Macro Lighting Rig

One Step Backwards: The Diffuser

And crap. As I was assembling the unit, it dawned on me that it would be really useful if I could mount a bracket on the boom arm that would hold a piece of cloth to act as a diffuser, to spread the beam out a bit, and make the shadow's less harsh.

I grabbed a length of coat hanger and used a pair of pliers to bend the bracket shown below. I chose the very stiff coat hanger wire because, unlike the boom, I want the diffuser to hold its shape.

So do all of that stuff before the other twisting-the-boom step...};^)



I reluctantly unwound the recently twisted boom arm, and re-wrapped it around the diffuser bracket.

Avoid winding and unwinding if possible. Once the wire has been twisted together, it's impossible to straighten out again, and when you re-twist it, it's a real pain in the butt. I lived through it, but I didn't enjoy it much. The wire is $5 for a roll of 15 feet, so splurge, and use a new length of wire if it comes to that.

If you simply twist the armature wire around the coat hanger wire, the diffuser bracket will twist back  and forth freely.  Crimp the end of the coat hanger wire back around the armature wire to secure the assembly (bottom left of photo below).



Put the tubing back on. You may have to cheat a little. The coat hanger wire prevents the tube from going the last inch up to the pill bottle. So cut that inch of tube off the end, split it lengthwise with a knife, and clamp it on between the hanger wire and the pill bottle. The natural curve of the tube acts to clamp it to the boom. It clips on pretty firmly.

Attaching the Diffuser Material

You will need some material for the diffuser. I found a nice white bit of cloth from our rag bag. White and semi-translucent. Perfect.

Cut a square that is about a 1/4 inch larger than the bracket on all sides.



You want the cloth to be tight across the frame, and to stay put. So out comes the sewing kit.

Stitch one corner, then pull the cloth tight diagonally to the other corner and stitched that. Then do the same with the other two corners.



Once the corners are tacked down, finish by sewing the edges, making sure the cloth is always pulled taut.

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