I am hoping to build a modest sized light table - about 18" x 12" which
would be sufficient to display about 50 35mm slides. The simplest
construction I can imagine is a shallow wooden box with a sheet of suitable
diffusing plastic as the working surface.

What lighting would be suitable for such a table? Low wattage high
luminosity seems essential. Are the new (to me) LED bulbs appropriate?
What sort of luminosity do they give and in what sort of beam? I assume
spotlights are not appropriate.
I don't want to spend a lot - well not much more than it would cost to
buy, say, 3 of the larger tables that Jessops sell as that would give me
the sort of area I am looking for.

Any suggestions gladly considered!

TIA
Frank

Small fluorescent tubes such as found in kitchens etc? Sand blasted
glass could be better for a screen as it is more durable.

Frank Stacey wrote:
I am hoping to build a modest sized light table - about 18" x 12" which
would be sufficient to display about 50 35mm slides. The simplest
construction I can imagine is a shallow wooden box with a sheet of suitable
diffusing plastic as the working surface.

What lighting would be suitable for such a table? Low wattage high
luminosity seems essential. Are the new (to me) LED bulbs appropriate?
What sort of luminosity do they give and in what sort of beam? I assume
spotlights are not appropriate.
I don't want to spend a lot - well not much more than it would cost to
buy, say, 3 of the larger tables that Jessops sell as that would give me
the sort of area I am looking for.

Any suggestions gladly considered!

TIA
Frank

I have a 60W circular fluorescent I use face up for such a purpose.
It's an old type with flat translucent cover rather than the modern
fancy etched glass saucer. I can get about 45 2x2 slides on its 18"
diameter. It's slightly dimmer in the middle than at the edges -- of no
consequence for viewing, but might be if you're going to photograph the
slides en masse.

I doubt if you can buy one like mine other than in a junk shop, as IIRC
translucent covers are illegal under current lighting regs, but this
may give you some ideas. Other than a circular tube, a couple of modern
B-shaped fluorescents under a sheet of plastic would probably work.

Chris

On Mon, 16 Jan 2006 12:06:05 -0000, "Frank Stacey"
wrote:

The simplest construction I can imagine is a shallow wooden box

Shallow boxes are much too difficult to make. Make a deep box instead,
give the inside a coat of good white gloss and use reflected light to
illuminate things. A couple of small fluo tubes with ply or MDF lids
over them to stop direct light will give a much more even lighting than
a shallow box and direct line-of-sight to a bulb, even with a diffuser.

Can you beg, borrow or steal an X-ray viewing box from somewhere?

They seem to be the right size and sort of light for you.

They're usually lit with fluorescent tubes.

--
Helen D. Vecht:
Edgware.

"Frank Stacey" wrote in message
...
I am hoping to build a modest sized light table - about 18" x 12" which
would be sufficient to display about 50 35mm slides. The simplest
construction I can imagine is a shallow wooden box with a sheet of suitable
diffusing plastic as the working surface.

What lighting would be suitable for such a table? Low wattage high
luminosity seems essential. Are the new (to me) LED bulbs appropriate?
What sort of luminosity do they give and in what sort of beam? I assume
spotlights are not appropriate.
I don't want to spend a lot - well not much more than it would cost to
buy, say, 3 of the larger tables that Jessops sell as that would give me
the sort of area I am looking for.

Any suggestions gladly considered!

A good look at this one
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/A4-LIGHT-BOX-L...QQcmdZViewItem

will give some ideas

On Mon, 16 Jan 2006 14:23:18 +0000, Andy Dingley wrote:

Shallow boxes are much too difficult to make. Make a deep box
instead, give the inside a coat of good white gloss and use
reflected light to illuminate things.

I like the idea of deeper white painted box but I'd use matt white
rather than gloss otherwise you will get a highlight from the light
source at some points.

A couple of small fluo tubes with ply or MDF lids

No need to go for lids a strip along the back of the tube/fitting wide
enough so that no direct light can reach the viewing glass. Everything
inside painted white including the strips.

--
Cheers
Dave. pam is missing e-mail

On Tue, 17 Jan 2006 14:51:04 +0000 (GMT), "Dave Liquorice"
wrote:

I like the idea of deeper white painted box but I'd use matt white
rather than gloss otherwise you will get a highlight from the light
source at some points.

Use a fluorescent - if you have a large source you can avoid the hot
spot problems.

There's about four stops brightness difference between typical matt and
gloss white paints.

Hi Andy

On Tue, 17 Jan 2006 18:13:17 +0000, Andy Dingley
wrote:

On Tue, 17 Jan 2006 14:51:04 +0000 (GMT), "Dave Liquorice"
wrote:

I like the idea of deeper white painted box but I'd use matt white
rather than gloss otherwise you will get a highlight from the light
source at some points.

Use a fluorescent - if you have a large source you can avoid the hot
spot problems.

There's about four stops brightness difference between typical matt and
gloss white paints.

I know you're into stained glass (from your other posts).....

I wonder if you've ever tried to make a lightbox to show off stained
glass...

With the new Craft Fair season coming along - I was thinking about
better ways of displaying stained glass suncatchers - and was
wondering about some sort of fold out lightbox display - but concerned
that it shouldn't be too bright and 'dazzle' people....

Can't always rely on sunlight to show off the glass - and it does need
light from behind for best effect...

Any experience of this ?
TIA

Adrian
www.inspired-glass.co.uk

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On Tue, 17 Jan 2006 18:51:44 +0000, Adrian Brentnall adrian-the papers
and the wrote:

I wonder if you've ever tried to make a lightbox to show off stained
glass...

Yes, several. Deep boxes with straight fluo tubes and no diffuser.

Some of this depends on the glass - some looks better with more diffuse
light, highly textured glass needs a bit of a point source or you lose
the variation in brightness with angle. Hanging the piece from a short
chain and allowing it all to wobble a bit can help too - movement adds
sparkle.

Can't always rely on sunlight to show off the glass - and it does need
light from behind for best effect...

Our "suncatchers" are mainly Swarovskis and beads, rather than flat
glass. Spot lighting from the front is important to get a good sparkle.
I've been using 12V dichroic spots, and with metal foil snoots or even
lens systems to get a spot beam.

Helen prefers a simple approach of halogen floods at about half a
kilowatt / metre of shopfront. Keeps the stall warm in Winter too!

HI Andy

On Wed, 18 Jan 2006 02:06:03 +0000, Andy Dingley
wrote:

On Tue, 17 Jan 2006 18:51:44 +0000, Adrian Brentnall adrian-the papers
and the wrote:

I wonder if you've ever tried to make a lightbox to show off stained
glass...

Yes, several. Deep boxes with straight fluo tubes and no diffuser.

With translucent 'perspex' on the front ? You don't find that you get
too much 'glare' ?


Some of this depends on the glass - some looks better with more diffuse
light, highly textured glass needs a bit of a point source or you lose
the variation in brightness with angle. Hanging the piece from a short
chain and allowing it all to wobble a bit can help too - movement adds
sparkle.

True.
At the last show I did back in December I had a lovely lighting setup
- 8ft x 4ft window high up in the wall with the sunlight streaming in
- lit everything up a treat. The the people on the next stall
complained that it was too bright - so the organisers stuck some
cardboard over the window - darn ! Need my own 'portable' sunlight g


Can't always rely on sunlight to show off the glass - and it does need
light from behind for best effect...

Our "suncatchers" are mainly Swarovskis and beads, rather than flat
glass. Spot lighting from the front is important to get a good sparkle.
I've been using 12V dichroic spots, and with metal foil snoots or even
lens systems to get a spot beam.

Slightly different to me - but you're right - needs a combination of
lighting to get the best.


Helen prefers a simple approach of halogen floods at about half a
kilowatt / metre of shopfront. Keeps the stall warm in Winter too!

I've got this image of the snow 2" thick around the stall, but
yourselves there in straw hat & sunglasses g.

I suppose if there's 'enough' light around (from the floods) then a
light-coloured material behind the hanging glass will give some
'back-lighting' - maybe I'll try that before doing anything more
elaborate. I've got a couple of 150watt floods - I'll have a play.

Need to think generally about displays - it didn't matter so much when
you were only paying a tenner or £20 a table - but when stand fees get
up, (and beyond) the £100 mark then 'every little helps!'

Thanks for the advice.
BTW - you don't know where I can buy those 'double-headed pins' that
they use to hold jewelley on display stands, do you ??

Take care
Adrian
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On Tue, 17 Jan 2006 18:13:17 +0000, Andy Dingley wrote:

I like the idea of deeper white painted box but I'd use matt white
rather than gloss otherwise you will get a highlight from the light
source at some points.

Use a fluorescent - if you have a large source you can avoid the hot
spot problems.

You can still get a flare from gloss and fluories. Perhaps my choice
of the word "points" wasn't descriptive enough. A linear fluory will
produce a linear flare. A 2D type might be better but making the mask
will be harder. One to covering the entire back of the tube area I
think you be to big and produce a dark area.

There's about four stops brightness difference between typical matt
and gloss white paints.

Shouldn't imagine that is a problem for a light box for view slides.

--
Cheers
Dave. pam is missing e-mail