Coco-cola can flash diffuser

Made an experimental diffuser yesterday using a couple of coca cola cans. I take no responsibility if you cut yourself trying to do this - be careful!

Details and pics here
http://www.flickr.com …iscuss/72157594​312315664/

All the pics in the recent dewdrop thread were taken using it.
https://photography-on-the.net/forum/showthre​ad.php?t=223458

Brian: I love homebrew stuff like this.....Excellent plan!!! Now where are my tin snips ? Alex

Wow, I just did something similar a couple days ago for my onboard flash. Love the homebrew work!

I can't see the pics because I'm at school but I did make a new diffuser a few days ago because my old one accidently got left out in the rain. It was basically this heavy-duty cardboard tube, lined with tinfoil and covered with paper towel with a piece of glossy paper sticking out from the top. Worked quite well and the circular source of light actually produced some cool looking shots.

The results say it all

Interesting...I would have thought that the shiny inner surface of the can would create too much light...

Dave

LOL... still can't ditch the kitchen towel though can you?

(Imagine Jeff Foxworthy voice)
"If yer flash diffuser is made out of an aluminum can, duct tape, and a paper towel, you might be a..."

Just funnin'

I love redneck engineering! And I'm sure it works great.

LOL. I've been playing around with LEDs for some macro lighting, but I've come to the conclusion that they are just not suited to this application. Well, not as a primary light source and not without a lot of work either. One of these contraptions may yet be on my horizon.

dpastern wrote in post #2077408
Interesting...I would have thought that the shiny inner surface of the can would create too much light...

Dave

Too much light?
Can never have too much. Seriously I was triggered into trying this by a number of things.
#1 I need to be able to take pictures quickly when doing stacks/ stereo pics so light efficiency is important in not draining the flash unit (unlike stoffens).
#2 headster did a DIY diffuser recently which just started me thinking about them.
#3 A comment in another forum on diffusers just said if you want diffuse light you need a big lamp
#4 Having said many times I don't like the pics from dedicated macro flashes because they tend to give flat light, I was beginning to notice that my own pics seemed to be going the same way- ie the light was possibly too diffuse.

Anyway nothing like having a little play with things
Brian V.

photobitz wrote in post #2077734
LOL. I've been playing around with LEDs for some macro lighting, but I've come to the conclusion that they are just not suited to this application. Well, not as a primary light source and not without a lot of work either. One of these contraptions may yet be on my horizon.

I tried doing that a while back- constructed a ring light out of 12 bright white leds taped around a lens hood- just didn't give enough light for photographs although it was a useful aid in focusing in dim light
Brian V.

Curtis N wrote in post #2077705
(Imagine Jeff Foxworthy voice)
"If yer flash diffuser is made out of an aluminum can, duct tape, and a paper towel, you might be a..."

Just funnin'

I love redneck engineering! And I'm sure it works great.

Thanks
I've always wanted to do something useful with an empty coke can
I actually cut the flat strip and then just left it for quite a while- took about 6 hours to get the idea for forming it into a useful shape.
Brian V.

LordV wrote in post #2078907
I tried doing that a while back- constructed a ring light out of 12 bright white leds taped around a lens hood- just didn't give enough light for photographs although it was a useful aid in focusing in dim light
Brian V.

I prototyped a similar configuration using 12 LEDs (3 parallel circuits of 4 in series) connected to 2x 9V batteries (to give 18V) and a resistor to provide the exact 3.6V needed to power each LED. The light is very intense if the light from all LEDs converges however it's just too difficult to get them to shine on the same spot, especially at different focusing distances. Adding a diffuser helped, but ended up cutting out too much light.

I had seen a suggestion somewhere that you could drive the LEDs at 6.5V instantaneously to get a flash (and strobe) effect. Doing this makes the light extremely intense and prevents the LEDs from burning out (at least for a while anyway). I gave it a test and it seems to work well, but for all the messing around that's involved I may as well just go spend $250 on a Sigma.

LordV wrote in post #2078905
Too much light?
Can never have too much. Seriously I was triggered into trying this by a number of things.
#1 I need to be able to take pictures quickly when doing stacks/ stereo pics so light efficiency is important in not draining the flash unit (unlike stoffens).
#2 headster did a DIY diffuser recently which just started me thinking about them.
#3 A comment in another forum on diffusers just said if you want diffuse light you need a big lamp
#4 Having said many times I don't like the pics from dedicated macro flashes because they tend to give flat light, I was beginning to notice that my own pics seemed to be going the same way- ie the light was possibly too diffuse.

Anyway nothing like having a little play with things
Brian V.

Fair enough - I just thought that the light from the shiny aluminium surface would have been too 'glossy'. I'm also going to attempt to make headster's adaption of a diffuser.

As to the sto-fens, I don't have any issues at all. I'm using Grandcell NIMH rechargeable batteries and I can pretty much take one directly after another. I get around 700 shots from the set of 4 batteries (I have two sets that I rotate through).

Dave

Nice idea, I am going to get some band aids and give it a try before you patend it