The Strobist DIY Light Tent

On 12.29.08, In Do It Yourself, Gear, By Chester

Strobist Light Tent in Action
My article on Do It Yourself Light Modifiers has proved to be quite popular. Bouncing light around large spaces is all well and good, but what about when you need to light one item really well. Say, for a product shot or something? Enter the Strobist DIY $10 Macro Photo Studio. That’s just a fancy way to say light tent. The photo above is one I created this past weekend. Once I had all the materials, it took me all of about 30 minutes to complete. I am not going to recreate the directions (printing the Strobist article is perfect), but I did want to explain what I did differently.

They recommend using a minimum of a 12x12x12 box, and leaving the top flaps on to control the light more. My box was something like 18x12x12 or something (I didn’t take measurements). I wanted it to be deeper though, so I taped all of the “flaps” together to extend the depth of the box (a little Duct will do ya). I then left one inch or so remaining to frame the 3 “windows”. Instead of tissue paper, quite by mistake I bought craft mylar (I think this might be really similar to the mylar drafting film I couldn’t find for my softbox project). It cuts really easily, and seems to be more durable than tissue paper would be. And it diffuses the light REALLY well. I used white duct tape to increase reflectivity inside the box. It definitely looks homemade, but the results it produces are just as good as the light tent I used in a previous job that cost 15x as much as this one (I already had the tape and box, so my out of pocket total was $4 for two sheets of poster board and the mylar film).
Remote Control Helicopters
This photo (click for larger version), of one of our Air Hogs Havoc helicopters and our Revell Fire Strike, was shot in the light tent at my house in Lakewood, Colorado. I used my Olympus FL-36 flash, fired remotely with a Cactus trigger, at 8mm and 3GN. The results are quite pleasing and work well enough for my needs. My next test will be to use it with static light instead of a strobe, and taking a photo of something on the black background instead of the white. For $5, you sure can’t beat this. In fact, I am already thinking of making a MUCH larger one, maybe out of a refrigerator box, to use for larger items, like tires and wheels. Hmm…

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Homemade Softbox

On 12.15.08, In Do It Yourself, Gear, By Chester

Natalie
This weekend I decided it was time to build the homemade softbox featured in my article of Do It Yourself Light Modifiers. With shopping list in hand, Natalie and I went to Michael’s to get everything we needed (and a craft for her to do at the same time).

Once we were at Michael’s, I had to make some substitutions. They want $35 for a piece of mat board, so I opted instead for a 3 pack of white poster board pieces. Also, the staff there had never heard of mylar drafting film. Wasn’t totally sure what to do, but as I was walking down the drafting/ needlepoint supply aisle, I spotted something called “plastic canvas”. I grabbed a couple sheets of varying sizes and hole densities and figured that would work.

Than I got into the construction phase. Cutting the foam was pretty straightforward (the authors tip about using a thin sheet of plywood for a cutting board was perfect). Then I started cutting the posterboard. In the authors revised directions, he indicates you should leave extra around the edges (on the trapezoidal pieces). I did this, but I am not sure what function that serves. As I was finalizing construction, These oversized pieces were difficult to work with and I still don’t see the point. Somehow I managed to get it all together though.

NatalieNatalie, exposure reducedCactus remote trigger, I had to fiddle with the flash settings a few times. The photo at left is still overexposed, but a quick treatment in Lightroom makes it suitable, as you can see in the photo at right.

In the time since I made my original post, I think the author of the instructions for this softbox has made some revisions. I’d love to see more detail on why the trapezoids should be oversized, since it caused me problems. But overall, I am happy with the output from this box. I am actually going to be playing with it later today when I do “class photos” for my daughter’s small preschool class here in Lakewood. I’ll post up another time about how that shoot goes.

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Review: Cactus Remote Trigger

On 11.12.08, In Gear, Uncategorized, By Chester

Cactus V2s wireless trigger
Within the photography world, as with the rest of the world, there are people driving Ferrari’s and people driving Geo Metro’s. With respect to off camera flash equipment, the Ferrari’s would be Pocket Wizards and the Geo Metro would be the Cactus Radio Triggers – also known as eBay triggers. In fact, there seem to be some different versions of the eBay triggers that all work together. For the purposes of this review, I’ll just deal with the Cactus V2s.

I purchased these in July in anticipation of doing Real Estate Photography here in Lakewood and also for whatever portrait work I might start.

Ferringway #8
My best test for these was when I was shooting the Ferringway condo we stayed in recently in Durango. The layout of the unit was such that there was an open loft over the main living room. I wanted everything there to be lit well, so I got out the Cactus remote and attached my flash. I put the whole contraption on the included stand and took it upstairs. I bounced the light off the ceiling, so it diffused a little, but you can still see that shadows were cast in the final product.

For the one transmitter and one receiver, I paid roughly $40. I should have gone ahead and ordered a second receiver at the time, and have since acquired another. I have yet to test the full range, but I am suitable impressed with what I have seen so far. If you have been thinking about getting a pair, go for it. At this price point, you can use them for a few years to get comfortable before you invest in the Pocket Wizards.

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Using Photomatix to Blend Exposures

On 10.13.08, In Software, By Chester

Photomatix Test 3
When you are shooting a room with a great view, it is a good idea to show that view, if you can. But that is more complicated when you think about the exposure levels outside versus inside the room. Since I was in an awesome location recently (the Park Hyatt in Beaver Creek, Colorado), I decided to use the property to do some practice on. I have posted a few images from this test in the Photography For Real Estate Flickr group (yes, it is a Flickr complement to Larry Lohrman’s excellent site/ blog) and have received some useful feedback from it.
(more…)

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Breakdown of my first paid shoot

On 09.16.08, In Photos, By Chester

Lakewood High School Cheer Squad 2008/09
I think it is going to be important for me to keep notes of what went well, what I learned, and what I can improve on when I do a shoot. I haven’t been doing this for Megan’s Senior Pictures, although I have been thinking about it all in my head. But after photographing 16 cheerleaders (333 pictures in total on Saturday), it’s good to get this down while the experience is still fresh.

What I did right:

  • Prepared 16 individual galleries in Zenfolio (click on the link to save $5), underneath one password protected collection. This way the girls can go straight to their galleries, but can browse across them all.
  • Pre-printed notices, customized for each girl, with their unique gallery URL and also a date for when they can expect to see the photos online.
  • Had the cheer coach schedule the girls in a staggered fashion, so they wouldn’t all be standing around or a long time waiting their turn.
  • Shot early in the morning, starting at 9:15am.
  • Researched and printed cheerleader specific pose examples for the girls to review.
  • Used my Cactus Wireless Flash Trigger.

What I learned:

  • The sun is very bright, even at 9:30am.
  • You’ll get sunburned doing a long outdoor shoot (we were there for roughly three hours).
  • Bring water.
  • Backgrounds can be hard to manage in a public park.
  • When allowing “group” shots, try and manage how many you allow so the other people don’t lose interest.
  • Lightroom 2 is wonderful, as is the Zenfolio Plugin from Jeffrey Friedl, but they aren’t overly fast (or it could be my network connection).

What I can improve upon:

  • Have a giant diffuser made for the sunlight.
  • Learn more about manual flash settings.
  • Develop more skills for dealing with mid-day light.
  • Learn more about Lightroom/ Photoshop.
  • Learn more about posing (reading a book right now actually).

All in all I still think it went well. The proof will come when orders are placed. Uploads should be finished today, we’ll see how it goes.

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