lightbox | lite

lightbox photo of a maple seed. photo: ms/dpa

when i started with professional photography and had a reasonably high res sensor in my DSLR, i was keen on all kinds of lenses, i tried out different flashes, purchased a ring flash, i studied diffuse light settings, used a tilteable tripod top etc. everything about aperture and speed i had leart from my father when i was a kid.

at around the year 2005 the search was over. i knew i did not need a long lens, no wide angle or zoom either. i settled on not the best lenses i could get but on the lenses that i personally was comfortable with. the canon macro EF 100 1:2.8 for example. that’s the lens you see in the (smartphone) photo below. but the lens is not really imporant here, because i often use my smartphone in conjunction with a tiny 80 € macro lens.

why i ramble about this? because a friend who saw the photo above asked me about what kind of lightbox i use?

none. i wait for a certain light, i choose a window (east or west or whatever), i select the surface (most times A4 printer paper), and off we go.

lightbox lite

well, with all the basic issues settled, there is still a steep learning curve ahead. i started working with turntable videography like → here, and it was far from perfect. that’s why the cologne wikipedia community will be testing a programmable dolly and use it in the professional lightbox environment at → lokal K. excited!

fruit of a plane tree. photo: ms/dpa