Light box for object photography

You _might_ be able to rig a light ring on those. The 3000 for sure, but I didn't see enough of the others to be able to tell for sure.

I had several of these on hand... and converted one for my Fuji S8100.

The trick to that was to lay up a mounting tube that fit snuggly around the camera bezel (fiberglass cloth and epoxy). And to drill out the lamp case so that tube passes through it.

The lens bezel on all of those cameras is small enough that you could easily retain the internal batteries of the lamp.

That center hole is 1.5" diameter. Measure the outer part of the lens and see if it will fit through?

Reply to
Richard
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Betcha a plug nickel it doesn't sell for that!

Reply to
Richard

Anyone have any good suggestions for types of lightboxes for product photography?

I do NOT have a hip slick and cool digital SLR, and even the external strobe connections are a bastard.

Id like to build a lightbox..but it needs to be big enough/rugged enough.. to put in a dirty, oily part or piece.

Something for shooting photos for Ebay for example.

Ive seen how some Ebay companies like Reliable Tools do it..but I dont have that kind of floor space (theirs is 50'x50' with huge movable fill lights in towers on wheels.

So Im going to need something useable with at least 3 strobes and operational via slave flash.

Anyone have any links etc etc for simple designs suitable for what we do?

Gunner

Reply to
Gunner Asch

Oh..I use Olympus Camedia C-4000s, C-3030s and C-3000 cameras.

Cheap, take good photos and are rugged as hell.

Gunner

Reply to
Gunner Asch

Gunner Asch fired this volley in news: snipped-for-privacy@4ax.com:

Gunner, It's a BOX with LIGHTS shining on the object to be photographed! It ain't rocket science. You don't need plans.

I have taken thousands of product photos of pyrotechnic products for catalogs. I never built a 'box'. I just hung a neutral, mottled backdrop (you can buy them fairly inexpensively, or get some mottled wallpaper) in a gentle sweep under and behind the products (so you can't see a corner in the bottom of the shot), and put various work lights on stands around the product until I got the illumination and shadows I wanted at the resolution I wanted.

Rarely, after seeing a series of pictures, I'd have to go color-balance them in some software, because they came out a little too blueish or reddish, and I always cropped and framed them for the catalogs -- but that's all software. All you need for the raw photo is white light and several sources, so you can kill shadows.

A couple of pieces of Thermoply, or cardboard with aluminum foil taped to it, will help kill unwanted shadows in places the lights can't reach. Spring clamps do the holding work. Pipe stands do the job of getting it all in the air.

LLoyd

Reply to
Lloyd E. Sponenburgh

I think you are actually asking for a light *tent*: a tent made of some translucent white material like nylon or dacron sail-cloth or frosted mylar drafting film. One puts the object inside the trnt and set the lights up to illuminate the outside of the tent, then snaps away. Tents are particularly good for shiny objects.

They are easy to make, but can also be bought.

Joe Gwinn

Reply to
Joe Gwinn

Simple method is the foam sheet sold in home centers. Spray one side with neutral gray and use spring clamps to hold it together. Lights in the front corners with angles to help stabilize the box.

Couple of pieces of the thinner stuff with foil for use as reflectors to get light in odd places.

Reply to
Steve W.

A light box is handy but it only serves to light the entire object and eliminate shadows. You can use reflectors and diffusers to do essentially the same thing with, probably, more bother.

Try some diffusers made from thin white plastic in front of your flash and (probably) three or four flash heads and see if you can't get the effects that you want.

An electronic camera is nice as you don't need to waste all the trial shots that you do with film.

Reply to
J.B.Slocomb

Thats what I figured. Its been years since I did it with film...a stroke got in the way..and I dont remember much about what/ how I did it.

I know this question doesnt show it..but I used to be a fairly competent semi-pro photographer. Shrug.

The ability to break it down and set it up quickly would be nice as well. Im running out of floor/shop space.

Anyone have any good links to "inexpensive" slave strobes? Or anyone have any older slave strobes that they have outgrown?

Gunner

Reply to
Gunner Asch

You don't need strobes, Gunner. Proper lighting is essential, and setting your camera to work with the lights chosen is a must. A pair of 200w (45w actual) 5000k daylighter CFLs go for $7ea on eBay

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Or buy a kit with softboxes or umbrellas. Mine was about $40 delivered with umbrellas, light holders, 5000k CFLs, and stands. I wish I'd bought the background and stands, too.

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This is one HELL of a deal:

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White muslin can come in BIG sizes for fairly cheap, too.

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$32 includes bg & stands, delivered!

Yes, indeedy.

Reply to
Larry Jaques

If you have a tripod or whatever (sandbags sometime work) that will keep your camera still, you can get very good results, probably with stuff you already have on hand. If the camera (and subject) are held absolutely still, longer exposures can be used at will, reducing the need for big lights... within reason. For shooting small stuff small table top 'set' can be cobbled up on most anything.

First, get in tight, fill the frame.

If your tripod isn't rock solid, also use the camera's self timer so it can settle down before the actual exposure. Any camera/subject movement is a big deal when your in tight with limited lighting.

For lights, a couple of goose neck lamps work well, and are nimble enough to maneuver around as necessary. If to harsh, a sheet of white printer paper or cut up milk jug/s over the lamp/s can help soften things up. Similarly, a sheet of vertically folded paper standing near the subject out of frame can/will reflect enough to fill in shadows if necessary.

Read your camera manual and see if it's 'white balance' can be set/adjusted. This is often done by shooting a white surface in the setting mode illuminated by whatever you'll be using as a light source. Doing so will allow most any lights you wish, but try not to mix them. Most modern camera's try to automatically adjust the WB, but if misses, your colors can really be goofy. Regular tungsten incandescent lights will make everything look orange, fluorescents green and so on.

Also read the manual for exposure compensation info, so your predominantly light or dark shots come out properly exposed. Camera light meters always try to get a overall average (B&W) tonal value of about 18% grey. (Ever notice how many snow/beach scenes come out under exposed/dreary looking?) So if your subject/background have a lot of white, override the light meter, and tell it to over expose by a stop or two. The opposite if your dealing with a lot of dark.

Bracketing go's a long way too... shoot a bunch of shots of each item, playing with different framing, lighting, exposure compensation and whatever... so you can pick out the shot/s you like best. You can learn a lot doing so as well.

The above won't put your work on the cover of National Geographic, but will go a long way. The next step would be a basic copy of Photoshop or equivalent, and boning up on cropping, setting white and black levels, & 'unsharp mask'.

The good tripod is a must... remember you can even make up one. It's only purpose is to is to keep the camera stationary. Camera tripod sockets are 1/4-20, use your imagination!

Could go on but those are the biggies, I'm sure others will also have good suggestions as well.

Good luck!

Erik

Reply to
Erik

Strobes.. 3 of them, yeah, no shit.

If everyone had just supported his dimwit proposed method, it would've (at least) been fun to read about all the failures he was having.. and cries for more help.

If Gummer ever bothered reading here instead of posting useless fanatic bullshit (any time that he's not pleading for help!), he might have noticed this topic (and a multitude of other useful topics) have been answered previously here in RCM.

He sure can find misguided, biased politcal info easily enough, to spamcast across multiple newsgroups, but when it comes to any real topics.. well, better ask in RCM.

He lives in sunny SoCal FFS and needs lighting for pictures. Pics of rusty broken/worn out junk, most likely. Al Babin wannabe. Perhaps install some skylights in the salvaged sheeting shanty out back.

It's likely he was thinking of all those lingerie model/supermodel shoots he's been on that had him thinking he's a pro photographer.

Reply to
Wild_Bill

More:

If you have some good natural light available, you can go a long way with it too.

Check this (overpriced) Craigs list ad I have up:

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The first 5 shots are in direct sunlight, either right on the cement, or handheld above it. Some exposure compensation was necessary on the ones showing a lot of light colored cement.

They were taken with a cheap Pentax SLR, but on auto mode as I was in a hurry.

Notice how only filled frame sharper images were used? Diagonally sometimes to take advantage of available frame area. IIRC, I shot maybe

15 total images, so I could pick/choose the best.

The size comparison 'gag' quarter was lit by a single compact fluorescent bulb in a goose neck lamp. The camera was on a tripod, and the back of my hand supported still on the table. The white balance was adjusted before hand, and the dark red background is literally just a colored file folder I'd put on the table. I did rotate/crop & adjust the exposure a little in Photoshop... but not all that much. Wish my hand was cleaner.

Here's some more direct sunlit handheld shots. They also got some minor Photoshop attention:

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See my BBQ in the first shot? It's in the lower RH corner, but camouflaged in the 'Bokeh':

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No particularly fancy lens was used, but focused in close like this, everything in the distance gets blown way out of focus... desirable in this case.

You really don't need any strobes for eBay like product shots... as you likely have no motion to stop... unless in low light, but that's what the tripod is for.

Erik

Reply to
Erik

I think you have that backerds, hoss.

Higher F numbers mean smaller aperture diameter. Depth of field increases with f-number

Reducing _aperture_ increases depth of field.

An shutter speed is not involved (directly, anyway)

Reply to
Richard

For a given light level, yes, but more light can overcome that issue easily.

Low f-stop?

Reply to
Richard

I'm sorry, Lloyd. I can't brain today. I have dumb.

Reply to
Richard

Yeahbut...

The common expression "Stop Down" really does mean to reduce aperture size (although it also means a higher F-stop number)...

Thinking about it since, I'm sure that's what Gunner meant.

Reply to
Richard

Now that you mention it, I'm kinda wondering how to get reprints made from negatives.

Is there a way to scan 35 mm negatives to photo quality? Inexpensively?

Reply to
Richard

As long as you don't sit on it in your underwear. Ugh,

And on that subject, I saw today that Futurama is not being picked up for another season.

Sigh...

Reply to
Richard

Oh man...

Haven't heard that one in a century or so. One of my Dad's favorite tricks.

Reply to
Richard

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