As a long time Etsy addict, I understand first hand the importance of having beautiful photos. When you create things with intricate details like fibre crafts and miniatures it can be extremely difficult to capture the item in a way that is appealing to potential customers. I’m definitely more of an Etsy consumer but I do like to take photos of items I’ve made for friends just for my own records or for Instagram.

I’ve recently done some research on how to take better photos with the camera on my phone and this morning I took that research further by looking at DIY light boxes. When I realised just how easy it was going to be I decided to make one right away!

Materials:

A box that will accomodate the items you are likely to photograph – I used a leftover box from our move affectionately known as a “bookee” by our removalists.

A craft/utility knife

Ruler – I actually had to switch to a smaller ruler halfway through the project)

Tape – I used white packing tape but you will need to make sure that whatever tape you’re using will stick to your diffusing paper.

A large piece of white paper or card to use as a backdrop

Paper to diffuse the light – I used Multix Bake (grease proof paper). Another tutorial I read used tissue paper but I didn’t want to have to deal with it ripping.

A cutting mat

Step One:

I started by cutting the flaps off the top of the box because this is actually the side that you will take photos from. I then reinforced the edges of the box with tape. For the corners I sliced the tape in half before sticking the tape down.

Step Two:

At this point it should look like a little house. The floor and back wall should be in tact but you’ll need to cut big windows out of the ceiling and two sides. At this point I had to switch to a smaller ruler because my ruler didn’t fit into the box to allow me to make the cuts with my knife. Some of the cuts felt awkward but I didn’t want to cut from the outside in because I was worried I’d destroy the box or injure myself.

Step Three:

I then stuck sheets of my chosen paper to the three sides. Luckily my tape stuck to the paper but if your tape isn’t cooperating you may need to staple your diffusing paper to your box.

Step Four:

Confession time:this morning I went out and picked up a piece of white paper to use as my backdrop. Unfortunately as I was getting my materials together I left the box unattended with my roll of paper in it and my cats jumped in and ruined it Here you can see how I was going to cut my paper to size. For seamless photos, you will need to use a piece of uncreased paper. I ended up just sticking in a piece of A3 watercolour paper but I will need to replace it with something bigger. The backdrop makes use of an “infinity” backdrop which basically just means that your piece of paper hits the floor of your mini studio without being folded. This can clearly be seen in the finished product.

To use your light box:

When finished, I decided to take my light box outside for a bit of a test run. Now, you can either use your light box inside and experiment shining three lamps (two from either side and one from above) or your can take advantage of a sunny day like I did.

I used my light box to take a photo of my new crochet stitch markers that arrived yesterday. You can see how I set up the shot, and then how the image turned out. The image was taken with my Samsung Galaxy Note and has only been edited to add a link to the blog. I’m looking forward to experimenting with different backdrops and taking lots photos of my latest projects!

L x