Portable Dark Room

[Jwheeler331]

Here is a photo from when I was making my darkbox.

Also, I have heard of people just letting the dark cloth hang but I normally pull mine around and bunch it up in the front which pretty much seals it up. Here is a photo of me in it with it bunched up.

Third second is it closed up. You can carry it like a suitcase but admittedly, it’s pretty heavy.

[cuypers1807]

I use a Lightning McQueen 4x5' children's tent in the back of my truck covered with light tight fabric from Freestyle. I have it already set up in my capped truck bed and I can be ready to shoot in a matter of minutes. Tons of room too. Should work for plates up to 11x14.

[Jwheeler331]

I use a Lightning McQueen 4x5' children's tent in the back of my truck covered with light tight fabric from Freestyle. I have it already set up in my capped truck bed and I can be ready to shoot in a matter of minutes. Tons of room too. Should work for plates up to 11x14.

Interesting. Any pics ?

[cuypers1807]

Sure. Don't have any photos of the interrior. Here is the original configuration before the truck cap:


Here are 2 with the bed cap at the FPP 2018 Walking Workshop:
https://flic.kr/p/MQGYiS
https://flic.kr/p/29Ro6qW

I got the tent because it was red and had the ironic name of Lightning McQueen. I keep it in the back of the truck sitting on a carpet and slide it out onto the tail gate when I am ready to use it. I weighed down the corners of the light-weight shroud with a plastic bocce ball. It a luxurious amount of space.(4'x5' of floor space) I mostly shoot 4x5-8x10 but it should be big enough to hold a silver tank for 11x14. The tent floor is waterproof so all spills are contained. The main drawbacks to my rig are that my back supports the top of the shroud and I have to lean into the tent to reach the back of it. It can be tiring on the back after a long day of plate making. The tent cost me around $15-$20 from Walmart so I bought a couple extras. Still on tent #1 but on my 3rd set of poles. The shroud is made of this: https://www.freestylephoto.biz/26011...tardant-1-Yard
I wear a red led headlamp for light.
Not the most elegant solution but it works for me.

[Jwheeler331]

Sure. Don't have any photos of the interrior. Here is the original configuration before the truck cap:


Here are 2 with the bed cap at the FPP 2018 Walking Workshop:
https://flic.kr/p/MQGYiS
https://flic.kr/p/29Ro6qW

I got the tent because it was red and had the ironic name of Lightning McQueen. I keep it in the back of the truck sitting on a carpet and slide it out onto the tail gate when I am ready to use it. I weighed down the corners of the light-weight shroud with a plastic bocce ball. It a luxurious amount of space.(4'x5' of floor space) I mostly shoot 4x5-8x10 but it should be big enough to hold a silver tank for 11x14. The tent floor is waterproof so all spills are contained. The main drawbacks to my rig are that my back supports the top of the shroud and I have to lean into the tent to reach the back of it. It can be tiring on the back after a long day of plate making. The tent cost me around $15-$20 from Walmart so I bought a couple extras. Still on tent #1 but on my 3rd set of poles. The shroud is made of this: https://www.freestylephoto.biz/26011...tardant-1-Yard
I wear a red led headlamp for light.
Not the most elegant solution but it works for me.

Nice. Always neat to see how others are doing it.

[Michael Clark]

The folks I know have been using a tent made for fishing on a frozen lake, like in Minnesota. They seem to be dark enough for preparing the plates and even had red windows.They have a lot of room for two people to stand up and a small table to work on.

[Two23]

The folks I know have been using a tent made for fishing on a frozen lake, like in Minnesota. They seem to be dark enough for preparing the plates and even had red windows.They have a lot of room for two people to stand up and a small table to work on.

Living in South Dakota I'm quite familiar with those. They're easy to find in stores too. However, I wanted something more compact and fast to set up. I like the smaller ones--some great ideas shown above! I'm only planning on shooting 4x5.


Kent in SD

[Jwheeler331]

The folks I know have been using a tent made for fishing on a frozen lake, like in Minnesota. They seem to be dark enough for preparing the plates and even had red windows.They have a lot of room for two people to stand up and a small table to work on.

I almost went that route but seen that people seem to be constantly making them light tight again.

[Corran]

A friend of mine made a tiny box from a large shelf storage bin thing from Home Depot, piece of plywood with a hole in the center with a red gel, and a film changing bag cut to fit around the top. Whole thing was maybe 2ft wide 1ft tall and deep. Worked like a charm for 4x5 plates on location. He has a toolbox for chemistry. We took it on location and shot portraits and even landscape a bit away from the car. Could be strapped to a dolly.