Lightbox for do-it-yourself product photography. Let's make a light box together with our own hands. Outdoor advertising: how to attract attention
Do you do handicrafts and need high-quality photographs of your products? Or are you simply interested in object photography, but are still at an amateur level and don’t have all the necessary tools for this? Be that as it may, your faithful assistant will be lightbox made.
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This item has many names - “photobox”, “photocube”, “light box”. Call it what you want, but having made a lightbox with your own hands, you will understand that this is an impromptu mini-studio with which you can get high-quality photos at home. Lightbox is a cube, on five sides of which white or loose fabric is stretched. They diffuse light and eliminate harsh shadows, which allows the viewer to focus their attention directly on the subject of photography.
What to make a light box from?
To make a light box you will need the following materials:
DIY photobox. Master classes
Lightbox out of the box
The size of the box will depend on what you are going to shoot. If these are miniature products, for example, jewelry, then you don’t need a large box. It will simply take up extra space. But if you are shooting various products for an online store, then it is better to use a larger base.
Photobox made of plastic pipes
Another way to make a photo box with your own hands is this is the use of plastic pipes. This method is more complex and will require certain skills and tools, but this box looks much more aesthetically pleasing.
Foam light box
The simplest and most practical light box You can make it yourself from sheets of foam plastic, such as those used for finishing ceilings. You will need four sheets in total.
- Using tape, glue three sheets of polystyrene together with the letter P. That is, you should get the back and side walls.
- Place another sheet on top, but attach it only to one of the sides so that it looks like a lid, and the top sheet opens and closes.
- Open the top side and attach the paper to the back wall. You can simply bend the sheet a little and it will already adhere to the frame. The paper should be of such a size that it also covers the bottom of the photo box. Close the top to keep the light out.
- Install the lamps.
The practicality of such a light box is that if the paper is dirty, you want to change the background color or make it textured, then just open the top wall and attach another sheet. In the same way, you can hang various decor that will complement the composition.
Using this master class, you can make a cheaper version of a lightbox from thick paper, such as watercolor paper, cardboard or wooden planks.
Ready-made lightboxes cost several hundred dollars, but by spending a minimum of money and effort, you can make a small photo studio at home with your own hands. The most expensive of all materials will be good light bulbs with bright white light. For high-quality photographs, you shouldn’t skimp on light.
With photobox you no longer have to wait for good sunny weather and shoot only in daylight. And the time for processing photos will be significantly reduced. There is no need to adjust white balance, contrast, remove sharp shadows or, as happens in some cases, completely change the background, which requires special skills when working in graphic editors. Another advantage is that the quality of the photo will not be affected by surrounding objects, which can sometimes greatly distort the colors of the photographed object.
If you use a light box and know how to correctly compose compositions, then even pictures taken on a mobile phone will not be much different from studio photos. So not worth spending a lot of money on something that you can easily do with your own hands using detailed master classes.
Just a few years ago, a lightbox was a luxury available primarily to professional photographers. Their various models are widely represented on the photography market, although they remain not as publicly available in cost as we would like.
However, in everyday life, a lightbox is necessary not only for professionals, but also for people who tend to bring any undertaking to perfection, including product photography.
Are you a chef and dream of posting high-quality photos of your culinary masterpieces on your blog? Or perhaps you are a young parent and would like to capture every creation of your baby for a family photo album? Take photos of souvenirs from their distant countries to tell your friends about them. Collect an electronic catalog of your own library or set up an art studio from your paintings online.
In any case, you will need your own miniature photo studio, and today we will tell you how to set it up by making a lightbox with your own hands without using expensive materials and tools.
If you dive a little into the theory, a lightbox or light box (light box), as it is also called, is a mini photo studio, a semi-closed area with a uniform background and the most even lighting over its entire surface. Thus, the background element and light play a key role here, and everything else is frame parts that can be made from almost any available material. In our case, cardboard.
We chose cardboard for completely rational reasons. First of all, it is the cheapest and most easily available material. It is lightweight and can be easily folded for transport when filming outside your home or studio. In addition, we will use a ready-made box with its own structure, which will save us time and imagination for further creative activities.
So, in order to make a lightbox you will need:
1. Materials:
Cardboard box;
- scotch;
- a sheet of Whatman paper in A3 format for the background;
- a piece of white fabric (not too dense so that the material allows light to pass through);
- two or three table lamps on flexible legs with cold light.
2. Tools:
- ruler or construction tape;
- stationery knife;
- a stapler powerful enough to work with cardboard or a glue gun;
- scissors;
- marker or pencil.
Step 1: making the frame
If you decide to use an A3 sheet of Whatman paper as a background, you will need a box 40 cm high, 50 cm wide and 30 cm deep. If you don’t have a box of a suitable size, visit the nearest postal carrier offices to pack the goods They offer customers a wide range of cardboard containers of all shapes and sizes.
Ultimately, your job in preparing the box is to leave the supporting structure and remove all excess, arranging windows in all walls except the bottom and back wall, which will give the product additional rigidity.
Use a marker to mark the location of future windows. The cardboard that you leave along the contour, on the one hand, should serve as a supporting structure, and on the other, not interfere with the penetration of light into the lightbox. So find the necessary compromise without cutting too much from the box.
Cut out the window openings using a ruler and a sharp utility knife.
Please note that during the work process, the edge of an already properly prepared frame may break, which in our case is more than undesirable. Therefore, proceed carefully and carefully. However, if such a small trouble does occur, you should not throw away the box. Simply reinforce the fold line with a piece of cardboard using a glue gun.
Cover the edges of the cardboard box with tape to protect the lightbox from minor mechanical damage. In addition, the tape will give the finished product a more finished and aesthetic appearance.
Step 2: covering the frame with fabric
A sheet is quite suitable as a material for the walls of a lightbox. In any case, the main thing here is that the material is not too thin or too thick and that it transmits light properly.
You will stretch the fabric from the inside and onto those walls in which the windows are made, since it does not play the role of a background, but belongs to the lighting element. Thus, you will need three pieces of fabric: for two side parts, and also for the top of the lightbox if you plan to use overhead lighting during the shooting process.
Mark and cut pieces of fabric to the required size. If it is not possible to overcast the edges of the fabric, leave a little seam allowance, fold the edges and sew them by hand or sew them on a machine so that they do not fray. If you do overcast the fabric, there is little point in leaving excess for seam allowances. Everything will look neat anyway.
Stretch and secure the fabric evenly on the inner surface of the openings. To do this, use a stapler or glue gun.
Step 3: Setting the Background
This is by far the easiest step of all, since all that remains is to place the sheet of Whatman paper in place. But we will still allow ourselves some advice.
Firstly, we strongly recommend not limiting yourself to a white background, but purchasing several multi-colored Whatman paper at once and experimenting a little. In any case, sometimes you simply cannot do without a black background, so you should pay special attention to it.
Secondly, for the convenience of the work process, it is better to fasten a sheet of whatman paper at the top and, if desired, at the bottom with a stapler or in any other way, so that it does not slide or bend under the pressure of exhibits for photographing.
Before you start making a lightbox, think again about the size of the photographic area that will suit you. If the lightbox turns out to be too small, you will constantly go beyond the boundaries of whatman paper, and everything unnecessary in the photo will have to be erased using a photo editor. With a large number of processed photos, this takes quite a lot of time.
Step 4: Lighting Installation
For lighting, we used street projectors, which were mounted on a frame made of metal construction corners. You can use table lamps or clip-on lamps. However, make sure that the light in all of them is in the cold spectrum.
It would be better if these were LED lamps that do not heat up and that can be safely placed close to the fabric without fear of burning the house down. If you use incandescent lamps, do not leave the lightbox active unattended to prevent a fire, and do not place the lamps too close to fabric or cardboard.
Please note that there is also a lighting window at the top of the lightbox and you can use a third light source without any problems. This will greatly improve the overall lighting and reduce shadows if necessary.
Lightbox is ready. We just have to add that in order to shoot with it, it is not necessary to have any professional skills and abilities. Every photographer starts somewhere and learns new things in the process of the next shooting, since professionals are not born, but made.
Therefore, get to work quickly, and we have no doubt that such a lightbox will find use in the hands of any lucky person who has already acquired a camera.
How to make a lightbox with your own hands aslan wrote in March 5th, 2017
A lightbox is a box that scatters light inside itself, reflects it from the walls, and is used for product photography. We will assemble according to this magnificent, complex drawing.
Here, in fact, are the sheets of foam plastic from which the lightbox is made. I bought it at Leroy for 70 rubles.
We cut them into 35*35 squares. 7 pieces. Why 7 if the cube has 6 faces? This is the same question I asked myself when I saw 7 squares in my hands. In one of the squares we cut a hole through which the shooting will be carried out.
Using corners from the same Leroy and glue, we glue all this into a cube. Except for the front wall with a hole.
We fasten the front wall from above with hinges. That's all. So that you can always flip it up and dig around inside.
Inside, we smooth out the lower joint with a sheet of whatman paper. Glue it like this.
I recommend a couple more improvements inside. A magnet at the top of the back wall (two magnets, one glued, the other not) so that you can change the background by attaching it like this, and a magnet stuck on top, on which you can magnetize a hook for hanging pendants. Why magnet? You can then twist it however you like. This is optional.
Result:
Now the lighting. I wanted the installation to be adjustable, dismountable and CHEAP.
Therefore, I bought 2 of the cheapest 10-watt spotlights and two 20-watt spotlights. A couple of PVC pipes, corners and all sorts of related parts. We collect according to this scheme:
Using a hacksaw we cut off what we need. Heating the end of the pipe in a circle to the point of “damn, it’s time to go,” we squeeze them into the corners. They still won’t stick together, because to do this you need to heat both parts at the same time, and I don’t have a device, so don’t, so please. Therefore, they will fly out of there, but we will decide this.
The pipes look like this after squeezing
We cut the corners going to the vertical posts as shown, and put clamps with wings on them. I'll tell you why later. We screw all other fastening points with self-tapping screws so that they do not fall apart.
Insert vertical beams. For aesthetics, we seal them on top with plugs. It is very important.
We take fasteners. We measure the required distance and screw them to the spotlight. Of course, when calculating the design, it is necessary to take into account the distance between the mounting holes on the spotlight brackets.
I won’t dwell on the topic of electrical connections; if anyone is unable to connect two wires, then they definitely haven’t read this far.
Let's fasten it!
Everything is adjustable, everything is reliable, everything can be disassembled!
And this is how everything is assembled. Small spotlights for touches.
Remove a little light, add a little. You can put it right on top.
But these are the shots we get. Filmed on a phone, without processing, and the phone is not the coolest (Xiaomi)
Lightbox translated from English is a light box. It is widely used as an element of outdoor advertising and signage. In many cities, lightboxes are installed in such numbers that street lamps can be abandoned.
The advantages of such a carrier are obvious: high reliability, low cost of production. However, the price of the finished product starts from several hundred dollars.
Making a lightbox with your own hands using LEDs will significantly save your budget.
LED light box design
Some manufacturers, under the guise of new technologies, use economically unjustified production solutions, for example, PVC reflectors, light modules based on a large number of LED clusters. This significantly increases the cost of the design without significantly affecting the performance characteristics.
Let's consider a simple and affordable lightbox design.
To make your own lightbox we will need:
- A sheet of thin (8-10 mm) acrylic glass with a minimum refractive index;
- frame materials;
- fastening elements (connecting angles, self-tapping screws);
- high brightness LED strip;
- PVC sheet for back and side walls;
- tools (drill, screwdriver, saw).
Frame design
The frame must provide good structural rigidity. For small-sized structures, you can even use an ordinary board or furniture board as a super-budget option.
When making more massive lightboxes, it is better to use a steel or aluminum profile. The main thing is to ensure that the structure is weather-resistant if the box is located outdoors.
Front Panel
To make the front panel, transparent materials are used - silicate glass, acrylic glass, transparent PVC sheet. PVC has the lowest refractive index, but also the highest price.
The most practical option is acrylic glass. It is more expensive than silicate, but much more resistant to shocks and loads. However, when creating a small box with an area of up to 0.5 square meters, it is possible to use ordinary window glass with a thickness of 3-4 mm.
Light box housing
The cases of all lightboxes are made of sheet polyvinyl chloride (PVC). In terms of price/reliability ratio, this material is unrivaled.
The main requirement for the material is sufficient mechanical strength, light resistance, resistance to weather conditions and protection of the internal contents of the box.
Design of light-emitting elements
To illuminate the light box, LED modules or LED strip are used. With the advent of compact strips of increased brightness, the use of LED modules is not economically profitable.
In order to provide uniform illumination, the LED strip is mounted in one or two rows along the inner perimeter of the box. The inside of the box itself must be covered with materials with a high reflective coefficient. You can consider using ordinary white glossy paint or white self-adhesive film for this purpose.
Light box manufacturing procedure:
The driving element of marketing is advertising. Moreover, outdoor advertising plays a big role in modern society, which today is implemented in a variety of ways, as well as with lighting installations. At this point in time, lighting devices such as advertising light boxes are very often used for outdoor advertising. With their help, you can even make advertising yourself.
Having correctly selected this kind of lighting device, you can attract the attention of potential buyers to your product or service with just outdoor advertising. Our article today will help you understand how to make the right choice.
Description of the light box
A lightbox or light box is a monolithic hollow structure that can be equipped with one or two light-transmitting panels. An advertising image or text is placed on them. A backlight is placed between the back and front panels.
This lighting device actually looks like a box, which is illuminated from the inside. The external design of the lamp itself can be absolutely anything, since the list of goods and services offered in modern society is simply huge.
It is worth noting that such lighting products on the advertising market are represented by several types. Most often they are divided into two types:
- unilateral. They are illuminated, as the name suggests, only on one side. All electrical equipment here is mounted in the rear of the panel. Typically, such outdoor advertising panels are placed on the facades of a building;
Single sided light box
- double sided Such products are illuminated, respectively, from both sides. In this situation, electrical equipment is placed inside the lightbox using additional rails. Therefore, the most rational placement would be to place them on the roadway or sidewalk. This is, in fact, a separate advertising stand. They can be placed on the roofs of buildings, as well as on the facades. For their installation, special fasteners should be used.
Note! Single- and double-sided box options can have a wide variety of shapes. But it is most rational to use round, rectangular and square models.
Double sided light box
Among the possible variations of double-sided illuminated advertising panels, floor and hanging varieties are distinguished.
Such products often contain navigational information. Therefore, they can be found at train stations, shopping centers, and exhibition pavilions.
In addition, there are also ultra-thin interior lightboxes. Ultra-thin models can be as thin as 26mm. To control the backlight of such panels, a remote control is used. Such outdoor advertising boxes are used in shop windows, exhibition and sales halls, as well as in offices.
Ultra-thin light panels
Ultra-thin panels are attached using aluminum overlays. When you click them, it becomes possible to replace the advertising message in just a couple of minutes.
Non-standard lightboxes include panels with various shapes. Moreover, they can be made even in volumetric or figured form. Such advertising objects are becoming increasingly popular today.
Curly lightbox
For their manufacture, the vacuum molding method is used. This method is considered the most technologically advanced. Both panels (front and back) in this method are produced on a vacuum forming machine. And the box itself turns out to be monolithic, without darkening, gaps and cracks.
Choosing the right one
With such a variety of options for illuminated advertising panels, it is very difficult to decide on their type. Therefore, if you want to make high-quality outdoor advertising with your own hands, which will most likely lead you to the desired result, you need to be guided by several criteria:
- correct definition of the purpose of advertising: attracting new clients to advertise a new product, expanding the client base for an already promoted brand, etc.;
- lightbox location;
- presence/absence of the need for frequent replacement of the advertising content of the box;
- your budget allocated for the advertising campaign.
These are the main points that will help you quickly identify the most optimal options for each specific case from the entire proposal. But in order for your purchase to last as long as possible and attract as many new customers as possible, the material from which the light box is made plays a big role in the choice.
Remember, people’s greatest attention is attracted to non-standard shaped panels that are brightly and colorfully lit.
What is used to create lightboxes
Lightbox structure
Let's look at the most common materials:
- plastic. Today everything is made from plastic. Therefore, this material is also quite popular in the outdoor advertising market. This is a budget-friendly option that is used by all beginning entrepreneurs. The disadvantage of this material is the limited dimensions of the products (maximum 2x4 m);
Plastic lightbox
- aluminum profile. It is quite an effective material for this kind of construction, since it makes the boxes look more expensive and more solid. Using the powder coating method, aluminum profiles can be given any color;
Note! Aluminum profile can be used for the manufacture of interior and exterior lightboxes.
Aluminum lightbox
- metal frame and galvanized sheets with profile pipes. Here the side cladding is made using a metal sheet. This material will give the entire structure solidity. Most often, metal sheets are used to create panels with a translucent banner.
Metal lightbox
In this case, the following materials can be used for the front part of the structure:
- acrylic glass (light-diffusing plexiglass) milky color. Typically the glass thickness ranges from 1 to 6 mm. It is selected according to the size of the glass. The dimensions of the glass are 2x3 m, and the length is 4 and 6 meters;
- cellular polycarbonate. Used very often. Dimensions of one sheet - 12x2 m;
- monolithic polycarbonate. Used in situations where it is necessary to provide the structure with anti-vandal protection;
- polystyrene For lightboxes, it is produced using vacuum molding.
Cellular and monolithic polycarbonate
In addition, translucent banner fabric is applied to the material on the front side of the light box. It is a light-diffusing reinforced fabric, which is characterized by light transmission in natural light, as well as in artificial lighting at night. It is applied using silk-screen printing and high-quality inkjet printing. It is impossible to do such an application with your own hands. Therefore, if you are trying to make an outdoor advertising box with your own hands, then at this stage you will need the help of professionals.
Be that as it may, when creating light boxes with your own hands or ordering them from a manufacturer, you must remember that the surface of the back and front sides must remain smooth. This makes the entire structure more attractive, stylish and presentable.
The advertising image carrier in lightboxes is vinyl film.
Vinyl film
This material has a wide range of colors, as well as various characteristics (light-blocking, metallized, fluorescent, etc.).
The features of each type of material should be taken into account when ordering from a manufacturer or making it yourself.
Lighting organization
In addition to its attractive appearance, the lightbox should also have high-quality lighting. Otherwise, you will not be able to carry out your promotion at the proper level.
Lightbox backlight option
Lighting of light boxes can be of two options:
- frontal. Assumes uniform placement of light sources behind the front panels of the structure;
- end In this situation, the light sources will be attached to the side profiles.
To create any type of lightbox illumination, you can use the following types of light sources:
- fluorescent light bulbs. Such light sources are considered the most rational solution if there is a front lighting option. They are used in situations where there are restrictions regarding dimensions, and there are no special requirements for the quality of the illuminated image. It should not be forgotten that such light bulbs have a number of disadvantages;
Fluorescent Lamp
- neon tubes. Such light sources are suitable for boxes of various sizes. They provide brighter light than fluorescent light sources, but are much more expensive. In addition, they are also characterized by certain shortcomings that negatively affect the entire structure as a whole;
Neon tubes
- LED light bulbs. This is the best option for illuminating outdoor advertising. Led does not have the disadvantages that the previous two light sources have. Such light bulbs consume a minimum of electricity, which is very beneficial when illuminating a structure for a long time every day during the night. But do not forget that for all its advantages, LED backlighting is quite expensive.
Light
Which type of lighting to choose depends only on your financial capabilities and desires.
What are lightboxes used for?
The use of light boxes is often found in the advertising industry today. Such structures can perform the following functions:
- advertise a product or service;
- be navigation;
- for decorating building facades, avenues and streets;
- as a branding tool - creating a high-quality, bright and memorable image.
Today, lightboxes are the most popular type of outdoor advertising.
