friday's featured resource - shedding a little light on the subject

Crafter goddesses, foodies, Etsy shop mavens, this post is for you. Well, you and anyone else who finds it frustrating to get a decent shot of objects in the dark of these winter months. Unfortunately for many of us, by the time we get home there’s no pretty evening light streaming in through the windows casting its lovely glow on our subjects. I miss so much that magical fall evening sun. Sigh. Well, until the sun starts to cooperate again, we’ll just have to make some pretty light of our own. Light boxes are a great way to generate soft, even lighting that can really make an object pop.

A food blogging friend of mine recently posted her desire for a light box but confessed she didn’t have the space for a bulky box in her small Boston condo. She had been researching some wonderful collapsible light tents, but they can get pricey. To aid her in her quest, I set about designing a light box that was collapsible, affordable, and easy to assemble. The cost of this light box totals about $5 and consists of 4 pieces of foam core and a piece of poster board, all of which I purchased at the dollar store.

The detailed instructions on how I made my light box are over on my blog.

 

As you can see, I didn’t have professional lighting or light stands, so I took a couple clip lights, screwed in some daylight bulbs, and clipped them onto some book ends that I had on hand. This made it easy to maneuver the lighting exactly the way I wanted it.

Once I got the lighting the way I liked it I tried to keep in mind the following:

-First I made sure that my camera was white balanced. This is something that is easy to forget, but really saves time spent adjusting images in Photoshop.

-I also tried experimenting with a subtle pattern below my object. I looked for something that wasn’t too distracting but that added color and interest to my subject.

-Last, I set a nice shallow depth of field so that my subject was sharp and the pattern below softened.

I’ve got so much more experimenting to do with my light box, and like many of you, I’m constantly hungry for tips and tricks to improve my images. Please share with us images that you’ve taken with a light box of your own and any thoughts that you might have on achieving a stellar image. Happy clicking!

Pictures and words courtesy of Honorary Sister / Guest Blogger Amy Kingman. Amy is an artist extraordinaire and can be found over at her blog Drawings in Motion.

Comments

[kosenrufu mama]

thank you for these wonderful advises, i will try, it's easy so save too...
actually hen there is not good sun light i use to shot next by the window and light turn on. but never thought about a box like that!

http://esterdaphne.blogspot.com/2008/12/5-sensi-dicembre.html
http://www.flickr.com/photos/23206424@N07/3145266474/

[Marcie]

What a wonderfully simple idea. Will have to try it....

[Karen]

I bought all the materials to make a light box before the holidays, but was waiting until my son goes back to school to do it since I really have no room for one. So glad I waited, this is perfect. Thanks for the detailed instructions on your blog.

[Puna]

Wow, I never thought of doing this before. All these things I'm learning...thank you Amy.

[camerashymomma]

brilliant! thank you SO much for posting this.

[cindy k]

great tutorial, i love how it folds up. i have a small space near a window where i take still life photos and use a white window shade as a backdrop with a silver car windshield visor as a reflector. i described it here
http://quainthandmade.blogspot.com/2009/01/pics-un-petit-studio.html

[Kelly]

Wow, I'm learning a lot. I had heard of lightboxes, but I didn't realize that I'd been using this concept already! Thanks for this post!

http://www.flickr.com/photos/8702729@N02/3200806855/

[Diane Schuller]

For a few months now I've been debating creating a light box. I found 2 or 3 really good (and inexpensive) how-to's but just hadn't been motivated enough to actually make one. I like that this one collapses -- what a space saver.

Diane
www.albertaphotography.wordpress.com/

[Lu]

now that is what i am talking about! i love to see people use simple resources to improve their photography. sometimes getting the shot does not have to cost a fortune with a bunch of fancy crap no one sees anyways. some of the best photographers out there would not be caught dead without a role of duct tape.

[KKH Photos]

Awesome idea! I'll have to give it a try, thanks for sharing.

[Karyn]

Perfect timing! I JUST made my first lightbox last weekend. I really like yours though, I'll probably make it too!
Here are some of my favorite shots so far:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/kayak57/3191679581/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/kayak57/3190702771/

This one I also experimented with textures! http://www.flickr.com/photos/kayak57/3193865303/

Lightboxes are so much fun and so inexpensive!

[Wayfaring Wanderer]

This is PERFECT! I'm all about saving money AND space :o)

[Rebecca]

That's amazing!

I've made another version of a lightbox before, using a cardboard box, some sheets of vellum and posterboard. Check it out here:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/amperphoto/3201074325/

If you want instructions on how to create it, feel free to drop me an email!

[Charlane]

YAY! a project for today!!! Thank you!

[Kristin]

Very useful post. Love the idea and even the picture of the bird with the orange fabric! Definately gonna be making a light box soon :o)

[Kath]

I think I'll have to try this. But I will confess that lately I'm loving the sepia toned cast that I'm getting on the photos I'm taking just using available light.

[shelli]

Wonderful information. Thanks.

[Amy]

Thank you for the opportunity to guest blog, Tracey! It was an honor. :)

And thank you for all the nice comments. Please leave comments if you put together light boxes! I'd love to see them! I also enjoyed the other great ideas for effective and affordable light boxes that you've posted here as well! I love it!

[Grey Street Girl]

This is awesome! I can't wait to make one for myself.

[Toni]

I use a collapsable light box that i got from an ebay vendor - about $35 or so. I'm a glass artist and photographing our work is always a topic amongst other kilnformers. Some have mentioned that they converted a laundry bag/hamper type thing from Ikea into a light box - cost was around $4 or $5. I still have issues with lighting, I've been using desk lamps, but they aren't the best. I'll have to check out the clip lights - thanks for that tip!

http://dailyvignette.wordpress.com/2008/06/07/sold/
http://dailyvignette.wordpress.com/2008/05/20/its-finished-sorta/
http://dailyvignette.wordpress.com/2008/05/04/deep-blue/

[Angie]

Much, much, better than the sad one that I put together to photograph some rings. I'm making this one soon!

[nicola]

oh! fabulous! thank you so much for this creative and helpful project and post.
nicola
http://whichname.blogspot.com

[Digital Photography Tips]

Great DIY post ... this is probably the cheapest to build light tent project I've seen

[Serena]

Ooh. Mine's a different version. I cut out holes on the sides and the top and added tracing paper. Then i used one source of light (maybe external flash? table lamp?) and placed it wherever i liked on either the top or the sides depending on what effect i want. so it looks like this http://www.flickr.com/photos/vulnerablechaos/2951109472/ (thats my old lightbox though. my new one is much bigger now)

[Barbara @ VinoLuciStyle.com]

Great idea. I started with a digital camera. That's good enough I said. Yea, no...so bought new DSLR. Then thought, I'm not making my kitchen into a photo studio; you guessed it, when will I learn. Sometimes forget to move light, tripod and props before company I'm so used to them in kitchen.

This, as another view indicated is great on many levels, not the least of which is that it is collapsible!

Thanks a bunch!