randyc Posted June 25, 2020 Share Posted June 25, 2020 (edited) This may not work for some folks who are more demanding than me. But I needed more than poster board to do photos for here and eBay. So the wife picked up 4 pieces of foam board at the DG. I did some basic knock ups and planned this. First time, I taped it up backwards. I.e. large at the rear. That would work as well. The. T Bird is a1/18 Ertl diecast, so there is plenty of room. Light source is 3 incandescent bulbs in a ceiling fan. Built it on the dining room table. Looks like it will work well enough with most any light source for basic needs. Final version small at back. Looks like my lens was smudgy. Looks clearer on my phone than this. Apologies. 1/24 Danbury Mint 57 Dodge truck. This is the original version. It works as well, maybe better? Held together with duct tape and clear packing tape. Walls are cut back from the front edge to allow better access and still have white all around in photos. 1/18 T Bird in final version - you can see more seams than the original. I did caulk them after photos. Sidewalls and back are tapered to "funnel" in light. Original didn't have tapers. Original version - large at rear - only one seam showing. Final version overall Both cars in original version Fuzzy photo, original version. Might have worked better. Edited June 25, 2020 by randyc Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TransAmMike Posted June 26, 2020 Share Posted June 26, 2020 I really like that idea. Can you give me an idea of the dimensions? Was thinking too, could put some kind of road or checkered material on the bottom. Could be made removable for different patterns or just white. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
randyc Posted June 26, 2020 Author Share Posted June 26, 2020 11 hours ago, TransAmMike said: I really like that idea. Can you give me an idea of the dimensions? Was thinking too, could put some kind of road or checkered material on the bottom. Could be made removable for different patterns or just white. Hmmm, dimensions? I have no idea. The bottom is as deep as a sheet of foam board. The back is about 12 wide. front is 21" mayber? I just kinda made it up as I went. Kinda like how I model, lol. back wall is as tall as a sheet of foamboard, whcih may be a bit tall I found last night when I actually used it on my work bench. Also the outward taper made it a bit inconventient with my work light over bench. Lights nice though. Sides were just a taper down a few inches. I can get more exact dimensions if you need them though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SCRWDRVR Posted June 26, 2020 Share Posted June 26, 2020 I did this a while back works pretty good too, I like the way you opened the walls up to give you more opportunity for angles Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave Van Posted June 26, 2020 Share Posted June 26, 2020 It looks great....the only thing I might add is getting some large format light gray paper from store like Hobby Lobby. I've done some photo work for books and the gray shows better....the white is almost to bright. I attach the paper to the foam core board. Just an idea!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TransAmMike Posted June 26, 2020 Share Posted June 26, 2020 Gonna try to get some material today on my once a week shopping trip. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Deuces ll Posted June 27, 2020 Share Posted June 27, 2020 Cool ideas guys... Thank you! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
randyc Posted June 29, 2020 Author Share Posted June 29, 2020 (edited) I don't think there is a wrong idea. Mine just has to work well with whatever light source is above it. I like the gray paper photo posted, but worried it might darken up too much with my questionable lights. But... when the foam board gets grungy, that might be an alternative if the booth hasn't fallen apart by then. I have discovered over hte weekend that mine is a bit unwieldy to store and handle. Requires a lot of workbench space. Mighta coulda done better there. I've already cut the front edge off - too wide for workbench. I crudelylopped it off at edge of bench top with a sharp pocketknife. Height may be next. Awfully tall. One last tip - make sure your lens is clean. I think mine is probably smudged with finger oils. Common issue with cell phone cameras. Please post up others for everyone to get ideas from. Edited June 29, 2020 by randyc Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TransAmMike Posted June 29, 2020 Share Posted June 29, 2020 I bought the foam board at Doller Tree. Made mine like "SCRWDRVR " did. Very simple to make and works just fine. Only used one board. Sure glad I looked at this thread. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Deuces ll Posted June 29, 2020 Share Posted June 29, 2020 Pictures????..... ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
randyc Posted June 30, 2020 Author Share Posted June 30, 2020 Cool. That's what it's about. Finding ways that work best. I might wish I had done that other way as well. But if I change my mind, I'm out what? $4 and an hour of time? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tom Geiger Posted June 30, 2020 Share Posted June 30, 2020 I’ve seen guys who set flexible poster board as a sweep, that is as an arc with no visible seam. I think I’d go more that direction. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
peteski Posted July 1, 2020 Share Posted July 1, 2020 12 hours ago, Tom Geiger said: I’ve seen guys who set flexible poster board as a sweep, that is as an arc with no visible seam. I think I’d go more that direction. That is what I use, for in-progress and for beauty shots. This is my in-progress setup. For beauty shots use larger sheets and different lighting setup. I use flat aluminum bars from Home Depot, which I curved to hold the background (a Mi-Teintes sheet from Michael's). I have multiple colors, but I usually use the one shown in the photo. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
randyc Posted July 1, 2020 Author Share Posted July 1, 2020 20 hours ago, Tom Geiger said: I’ve seen guys who set flexible poster board as a sweep, that is as an arc with no visible seam. I think I’d go more that direction. Did that, but in my case, it gets creases, dirt, paint spatter (!) etc. on it. Plus you have to be careful shooting to keep the stuff to the sides. So I wanted to make me a little booth where no matter what was adjacent, it wouldn't be in my photo. 7 hours ago, peteski said: That is what I use, for in-progress and for beauty shots. This is my in-progress setup. For beauty shots use larger sheets and different lighting setup. I use flat aluminum bars from Home Depot, which I curved to hold the background (a Mi-Teintes sheet from Michael's). I have multiple colors, but I usually use the one shown in the photo. I"m just no that fancy or thoughtful. I take my prgress shots mostly wherever they occur. No camera, no tripod. I passed that part of my life years ago. I admire you guys who are able to be organized like that. Just never works for me and I'm ok with that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tom Geiger Posted July 1, 2020 Share Posted July 1, 2020 2 hours ago, randyc said: I"m just no that fancy or thoughtful. I take my prgress shots mostly wherever they occur. No camera, no tripod. I passed that part of my life years ago. I admire you guys who are able to be organized like that. Just never works for me and I'm ok with that. My progress shots are mostly taken on the work bench. Final shots are usually outdoors with my backyard as a backdrop. My base is a board I painted with Floquil model railroad pavement textured spray. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
randyc Posted July 1, 2020 Author Share Posted July 1, 2020 Yep, the workbench shot mostly works for me as well. And your outdoor deal looks great! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
peteski Posted July 1, 2020 Share Posted July 1, 2020 7 hours ago, randyc said: I"m just no that fancy or thoughtful. I take my prgress shots mostly wherever they occur. No camera, no tripod. I passed that part of my life years ago. I admire you guys who are able to be organized like that. Just never works for me and I'm ok with that. I jus posted my setup to show a curved backdrop. It is not very large and sits on a piece of wood, so I can move it easily. As you can see, I use my regular workbench magnifier fluprescent lamp as the light source (I swing it fromo my workbench to the photo stage for takign pictures. The tripod is needed because I'm using that single 30W fluorescent magnifier light as a light source, and my 15-year-old Nikon camera needs long exposures (at the smallest aperture). Often a second or longer. I can't hold the camera steady that long. That camera takes awesome macro photos, and I have no smart phone with sensitive camera, it is the only choice I have. It is really not that fancy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
randyc Posted July 2, 2020 Author Share Posted July 2, 2020 18 hours ago, peteski said: I jus posted my setup to show a curved backdrop. It is not very large and sits on a piece of wood, so I can move it easily. As you can see, I use my regular workbench magnifier fluprescent lamp as the light source (I swing it fromo my workbench to the photo stage for takign pictures. The tripod is needed because I'm using that single 30W fluorescent magnifier light as a light source, and my 15-year-old Nikon camera needs long exposures (at the smallest aperture). Often a second or longer. I can't hold the camera steady that long. That camera takes awesome macro photos, and I have no smart phone with sensitive camera, it is the only choice I have. It is really not that fancy. I wouldn't have admitted all that! LOL It LOOKS impressive from what I'm used to doing. I bought a first gen digital camera - ugh what a wreck those photos look like now. Like watching VHS - no offense to those that do - I can't look at that anymore. And I'm not a tech geek by any means. Just got to a point where my phone takes better photos than having to maintain a camera and accessories. Nice setup Peteski, no matter how low tech it seems to you. I would like to have my booth set up like that where I could swing a light over and focus the light where it is needed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
peteski Posted July 2, 2020 Share Posted July 2, 2020 (edited) My first digital camera was a CASIO QV-200 I bought in late '90s. It used AA batteries for power. Built-in 4MB (not GB) memory. Photos could be taken at 320x240 (0.06 megapixel) or at the high-res of 640x480 (0.3 megapixel) ! Photos were uploaded to the PC via a serial COM port (not USB) connection! The Nikon Coolpix I'm still using is an 8 megapixel camera. That was right a the highest photo resolution for cameras back then. It uses CF cards and has a magnesium alloy metal body. When it first came out, it was in the "Prosumer" range, and cost over $700. I bought it to take model photos at my model club's contest, to be submitted to the Scale Auto and Model Car magazine. it is a great camera for model photos. Nowadays they show up on eBay for less than $100. Edited July 2, 2020 by peteski Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bugatti Fan Posted July 10, 2020 Share Posted July 10, 2020 (edited) I use a little Panasonic Lumia LX3 Compact, bought when it first came out. They are available quite inexpensively now second hand. It is a nice little high quality camera with a fast Leica lens. In fact Leica marketed their own brand camera that was virtually identical to mine at a much higher price at the time. Besides tripod use at home, it is a great camera and the fasr lens comes into its own at shows in average light to avoid camera shake when used without the flash. It can be set for the lighting source in the building, Edited July 10, 2020 by Bugatti Fan Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
randyc Posted July 10, 2020 Author Share Posted July 10, 2020 My first digi was a Kodak 1MP. That's all I remember about it. Had others over the years that I don't remember. Love the TWAIN driver. LOL Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tom Geiger Posted July 10, 2020 Share Posted July 10, 2020 My first camera was a Sony Mavica FD85. I paid some $800 for it and soon earned that back selling things on eBay with the photos. This one used the floppy disks which I thought was brilliant at the time. At high density about 25 pictures per disk, so I always had a pocket full at model shows. I eventually bought a newer model Mavica with a memory stick. I thought these cameras were brilliant and bought them for the engineering department at work. Today I just use the camera in my iPhone. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
peteski Posted July 10, 2020 Share Posted July 10, 2020 3 hours ago, Tom Geiger said: Today I just use the camera in my iPhone. So do most smart-phone owners. Except for professional DSLRs, most other digital cameras are quickly becoming obsolete. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rodent Posted July 10, 2020 Share Posted July 10, 2020 I have a Pixel 3 that takes amazing photos and videos, even in low light. It can occasionally be used to make calls and look up Hobby Lobby coupons as well. ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Miatatom Posted August 4, 2020 Share Posted August 4, 2020 I use a 18" x 18" x20" box from Walmart (about $2) Cut out 4 sides and covered 3 with white paper used in gift wrappings, to diffuse the light. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.