Thanks Tom: I dont consider myself really artistically inclined.
My motivation for making this, was that I was allways loosing my bids on those amvona backdrops on ebay... So I figured I would give it ago. And the fact that I am cheap, so saving a little extra money from shipping was another motivation for it..
Im glad you like it though, I dont think I will be making another one again, unless there are specific colors that I want and I cant find one online.
Hey about the plexi glass. If you live anywhere near an art school, or some type of school thats into crafts, like design schools or anything that would have work shops, you could easily ask around at a couple local universites to that nature. They will have plexi glass, and for a hell of a lot cheaper then the hardware stores.
mcpherson wrote:
This thread is truly amazing and a great source of info and tips.
Can anyone UK based tell me where to get 'Plexiglass' in usable size sheets
B&Q / Homebase etc tend to have them. Problem is that they're usually scratched up.
There was a supplier on ebay who specialised, even did coloured and smoked stuff. Cut to size.
Well, what Jeff posted wasn't with a ringflash, it was a ringlight. The former is a strobe, the latter is a series of continuous lights of one kind or another.
A ringflash wouldn't get any hotter than any other kind of strobe, which is to say that the heat generated will be entirely dependent on how bright the modeling light is, how bright you have it turned up (most pro lighting packs have variable modeling lights) and whether you use the modeling light at all once you're shooting. I tend to position strobes pretty close to my models as well, but I also turn the modeling lights way down once I'm happy with the light...I'll even turn off modeling on the background and fill lights altogether.
A ringlight, on the other hand, will put out a fair amount of heat, just light any other continuous light. I could definitely see it being an issue after more than a few minutes.
How very true. When I use the light, I will have it on a dimmer, and turn it all the way up with me in front of it to get a light reading. Once it is set, I will have the model sit in front of it. I slowly crank it up, allowing their eyes to adjust.
Once it is on, I snap off as many photos as I can before my Ultra II Compact Flash card gets backed up. Any time I am not shooting, I dim the lights down. I warn the models about this prior to the shot, so they are prepared. They are usually excited and intrigued by the strange looking device. And after I show them a quick preview on the LCD screen, they are all about it.
I'll try to get some photos up of the front of it. By the way, my version cost around $20, as opposed to the other ones that might go over $100 on supplies.
Just curious, but after a quick look on B&H I am not searching on the right terms or what not. Is there a strobe version of these from 'the regulars' or is this a pretty speciality item/new idea to photography type of thing?
Keep in mind that each of those requires an appropriate power pack from the same manufacturer. Calumet's also got one for their Elite line, but they only sell directly as far as I know.
And I wouldn't really call it "new" gear - there was a period of a couple years in the mid 90's where it seemed like every major fashion campaign was shot using a ringflash. They've kinda gone back out of vogue as a look, but that just means it's ripe for judicious use again. Personally, I really dig the look of the signature all-around background shadow when it's done right.
Wow, those suckers are expensive! I think I'll just stick with mine for now. I finally took a picture of it. It is just a piece of wood that I cut and spray painted black. Then I drilled holes in it and mounted the light bulbs. I had a friend help me wire it using a cheap white extention cord. Good stuff. Let me know if you have any other questions.
Yeah those prices, wow. DIY looks great. I especially like the dimmer switch idea. Did you use any thing special lightbulb wise or just found a bunch fo the same incandescents?
I bought Philips 100W "Natural Light" bulbs. You can use whatever bulbs you would like, just make sure to adjust the white balance accordingly. I always shoot RAW, so it is easy for me to compensate for improper WB w/o image degradation. Peace out!
