Plexiglass Question

[Fire0725]

Hi All,
This might not be the right place for this post (I wasn't sure)....

I want to try shooting using plexiglass on the floor for reflections and to protect the paper that will be on the floor for a cake smash I'm thinking of doing for my nephew's first birthday shot in October...

I'm wondering if anyone can advise me please on where to purchase this stuff? And which one is best to use for photos?

Ultimately, I'd like a reflective black sheet, and a clear one...

I don't know where to get it, or how much to expect to pay for a decent size...

Any help much appreciated.

Thanks.

[chrismar]

Where are you located? If you're in the US both Lowes and Home Depot sell plexiglass sheets in various sizes, and can be cut to your specification as well.

[bryank930]

I'm not sure what other options exist, but plexiglass might not be the best for this. It scratches very easily and will probably only be good for one or two uses. If you can justify the cost, then go for it. In my area a 4x8 foot sheet goes for $190 for .188 inch thickness.

EDIT: The $190 is for standard acrylic. If you want LEXAN, AT LEAST double the price above.

[Wallace River]

Originally Posted by bryank930

I'm not sure what other options exist, but plexiglass might not be the best for this. It scratches very easily and will probably only be good for one or two uses. If you can justify the cost, then go for it. In my area a 4x8 foot sheet goes for $190 for .188 inch thickness.

EDIT: The $190 is for standard acrylic. If you want LEXAN, AT LEAST double the price above.

About the same prices here. From an Auto glass place, though, not Lowes or HD.

[krb]

For "reflective black" just put clear plexi on top of black muslin.

[Fire0725]

Sorry, yes, my location might have helped! I'm in Ontario....

I didn't realize it would be so expensive!! I also didn't realize it scratches easily...

Are there any other options for something like this? Just a basic (kid safe!) reflective covering?

Thanks everyone.

[Mark1]

There is. It is at Home Depot as well. It is the white bubbly plastic wall stuff that you see in restrooms of restraunts and such. It is 4 X 8 Feet. The back in smooth and can be easily made to shine for reflections. And it is white enough for easy post work. I dont have a name or item number handy. I just grab and go... but it is easily found in the store. I have to drive by the home depot here in a few hours. Ill stop by and get the specifics.

[scobols]

Try this: http://hurleyprogear.com/gear/proboard

Scott

[Luckless]

While it scratches easy, you can also buff it nicely as well. You can buy fairly thin sheets if you fully support it and aren't using it for any structural or load applications. (Flat sheet on flat floor)

Be sure the area you are putting it down on is clear of dirt and such. They are slippery at best, but throw something like sawdust or find sand under them, and you can find they will happily shift and slide as well.

Another neat trick for badly scratched sheets is that you can float and recast the surface, assuming you have an area flat and level enough. Careful application of the proper solvent will chemically melt the material till it starts to reflow, and then you allow it to evaporate again and harden. Really fun. Just do it in a well ventilated area.

[bryank930]

^ Good info. Do you buff it with normal buffing compound? I'd assume by hand so it doesn't melt?

[Fire0725]

Mark1 - whatever you use sounds interesting! pls let me know what its called when you find out!!

I'm only going to be using it on a flat surface (likely a carpeted flat surface), with my muslin underneath it....

I'll check out the other option posted by scobols too!

Luckless -- i'm not a handy gal -- I'm not sure I'd be able to resmooth it if it got scratched, but thanks for letting me know its possible!

[Luckless]

You can buff it with a power tool, but you do have to be careful with your pressures and times. Better to go a little softer and use shorter periods so the job itself takes longer instead of trying to do it too quickly and ruining things.

Not sure on the compound, I've only worked with a friend on the stuff and he just has a white plastic bottle with "Plex buff comp" written on the side in sharpie, so I'm assuming that isn't an off the shelf item.

If you are curious in reading up on it more, check out aquarium forums and their DIY sections. A site called Reef Central has a lot of really top notch acrylic guys. (And just what every photographer needs... an expensive hobby!)

[Luckless]

Originally Posted by Fire0725

Luckless -- i'm not a handy gal -- I'm not sure I'd be able to resmooth it if it got scratched, but thanks for letting me know its possible!

Fixing the scratches really depends on two main points:
First: What kind of scratches and scuffs you are dealing with. Small fine surface marks are of course easier to fix than if you get a gash cutting half way through the sheet.
Second: What kind of finish you need. If you need just a general reflection and don't worry about minor warping and bending of the reflected image, then that of course will be a lot easier than if you need it perfectly smooth mirror finish to reflect a completely undistorted image. (Which is hard to do with acrylic anyway. Plastic tends to be easy to bend, warp, and deform in general.)

If you are able to shine your shoes, you will be capable of getting lesser scratches out of an imperfect sheet.

[Bananapie]

Hello. I work with acrylic for a living.

What Luckless said is true, but I want to point out that while different forms and brands of "acrylic" are simple to repair and renew for materials, they still take a good amount of effort.

You can use Novus products to buff and repair small scratches (their heavy compound is still only good for what I would consider small scratches). To float and repair these plastics you need solvent that can be bought at Tapp Plastics or my favorite supplier, Delvies Plastics.

All in all, I think that ProBoard product might be the way to go. Acrylic, particularly cell-cast acrylic, is very expensive and scratches extremely easily. If you slid a coffee mug across the surface, heck, even a cell phone, it will scratch at least lightly.

That being said I do have so much laying around I do use it for photos all the time...but only for small product shots, not anything bigger than a laptop.

Good luck either way.

[kawikao]

I've seen half a dozen cracked sheets at Home Depot and chickened out. If I really get into real reflections I'll probably go with ProBoard. GL