NyarlaBcn Posted March 22, 2018 Share Posted March 22, 2018 (edited) I've been struggling to take good photos for months, since I joined the forum. The light was wrong, or the background, or out of focus. Recently I bought something that really helped me. A photo box for close up photos: I guess we really don't need such a thing to take good ones, but overall, I'm happy with the results. That way I don't have to worry that much for the light and the background. Besides that, I still use just my iphone to take the photos, so they are still far from good: and since the light on the photo box comes from white leds, sometimes it's a bit burnt. Judge yourselves. EDIT: here I was talking about that thing I bought and I haven't seen that there is a post about how to build your own :s sorry for kind of a redundance. Anyway, that one cost me about 20$ and I guess it's main advantage is it folds completely Edited March 22, 2018 by NyarlaBcn 9 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
slash486 Posted April 2, 2018 Share Posted April 2, 2018 Nice! What's the brand name? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gadgetman! Posted April 3, 2018 Share Posted April 3, 2018 Don't know that model, but similar ones can be had for the same or lower price on The Bay of E. I sometimes use a pop-up 'light tent', a cube of semi-transparent material that's a pain in the ... to fold back down. The big advantage to mine is that light is diffused through the walls. Trying to use a Hanger 18 backdrop in it though, is a bit of a pain, really. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ludo Posted April 3, 2018 Share Posted April 3, 2018 I've got the same box! I do have to put minis on pedestal to help with shadows. I also have trouble with the photo coming out too blue. (I've got some Hangar 18 backdrops I need to trim down and try.) I flip my phone upside down so that the camera lens on the bottom to get a more straight on and steady shot. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WhiteWulfe Posted April 3, 2018 Share Posted April 3, 2018 (edited) Oh my, I'm so going to have to get some of those Hangar 18 backdrops that have been mentioned. Oh my, they're gorgeous. I like the idea of the light box, but I've been tempted to just get an inexpensive umbrella on posts setup, or the slightly more expensive soft box solutions... Edited April 3, 2018 by WhiteWulfe Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gadgetman! Posted April 3, 2018 Share Posted April 3, 2018 The Chinese soft boxes for sale on the Bay of E aren't all that expensive... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WhiteWulfe Posted April 3, 2018 Share Posted April 3, 2018 28 minutes ago, Gadgetman! said: The Chinese soft boxes for sale on the Bay of E aren't all that expensive... Nope, although annoyingly most are designed for flash, instead of constant light. I suspect if I looked longer I'd find everything I want on there .... Aka I'm really trying to hold out and just get a pair of Aputure HR-672's with soft boxes, but I suspect I could get four evilbay compact fluorescent kits for that cost... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cranky Dog Posted April 5, 2018 Share Posted April 5, 2018 (edited) On 4/3/2018 at 2:00 PM, Gadgetman! said: The Chinese soft boxes for sale on the Bay of E aren't all that expensive... With regards to Chinese products on eBay (that are inexpensive, but take a hell of long time to ship), you might as well go on Alibaba/Aliexpress for the same products. A lightbox/tent is also something I've been considering. I'll have to take into account the size of my Hangar 18 backdrops. Edited April 5, 2018 by Cranky Dog 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kengar Posted April 10, 2018 Share Posted April 10, 2018 I've been eyeing one on Epsilon Bay for about $15. It's listed as "Puluz 40 LED Folding" if you want to see it (didn't want to post an auction link). Any ideas if that's a model worth trying? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cranky Dog Posted April 10, 2018 Share Posted April 10, 2018 (edited) 2 hours ago, Kengar said: I've been eyeing one on Epsilon Bay for about $15. It's listed as "Puluz 40 LED Folding" if you want to see it (didn't want to post an auction link). Any ideas if that's a model worth trying? Hard to say as inexpensive generic photo boxes are now plentiful. If it has the right dimensions (meaning you can fit the backdrops you want) and LED light strips, it should do well enough. Edited April 10, 2018 by Cranky Dog 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Flit Posted April 11, 2018 Share Posted April 11, 2018 I bought one of these on Amazon but the lights didn't work. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kangaroorex Posted May 22, 2019 Share Posted May 22, 2019 May be the wrong place but I am sure the moderators will move it if necessary. I have an use a light box but I have a bit of an issue. trying to take pictures of anything with a depth of more than a couple of inches (so I have learned) requires me to back up far enough that the area surrounding the lightbox is included. since this includes the lights, this really messes up the lighting in the picture. as well as the color. the lightbox is fine for small single minis but its beginning to get aggravating for dioramas or small group photos. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Doug Sundseth Posted May 22, 2019 Share Posted May 22, 2019 2 minutes ago, Kangaroorex said: May be the wrong place but I am sure the moderators will move it if necessary. I have an use a light box but I have a bit of an issue. trying to take pictures of anything with a depth of more than a couple of inches (so I have learned) requires me to back up far enough that the area surrounding the lightbox is included. since this includes the lights, this really messes up the lighting in the picture. as well as the color. the lightbox is fine for small single minis but its beginning to get aggravating for dioramas or small group photos. That area should be cropped before showing the photo anyway, so the only issue would be light pollution. To solve that, put "flags" (cardboard sheets work well) between the lights and the camera. I would also recommend using manual exposure rather than an automated exposure if you start getting lighting issues. But as I've said elsewhere, I don't find light boxes at all useful for miniatures photography. They are designed to bring light in from the top and sides when what you want to look at is the front. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fencig Posted May 29, 2019 Share Posted May 29, 2019 On 3/22/2018 at 8:04 AM, NyarlaBcn said: I've been struggling to take good photos for months, since I joined the forum. The light was wrong, or the background, or out of focus. Recently I bought something that really helped me. A photo box for close up photos: I guess we really don't need such a thing to take good ones, but overall, I'm happy with the results. That way I don't have to worry that much for the light and the background. Besides that, I still use just my iphone to take the photos, so they are still far from good: and since the light on the photo box comes from white leds, sometimes it's a bit burnt. Judge yourselves. actually thanks for posting as i have been struggling too and trying o decide whether to buy that very box. Based on some of the replies, looks like the answer will be no. Your photo looks good overall, but there is a hot-spot on his head and it's a problem i have been fighting for some time. Usually mine are much worse, lighter tones figures tend to glare badly and wash out or detract from the rest of the model. I got a buddy coming Friday who is was a professional photographer so hopefully he can help me. So far, he said " get a Scrim", what the heck is a scrim, well it's something expensive on E-bay for pros. It diffuses light to get rid of glare, which i get no matter if i use LED, iridescent, or daylight. Actually the old Iridescent with it's yellow light is the least problematic but it skews the colors badly. I'm going to make my own scrim, some Silk Organza stretched over a wooden hoop. I'll post back this weekend after i get a chance to try this. IT's really frustrating, hours and hours to paint a figure, it looks nice, then you take a pic and :( I also suspect the Black Background I'm using is not the best? I see better pics from people using light Brown and Beige, any comments on this? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Venun Posted August 14, 2019 Share Posted August 14, 2019 I bought the same thing, but with a LED underplate to create shadowless light. The underplate arrived yesterday and it is amazing. The box itself is still on the way however, can't wait to test it out! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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