Photo light boxes and light tents

Using a photo light box or tent offers several advantages for ease of arranging backgrounds, lighting and display of objects you are photographing. Backgrounds can be easily changed using pins or tape. Arrangement of light fixtures is routine so you have consistency in the way multiple pictures look on your web site or in a catalog. Centering and straightening the items to be photographed is a snap. Using a tent reduces shadows and glare.

This section of my ebook talks about how to use photo lightboxes and tents. It also provides instructions for building your own photo lightbox from very inexpensive materials. A goose neck halogen light is used with both types of boxes. These lamps can be purchased at superstores for $8 to $20.

Photo Light Boxes

Photo light boxes are constructed of many materials. I prefer ones made of foam core board because they allow me to use pins in placing both subject items and backgrounds.

If you should decide that you do not want to make you own photo light box, you can purchase one from your local camera store or on the internet. Be certain not to purchase a box that is too small for the items you will be shooting. You may wish to use props such as a necklace board, and will need room for them.

Never purchase a box or tent less than 14 inches (36cm) cubed. Two advantages of using a large box are that you can use a bust or other props and you can take photographs of the jewelry without being able to see the corners or the edges of the light box. Pointing your camera straight at the jewelry on the bust should work fine, but if your camera is pointed down at the jewelry you may see the back wall of the light box where it meets at the bottom of the box. If that is the case, try moving the bust closer to the front of the light box. If you still see the back lower edge of the light box then arrange your background material to cover the joint.

I have seen several photo light boxes sold on the internet for several hundred dollars to over a thousand. You can make a box for less than $15 to exactly suit your needs and get great results.

Play around with lamp position placement to see what works best for you. Sometimes I shine the lamp on the back wall of the light box when I take photographs and other times I shine the lamp directly on the jewelry. Occasionally I shine the desk lamp on the side of the light box and not on the jewelry. You may need a prop for the base of your goose neck lamp to compensate for a lack of neck length.

Instructions for making a photo
light box using foam core board

Foam core board is made of two pieces of cardboard with a thin slice of foam sandwiched between them. Purchase board that is at least 3/16 inches (5mm) thick. Even fairly large pieces cost only a few dollars each. You can find them at stores selling art or craft supplies as well as at many superstores.

Some boards have small faint squares printed on one side. Use these lines to help you cut the pieces. The sides with the grid will be the outside of your light box. If your pieces do not have a grid, then use a T square, triangle, or similar tool to be certain you are cutting pieces that are rectangular with even sides. Cut the boards using a box knife or utility blade.

Cut white foam core boards no smaller than these dimensions:
Sides: 18 inches tall by 14 inches deep (46cm by 36cm).
Back: 18 inches tall by 16 inches deep (46cm by 41cm).
The top is made of stiff poster board 16 inches by 18 inches (41cm by 46cm) or larger.

If you make the photo light box any smaller, you will probably be able to see the box's edges and corners in your photographs. Plus you won't have enough room to move the head of your goose neck lamp inside the box.

You may prefer to modify this light box by cutting out both sides of the box, leaving a two inch border all the way around the sides of the box, and using straight pins, push pins or tape to attach a piece of thin white fabric over each opening. The light will shine through the fabric and be diffused when it hits your jewelry. this will soften shadows.

This method involves the use of three light sources as opposed to just one. Place a light source on each side of your photo light box and the other light source next to the camera, shining almost directly at your jewelry or craft item. The 2 extra lamps should cost you less than $25 total.

Backgrounds can easily be changed for your jewelry photography by placing colored poster board or cloth inside the light box at the back.

To make the bottom of the photo light box, I set the two sidepieces and the back piece of the light box on top of a full size piece of foam core board with the fine grid facing down. The bottom piece of foam core board doesn't have to be cut to size.

If you decide to place a top on the light box, the easiest way to do this is to purchase a piece of white poster board and just lay it on top of your light box. You should be able to buy the poster board where you bought the foam board for a dollar or two. The poster board for the top of the light box should be white in color.

A photograph of my photo light box is shown on the right hand side of this page underneath my ebook cover. A white piece of fabric is wrapped around a piece of foam core board and it is sitting on a basket which is turned sideways.

Before placing a permanent top on your light box, cut notches to allow you to place the head of your lamp inside the box.

Cut each sidepiece of the photo light box so that the notch is placed in the center at the top. The notch should be 4 inches (10cm) deep and 6 inches to 8 inches (15cm - 20cm) wide. This should allow enough room to place the head of the desk lamp into the light box and give you some room to move the lamp around inside the light box.

Assemble all parts temporarily with pins before deciding on whether you want to place a permanent lid on your light box. Place the lid on the photo light box in the correct position. Now try inserting and removing your desk lamp from the light box. You should be able to place the lamp inside the light box without any problems. If movement is too restricted, enlarge the notches.

The photograph on the right hand side of this page of an orbital ocean jasper necklace was taken using my photo light box.

My photo light box is temporarily held together with four straight pins on each side of the light box. This is not very sturdy but it allows me to take the pieces apart for storage.

There are several inexpensive options for joining the pieces permanently.

• duct tap, use this with the straight pins.
• L brackets
• Cabinet door hinges. (If you use double-folding hinges, you can fold your light box for storage.)

This concludes the excerpt from my ebook on how to build a photo light box. My ebook also has a section in it which covers light tents.

I sell this ebook on Booklocker.com for only $16.99. This ebook is in PDF format so that it can be read on both PC and Mac computers.

Jim Juris

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Copyright © 2009 Jim Juris - All Rights Reserved

Ebook cover created by Josh Ingerling. Please visit his web site at Pydigor.com