How to DIY a Light Box with LED Strip Lights

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Never has a DIY project been so easy and useful. The light box is just an LED strip and cardboard box, but it is an indispensable tool for any photographer who wants to improve his craftsmanship. It is also very suitable for anyone who likes to shoot food, plants and flowers!

We have created a step-by-step guide to help you make your own light box.

Materials needed to build a DIY light box

Cardboard box

You need a large carton to make a professional DIY light box show. The range of objects of different sizes you can shoot will depend on your box size. Because these boxes are often discarded, you can get them for free at grocery stores, shopping centers, convenience stores, gas stations, and other places. You will probably find one or two boxes there.

Note: If you want to make a more durable light box for photography, please use solid materials. Wooden or translucent plastic box works well. But remember, to cut the panels on the sides of these boxes, you need tools such as saws and screwdrivers.

LED Strip Lights – Flexible LED light that can be cut for guidance. We choose the SMD 5050 flexible light strip.

2 sheets of baking paper or wax paper – to cover the side window

Bristol board

Bristol cardboard is a kind of fragile paper, which can be white or black. Artists often use it as the basis of charcoal painting or pastel painting, but it is also popular with people who do it themselves, because it is easy to use.

This board serves as the background and forms lines inside the light box, making it an important part of any DIY light box. When buying a circuit board, consider the size of the box. You may need two or three sheets in the box, one for the background. Other colors are also allowed; It doesn’t need to be white.

Scissors – for cutting cardboard

Masking tape – used to fix the cloth on the side of the light box for taking photos.

STEP 1

Measure and Mark the Box

On the side of the DIY light box, use a ruler to mark a point about 5.1 cm (2 inches) from both sides. Draw a line along the edge of the box and connect the points with a pencil. Don’t forget to finish the other side.

These will be the windows on both sides of your box; If your box is smaller, remember to narrow your window.

STEP 2

Cutting out the Windows

Use scissors or special tools to cut along each sketch line of the box. When you are finished, you must be able to pull out a piece of cardboard from the middle and see a window. The other side needs to be done in the same way.

Place a ruler next to the line, and then cross cut to ensure that the line is straight. Clean windows not only help to create a beautiful light box, but also help to create a well functioning light box and take good photos.

STEP 3

Fitting the Bristol board

Take the white cardboard and use scissors to remove the excess edges of the board so that it fits perfectly into the box. The width of the circuit board must be the same as the width of the box and about twice the size of the top.

The white paper will serve as the background for your photos.

STEP 4

Covering the Windows with Wax Paper

Trim the wax paper to fit the side window. Make sure you leave an extra inch or two so you can stick the wax paper to the box with tape or glue.

When sticking wax paper on the box, be careful not to damage any thin paper. Even a little tear may affect the quality of your light box photography.

STEP 5

Adding LED light strip

SMD 5050 flexible LED strips shall be glued to the top front of the box. Because they have a self-adhesive backing, you don’t need to buy any glue. If you have additional such lights, consider adding more lights to provide coverage from all sides. By doing so, you can ensure that the lighting is uniform.

These lights are reasonably priced. They even have a micro USB port, which you can use to connect them to a portable power supply, which is a “anytime, anywhere” DIY light box that can be realized with only one basic cable.

The best LED light strip for the light box

We recommend that your DIY light box use a 5050 flexible LED strip lamp, which can provide 180 ultra-high brightness. RGB light strip can be cut and connected; Their brightness can be changed, with 20 colors.

We hope this guide will help you. You don’t need to go out to the bank to take amazing photos. Building a light box is an interesting and simple project that can be completed in just a few hours. The materials needed to build the light box are very cheap, and the result is worth the time and effort.

If you have any questions about these products or want to learn more about what else we offer, please get in touch with us today!

Email: [email protected]

Browse and shop our extensive range of LED lights online at szjohome.com .