Making a cage

[chris_4622]

A light cage was mentioned in another thread ( http://www.largeformatphotography.in...ead.php?122285 ) and I thought it would be a good idea to make one for use in the house or at family/friend functions.
Photo: http://products.hasselbladbron.com/Sunbounce/Cage

Black rip stop nylon would work for two sides and the top but for the light side I'm not sure what would be the best choice for maximum light transmission. I have a 42" white scrim that came with a reflector kit and that material would be preferable. Anyone know what it's called? I searched for scrim material but quickly became overwhelmed with sites that have material but don't say much about light transmission comparisons. Is the scrim material the same that is used in soft boxes?

For the poles I'm thinking of aluminum sections with pvc fittings at the corners. I'm handy enough with a sewing machine to stitch together the light panel in the top and the mounting flaps using velcro.

[DrTang]

isn't that white ripstop?

[chris_4622]

isn't that white ripstop?

I thought that is what is in soft boxes but the scrim material in the round reflector kit is different. Not sure which would be better for letting more light in for LF exposure times.

[Jac@stafford.net]

For the poles I'm thinking of aluminum sections with pvc fittings at the corners.

I used PVC for the whole frame. It worked out just fine.
.

[Drew Wiley]

The problem with outdoor ripstop is that it has a coating of water-resistant urethane which will develop an odor if the lights are hot, then degrade over time for
the same reason. A bit flammable too. I'd rather use plain material from a fabric store. You can make a pretty nice portable setup using PVC pipe fittings and
velcro. The electrical conduit type PVC is dark gray instead of white, if that's what you prefer. A true scrim material needs to be quite heat-resistant; but I tend
to use hot lights and not flash, so I'm very conscious of this. Somebody like B&H should have a decent selection of material, or a good local camera store, now
that Calumet is gone. But for general background fabric or polyester diffusion yardage... well, that's one of the few times I'll follow my wife into the fabric store.
A visit or two and you'll have a lifetime supply.

[chris_4622]

The problem with outdoor ripstop is that it has a coating of water-resistant urethane which will develop an odor if the lights are hot, then degrade over time for
the same reason. A bit flammable too. I'd rather use plain material from a fabric store. You can make a pretty nice portable setup using PVC pipe fittings and
velcro. The electrical conduit type PVC is dark gray instead of white, if that's what you prefer. A true scrim material needs to be quite heat-resistant; but I tend
to use hot lights and not flash, so I'm very conscious of this. Somebody like B&H should have a decent selection of material, or a good local camera store, now
that Calumet is gone. But for general background fabric or polyester diffusion yardage... well, that's one of the few times I'll follow my wife into the fabric store.
A visit or two and you'll have a lifetime supply.

Thanks for the info on the coating. I won't be using it with artificial lighting. Mainly for outdoor, for indoor remove the light scrim for natural window light with a dark background, or maybe a grey background.

[esearing]

For outdoor use you could use one of the tailgate tents and add the sides. These even has structure for clamping flash if needed and fold up neatly.

[chris_4622]

I stopped at a fabric store today and found the black rip stop nylon lets too much light through for what I want. I was shown black taffeta that hardly let any light through so I will try that. As for the white/light side the young woman showed me lining, white lining. I think that will work well.

I'm thinking of using schedule 80 pvc which can be threaded. Probably 1". I'm exploring making each section of the frame in 2 or 3 pieces and assemble them with shock cord.