[buckshot27]

I know nothing about taking quality pictures. I would like to take some nice pictures of my collection. What do I need in order to make good light box that will fit all my rifles?

 

[Goodfellas]

this along the lines of what you need?

viewtopic.php?f=56&t=114804

 

[Stottman]

I am sure you have seen my pictures..

Lightboxes are not bad, but they really take a long exposure to come out well, not full of shadowns, etc...

You can buy one from any big photowebsite for less then $50.. The one that I bought along time ago had a internal frame, that could be folding up, etc... Of course, the cheap metal inside had a memory, and it was too big for AK stuff.. I ended cutting the thing up, and just using the material with a homemade PVC pipe frame.

For lights, I used 500W bulbs that were "Kelvin" matched to sunlight.. 5000K I believe.

Digital Rebel camera, the cheapest Profesional grade lense (One that came with it was crap).

Set on a tripod.. Exposures were about 1 second.
Some examples.

For taking pictures of details, like markings, etc it was a royal PITA.... ALso, for moving it around, a royal PITA. Those 500w bulbs were super expensvie, and probably used allot of electricity.

Later, I switched to using 2x remoted, external flashes, with umbrellas. It is allot more portable, and the exposures are short enough that I can hold it in my hand, which makes detail shots easier. Also, you can actually use the same setup for other stuff; Pictures of the family, etc...

Some examples-

Honestly, I think overall the soft boxe shots look better.. But the trade offs from a flash set up are well worth it.

 

[Dutchkma]

I skipped the "box" an bought 3 of the spun aluminum work lamps and 3 daylight temperature florescent lamps at the Home Depot. Set my speed at 400 and got this result. Be sure to expose for the rifle, not the light background. [Rifle is laying on a six foot Sam's Club plastic folding table] Photography is the same as marksmanship, the more shots you make, the better you get. I learned on film, in a darkroom. The digital age is cheap and easy in comparison. Learn the basics, the principals are the same as they were 100 years ago, aperture and shutter speed.

 

[Dutchkma]

Forgot to mention, Rob's shots are the best on any forum. I've saved a few for reference on future builds.

 

[Stottman]

I used just bare lights at first, but they leave allot of hard shadows, and allot of glare....

 

[cmutka]

I use a somewhat less high tech set up since I have no place to shoot indoors. I build the tent frame using the swapmeet tent conduit fittings and cover it with good quality sheets.