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How to build a cheap collapsible DIY light box

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Clear, well-lit photos of your projects are among the best ways to share your work with others. Few techniques highlight your project as well as an all white light box with soft, even, shadow-free lighting. Not only is the white background distraction free, it will also serve to bounce your light source onto your object from nearly all angles.

This is an effective, inexpensive, and easy way to build a light box for project and product photography. Plus, you can quickly break it down for flat storage, and set it back up in seconds!

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5 DIY tricks every filmmaker should know

We are DIYPhotography, but we love DIY solutions for moviemaking equally. After all, many of them can be applied to photography as well. Ryan Connolly from Film Riot gives you a list of top five (plus a bonus) DIY solutions for every filmmaker. They are cheap and simple, but don’t let it fool you – they can up your filmmaking game pretty well.

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How to make camera obscura from two cardboard boxes

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Hello, my name is Tom Waitzman. I made a simple and cheap camera obscura using two cardboard boxes, and I’d like to share the build with you.

Two boxes. Tall one is 10″ tall and 5.5″ wide. Small box is 6″ tall and 5″ wide. They are both open on the bottom. Small box has tracing paper taped to one end.

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Make a cheap and easy DIY turntable for 360° product photography and video

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If you make a lot of product shots, especially with small items, I’ve found a wonderful DIY build for you. It’s a turntable you can make yourself, it requires no motor and it’s super-cheap. You’ll spend around $20 and a couple of minutes to make it, and get great results.

Motorized turntables for product photography are not that expensive (around $100). But if you can make your own for 5 times less money and in just a few minutes – why wouldn’t you? Jordan Carrasquillo of New Amsterdam Photo Video shows you how to build this great solution for 360 product videos and photos, along with some shooting and editing tips.

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How you can make a “canvas style” backdrop for £20!

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Guys! Check this out! I own a fair few Gravity Backdrops and absolutely love them to pieces, but the problem I have is time. Sometimes I don’t have the time or the space to setup the canvas backdrop, 2 stands, cross bar, and multiple clips.

So when I’m looking for a quick access but still believable test shot, I needed a cheap alternative to go to.

Check out the result! (I know it’s dark, that’s just my style :D).

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How to make the world’s largest DIY LED panel

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Have you ever wondered how big and bright an LED panel can get? Matt from DIY Perks has, and he decided to do something more than just imagine it. He created something that can easily be the world’s largest DIY LED panel. In this video, he shows us the process of making. And when he does it, it seems quite easy.

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This solar power solution lasted 14 days of shooting in the Himalayas

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Imagine using your phone every day and not being able recharge it. Scary, right? Now imagine a filmmaker, who needs to use his cameras all the time, spending 14 days without power. An India-based filmmaker George Thengummoottil was in this exact situation while shooting in the Himalayas. But he didn’t go unprepared. He created a custom-made solar charger using only three components.

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How to make a studio shoot look like a location shoot

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I just finished up a handful of promotional shots with actor Levi Fiehler and it went well. One of our shots was an odd editorial photo with a him sitting next to a head in a box.. because hey, why not?! I used a hand painted backdrop and a faux wood floor and I lit it dark and moody. I was happy with the way it turned out except for one factor. I wish it didn’t look like it was shot with a studio backdrop. If it looked like it was on location, the shot might work better. The only “giveaway” that it was done in a studio was the roll at the bottom of the backdrop. So I realized if I put a piece of wood molding along the bottom of the backdrop, it would look like a wall and a floor instead of a backdrop and a floor.

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Get Hauntingly-Beautiful Images with This Homemade Camera Lens

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It’s been my experience that I enjoy working with things more when I create them myself.  And, for the sake of argument, we’ll say you feel the same way, too.  Which is why I can only imaging that you would enjoy photography that much more if you crafted your own gear.

Instructables user bertwert has been looking for an excuse to break out the duct tape and incorporate it into photography in a manner that didn’t result in the Mounties being called.  Using a toilet paper roll, some old glass, and a little measuring, he was able to construct a usable homemade camera lens that yielded some hauntingly beautiful results.

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Create an Epic DIY Battery Charging Station For Your Gear

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Charging batteries is an everyday part of the 21st-century photographer’s life.  While we shared earlier today how to prevent a battery fire, this little bit of awesome may do just the opposite.  (Okay, so, not really…)

The video production team at Vimeo put together a great tutorial on how they constructed the most epic battery charging station in recent history.

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