mcgoffs.net

This is a post that I put up on the DSLRusers.com site a few months ago

note: prices and shop names are Australian but you get the idea

after finding different links on how to make light tents around the net
I went to the local hardware to get the bits for a frame last week
2x 3m lengths 15mm PVC tube
8x “right angle” connectors
6x “T” connectors
this was going to be about $52.00 and I thought this was a bit to much

So I went looking further and ended up at “bigW” where I found this
laundry sorter for only $19.85 and it has all the bits you need with some to spare

there are
9x 695mm tubes
4x 585mm tubes
4x 285mm tubes
8x corner fittings
2x “T” fittings
plus wheels, curved tubes and a bag

this is what it looks like quickly assembled with the spare parts

this is to big at this size but you can trim the tubes to suit

after trimming down I ended up with this setup (it is still a little large)

I added white plastic garbage bags as the diffuser material, so the total cost of the light tent was under $21.00
the lamps were $12.95 each @ bunnings and they are using Phillips long life energy saver bulbs 23watt cool daylight 6500k (125watt equivalent output) the bulbs have twisted elements if you are looking for them
these bulbs stay very cool, they were actually touching the plastic bin liners for over 2 hours last night and the plastic showed no signs of damage. they are a little big for the lamp’s reflector so a lot of light spills out the side I will fix this by extending the reflector using some of those foil drip dishes you can buy to put under your stove elements

anyway here are 2 test shots I did last night