DIY Studio for Us Poor Folk

The boredom bug hit and the girls wanted to fiddle around with photography when I got home from work.  So, after a little research on the net I pulled my wits together and came up with a plan to make a DIY Studio using things that I have around the house.

The setup is pretty simple and fairly cheap.  The following is a list of the items that I used:

A PVC ladder ball set – I picked mine up a year or two ago at Walmart for around $15 A black felt throw – this one was given to me as a gift but was $3 at Old Navy around Christmas time Two 8” clamp lights – less than $7 each at Lowes A portable IV pole that I used for a light stand – free courtesy of BCBS of NC A cheap broken tripod used for a second light stand – a free throw away A set of wooden clamp rings for hanging curtains that were on clearance at Walmart for $1 A piece of foam mat board to reflect some light Camera and tripod Two subjects to photograph

IV Pole w/ clamp light --->     Broken tripod w/ clamp light --->     PVC Ladder Ball Frame, felt blanket and curtain rings --->     I braced the stand like this --->     Pack of wooden clamp-on curtain rings --->

My youngest daughter helped me break out the Ladder Ball set and within 15 minutes had a stable working stand.  The only reason it took that long is because we had several runs of trial and error trying to get the frame to stand without tilting over.  Please note that my felt throw is very light and I doubt this stand would hold up to anything heavier.  Sheets should work fine also.  It only measures about 6 ft tall so those subjects that have a little height on them will have to sit or crouch.  For my kids, the height and width was fine.

This was my first try and we only spent about a half hour fiddling around with it.  I have a lot to learn about lighting but I’m quite pleased with the results for my first try.

:: Anna ::

:: Kalyn ::