DIY Light diffuser

Well, you know what they say about “necessity” being the mother of invention. In this case, it’s re-invention. While I was in town, poking around in the fabric store on Ste Catherine street, I came across this great, durable fabric, so I looked to see what it was called. 100% nylon. I stocked up on the stuff, thinking it was the exact fabric I needed for my DIY light diffusers. For years, I have been reluctant to pay the hefty price for light diffusers to tone down those harsh lights I use for camming. The nylon I found is the perfect solution and gives my cam image a much softer overall look, while smoothing over what were once crisp shadows. Needless to say, lighting is the most difficult part of photography and videography. What this does is allows me to use brighter lights without the harshness or glare, while still having sufficient luminosity to light the target area (myself and my background). The best thing about this is the total cost; next to nothing! Here’s a rundown of what it cost me to make 1 diffuser (12″x12″, circular shaped):

100% nylon fabric = $1.00

Embroidery Hoop (double-ringed) = $2.99

Total = $3.99 (+applicable taxes).

 

What you need:

  • Scissors
  • Standard staple gun (plain old stationary, nothing special)
  • Scotch tape (alternatively, and better yet, one long cut of metallic tape)
  •  100% nylon fabric
  • Embroidery Hoop (double-ringed)

The steps:

1) Separate the rings. You’ll need the outer one first. Cut a piece of nylon, this size, roughly.  

 

2) Place your nylon over top of the larger ring and center it.

 

 

3) Take the inner ring and place it over the nylon, into the outer ring. Push down to lock in place.

 

 

4) This part is a little tricky. Pull the nylon lightly on opposite ends all around until the nylon

 looks snug as a bug on a rug (or until it’s tight in the ring).

 

 

5) Not bad, eh? Now, pull the nylon lightly to keep it tight and staple the nylon to the inner

part of the ring. I used 5 staples in total.

 

 

6) Should look something like this (tight, looking like a drum with a beautiful, flowy skirt on).

 

 

7) Now, cut the skirt off, right along the egde of the ring, as close as possible to the ring.

 

 

8) If pieces stick up a little, just use Scotch tape to tame them down. If you have metallic tape,

even better. Voila – le diffuser!

 

 

Here are a few more looks at it. This light, undiffused,  is super bright and very hard on the eyes.

 

 

Completely covering the light. The final result. Le piece de resistance. The diffuser extraordinaire!

Took me all of 5 minutes and cost $3.99+tx to make!

 

It is important to keep the diffuser a safe distance from the light. If you want the diffuser closer,

then I recommend one of those LED lightbulbs that do not heat up.

For a stand, there are tons of things you can do. This diffuser is easy to work with because it’s

 so lightweight.

I hope you enjoyed my Light Diffuser DIY Tutorial.

For more in my series of Camgirl Tips, Tricks & Tutorials, click here