Improve Your Photography with a DIY LED Ring Light
Thursday, September 9th, 2010
Ring light: a source of light for photography that encircles the camera lens completely. It creates a shadow-softening effect on the object or person being photographed, a warm and natural alternative to the stark standard camera-mounted single flash look. Normally the tool of professional photographers, ring lights are becoming more accessible to hobbyists, with models ranging from around $40 to well into the hundreds of dollars.
But for those of you who are taking macro or close-up photos, why not build your own? The cost of a DIY unit runs just over $25, and will take less than an hour to assemble. And the satisfaction of building the project on your own is impossible to match.
Jani ‘Japala’ Pönkkö of Metku.net pieced together a fantastic set of instructions using 12volt LED “eye” lights seen on current BMWs. By coupling a few together and mounting them into the lid of a CD spindle (like when you buy a 10 pack of blank CDs at Office Depot), you have a lighting system that can be mounted to a threaded adapter and screwed onto your favorite camera lens. Check his plans here.
Instructables user nygma2004 took the project one step further and wrote up plans for a 9v battery pack, conveniently tucked into a standard Altoids container. He’s using this as a way to get shots of his model railroad cars and locomotives – something I can identify with well. Read his how-to here.
Convenient, cheap lighting that gets great results. I love it.
You need the following:
- T10 21-LED White Light Car Angle Eye (70mm Diameter) from Dealextreme
- T10 24-LED White Light Car Angel Eye (90mm Diameter) from Dealextreme
- T10 39-LED White Light Car Angel Eye (120mm Diameter) from Dealextreme
- Big Altoids peppermints box from local supermarket
- Old laptop power supply “borrowed” from work
- 3.5 mm stereo plugs and socket, 3 each. I used a socket which has screw mount, so it is easy to fit into the box.
- 2.5 mm DC socket that fits your power supply plug
- TS7812 1A 12V fixed voltage regulator
- 9V battery clips
- Adapter ring, my Canon ESO 300D has 58mm ring (easily found for Nikon, Pentax and all the other DSLR makes)
- Some cable
Dalton Ghetti makes art from an EXTREMELY small medium: pencil lead. With the steady hand of a surgeon and some obviously super sharp tools (I’d love to see his kit), he transforms writing instruments into tiny sculptures, including mind blowing links of “chain.” Originally from Brazil but based in Bridgeport, Connecticut, he spends months to years on each sculpture. People in the New Rochelle, NY area can check Ghetti’s work close up and personal at the 
