cheap light tent

[freakinacage]

i think i posted this before but it must have been in the wrong sections so i thought i\'d post it here too. m+s in the uk do a nice little collapsible laundry bin which is ideal for use as a light tent. and it\'s a snip at a fiver. there may be other places that do something similar abroad. anyhoo here it is:

 

[Roger Bunting]

I\'d imagine places like Argos would also sell similar stuff.

 

[Legacy Account]

Bosting. Sold - nice one Tim.

 

[Sukigod]

This thing looks great, but I can\'t seem to find a matching item available in the US. They make \'em but all I can find are ones that are mesh or have printing on them - things like childrens characters or sports teams.

Anyone know a US based outlet for these?

 

[JesterzUSMC]

I\'m bidding on 2 actual light tents on Ebay.
Maybe try snagging a deal there?

 

[Jericho]

My family has a couple of them but they are all made with a rather thick, colored fabric which would be pretty useless for a light tent. If I find one with proper material lining I\'ll post the source.

 

[freakinacage]

these are fairly thin. i haven\'t actually treied one but looking at it in the shop, i would have thought they\'d be great. just don\'t\' use really dim lights!

 

[airhead]

My commercial one is fairly thick white fabric. Much thicker than the window sheer I used for my first attempt.

I\'ve found that the heavier fabric requires more light (3 - 75 watt bulbs.) but give a more even \'glow\' of the light. I do not see any hot spots with the heavier fabric.

 

[bobsacks]

I built a similar light tent a while back. I used a cardboard box and sheet that I picked up at Wal-Mart. I have complete directions and pictures up at my blog.

Here is the direct link.

The total cost on the project ran under $10 and actually works quite well.

 

[jugglervr]

I\'d be concerned about the fabric coloring the light.
I know it *looks* white, but I\'ve had \"white\" nylon look decidedly yellow in-camera (which is why I bring my camera and a strobe to the fabric store when I buy materials now)
If you\'re going this route, definitely make sure you can \"set\" the white balance of your camera instead of just using \"auto\" or the colors are likely to not come out right.

Also, the thickness of the material doesn\'t require more light (necessarily) if you have a tripod; just a longer shutter speed.

 

[airhead]

Originally posted by jugglervr
I\'d be concerned about the fabric coloring the light.
I know it *looks* white, but I\'ve had \"white\" nylon look decidedly yellow in-camera (which is why I bring my camera and a strobe to the fabric store when I buy materials now)

That could be the lights on the fabric as well. Incandesents tend to be yellow and the sodium vapor lights in the big box stores are almost orange.

 

[jugglervr]

Originally posted by airhead

Originally posted by jugglervr
I\'d be concerned about the fabric coloring the light.
I know it *looks* white, but I\'ve had \"white\" nylon look decidedly yellow in-camera (which is why I bring my camera and a strobe to the fabric store when I buy materials now)

That could be the lights on the fabric as well. Incandesents tend to be yellow and the sodium vapor lights in the big box stores are almost orange.

Stores around here tend toward the greenish flourescents, but I was testing with an off-camera flash and correct white balance on my camera... Some things that look white just aren\'t (but if they\'re the whitest thing around, they\'ll look white until you see a photo).