects in the same spot (small model cars). To get the light "bouncing around" in the box I glued some aluminium foil on the side walls and the roof, but to make sure it didn't cause any sharp reflections I glued yet another layer of a thin half transparent fabric over the foil. The results made a huge difference in the lighting effect. But then I use a black floor and backdrop for my shots which seems to be more unusual than the white one. IMO I get less problems with the white balance that way and it fits my needs better.

 

[cb91710]

That polished stone floor is awesome!