Table top stands for adjustably holding speedlights

[Chris S.]

I'm using floor-based boom stands to hold speedlights for macro lighting. On the good side, I can put a light anywhere I want it. On the bad side, they are pretty annoying to place and adjust.

Am looking for table-top stands that are capable, or can be coverted, to hold speedlights. Ideally, I'd like to able to adjust them for any light direction--top, bottom, side, front, back--so they need a bit of adjustability.

I recall some good ideas seem being discussed in the past, but no amount of searching seems to bring them up. Harbor Freight--if I recall--was shown to have inexpensive, adjustable table-top stands. But I've exhausted all the search terms I can think of--both here and at the Harbor Freight Website, and nothing useful turns up.

All suggestions appreciated. Thanks,

--Chris S.

[elf]

I'm using two engineer lamps to hold a couple of Vivitar 283s. Just replace the shade and lightbulb holder with the flash.

I ran across this after adapting my engineer lamps: http://strobist.blogspot.com/2007/06/di ... stand.html

[Craig Gerard]

Chris,

Is this for the "Bratcam"?

Another suggestion, in addition to elf's, is the Noga Holdit Articulating Arms approach:
http://www.filmtools.com/noga.html

A similar type of fitting can also be found on reasonably priced gauge holders which usually have magnetic bases. You will see plently of those on eBay.com if you use magnetic base as the search criteria.

The gauge holders with flexible arms are also useful; good for positioning; but they can tip over, unless the weight and the diameter of the base is increased to compensate for the flash unit in its various positions. There are also some with vacuum bases.

Craig

[Chris S.]

Ed & Craig--thanks, gents!

Ed, I'd thought about modifying engineer lamps, but as with my floor-based stands--though much less so--there would still be a length of springy arm whose position needs to be considered. But as they're working for you, I may rethink and give one a try.

Right now, with floor stands, I sometimes have a main light on one stand, two fill lights on additional stands, a backlight on a fourth stand, a diffuser bent between two more stands, and a gobo or two on additional stands. Makes for a lot of counterweighted booms stretching several feet in every direction. Last night, I smacked my head into a boom-mounted counterweight, and not for the first time. The "ouch" was momentary, but the bump moved the light, hit the diffuser, moved the subject, and so I had to set things back up and reshoot the stack. Grr. High time I move to something more compact.

Yep, Craig, this is for the Bratcam--which probably wants to bite me for ignoring it of late (have been traveling a lot). Thanks for supplying the name "Noga"--knew I'd seen them, but couldn't recall whose rig they were in, or what they were called. They seem really good. And who'd have thought that the magic search term to find all those inexpensive articulated arm stands would be "magnetic base"? Well, you did, thankfully. Now I have some good paths to follow.

Thanks again!

--Chris

[enricosavazzi]

I am using Manfrotto arms (larger than the Noga arms mentioned in another answer, but similar in principle) attached to a frame on the ceiling (four heavy metal profiles capable of holding large studio strobes) or a Manfrotto pole attached horizontally to the moving platform of a copy stand (positioned about 80 cm above the table top).

I prefer to have the lights hanging down from above the table than mounted on supports placed on or around the table. In this way, the lights are never in the way of all the other stuff that needs to be on the table (e.g. a diffuser cube and background).

[Chris S.]

Thanks for your insightful response, Enrico. I thought about what you wrote while taking a run tonight at a local park. As luck would have it, the park had erected a temporary stage set up for a public dance production. They put up an aluminum frame, from which they hung lights--a different version but similar to what you described.

Maybe I should hang a pole or frame from the ceiling, with adjustable height, and clamp my speedlights to it--essentially as you suggest. Not at all a bad idea. Will put on my thinking cap and cogitate.

Thanks much for your input.

Cheers,

--Chris

[elf]

How about using track lighting with something like this to hold flashes, umbrellas, softboxes, etc.?

At least it wouldn't hurt the resale value of the house

[AndrewC]

Some routes I follow:

1) Use loc-line tubing as a flexible support. works great on small flashes but might not be rigid enough for bigger ones like an SB-800

2) I'm thinking of using a Kirk double macro flash bracket to hold two flashes

3) I'm building a "lighting cage" to go over my subject. Like stage lighting gantries. Using 20mm cross section t-slot bars and then hanging cold shoes and/or miniballheads from the bars. Actually I've been building it for months but work keeps getting in the way, and I go through multiple redesigns while dozing in departure lounges - the 20mm square bars might get replaced with rods with little light carriages locked in place with thumb screws with magnetic bases to hold flash shoes.

4) The engineer lamp (we call them Anglepoises) are nice but I've never found one that exactly fits my space requirements.

My basic design requirements keep coming back to:

- needs to be strong enough to hold a light source
- easily adjustable
- one "release" to allow me to easily fold units out of the way
- easily combine continuous modelling light and strobe light (I might have cracked that - I'm about to start strobing some high power Cree leds with 6amp current pulses ! )

[enricosavazzi]

Some routes I follow:

3) I'm building a "lighting cage" to go over my subject. Like stage lighting gantries. Using 20mm cross section t-slot bars and then hanging cold shoes and/or miniballheads from the bars. Actually I've been building it for months but work keeps getting in the way, and I go through multiple redesigns while dozing in departure lounges - the 20mm square bars might get replaced with rods with little light carriages locked in place with thumb screws with magnetic bases to hold flash shoes.

Just a couple of quick comments - T-profiles, L-profiles or (especially) square/rectangular tubing are better than round pipes for the frame. I use Manfrotto clamps to attach the arms to the frame, and a round pipe does not prevent a clamp from rotating about the pipe, even if overtightened.

Manfrotto and similar arms are of the three-joint, one-knob design you seem to be looking for (in addition to the knob for clamping the arm to the frame).

[elf]

I didn't know Manfrotto had a complete system for hanging lights from the ceiling. If you're not a DIYer then the Manfrotto system looks like a good place to start: http://www.manfrotto.com/Jahia/site/man ... e/pid/4014

[AndrewC]

.. a round pipe does not prevent a clamp from rotating about the pipe, even if overtightened.

...

... depends on your contact area, contact surfaces and load. The advantage of a round pipe is that you can rotate around it - gives you an additional degree of freedom should you want it. I find that attractive because it means I can loosen one knob and flip my light out of the way.

Actually I don't think that there is a single perfect compact and cheap solution (unless Ikea are busy on something ! ). Much as I like building my own stuff, I think the Kirk double bracket with a couple of mini-ballheads is one of the better solutions for horizontal setups

Andrew

[pgk]

Coming from an underwater photography background where flash arms are the norm I simply adapt these for macro lighting. For a good round up of the type of parts available take a look at: www.camerasunderwater.co.uk/Ultralight/index.html - there are many other types available too and most are interchangeable if they have 1"/25mm ball joints. They are limited as to the weight they will lock up with and hold, above water that is, but I use a single joint to hold SB24s (via AS10s and a 1/4" Whitworth threaded section) with no problem. For bases I use some made by http://www.overxposed.com/ but be aware that all these items may be relatively expensive as the arms are designed to work and survive in salt water, as do the bases (probably to the surprise of the manufacturer)!

[Will Milne]

Hi

Ram Componants offer a great U-Build It solution. The B -Componants are 1" dia .

Chose a base
Chose an arm or arms plus connectors
Choose a holder/adapter- they have a 1/4"-20 threaded post as a good end option-RAM-B-237U

I have a Wimberley macro bracket that uses the same type componants and simply added to from the Ram Componants to suit my own needs.

http://www.ram-mount.com/EmptyPages/COM ... fault.aspx

Hope that helps

Will

[Chris S.]

Thanks for so many useful responses. Some thoughts of my own:

Ed: I can just see the ad when the house goes up for sale: "Special track lighting in basement, of great value to lunatic-fringe macro-photographers." And I'm pretty much a DYI kind of guy--can't seen myself buying into a whole Manfrotto rig--but appreciate your giving me the chance to learn about this line of their products, which I hadn't known about. And select portions of their line might well form part of a DYI rig.

Andrew:

1 Had thought about the Loc-Line approach, but I do use speedlights of the SB-800 size, and don't want to mess with sagging.

2 I actually have two Kirk macro flash brackets (of the kind that Will refers to in his later post). Nice things, but too "fiddly" for what I want. I like the idea of quickly sticking a light in place and tightening a single knob. And as Will mentions, the RAM components are the very same stuff, for much less money.

3 Gantry--have been thinking about that, too. I visited a park the other night where a temporary stage had been erected for a dance event, and was admiring the lighting gantry. May actually go this route. On the downside, I like the Bratcam to be transportable as I do sometimes take it to other locations.

Paul, thanks for sharing the underwater stuff--I was completely unaware that it existed. Pricey, but it seems very nice.

Will, you are so right about the RAM stuff. To reinforce the point, when I look closely at my Wimberley macro rig, some of the components have the RAM name stamped in them--but are sold by Wimberley at a vast markup. That said, I don't really like adjusting my Wimberley rig--it's very good when I really need it, but not quick to set up.

Will probably go with the gauge holders, Noga, Manfrotto arms, or one of the other single-knob solutions.

Rather than have a few holders that can adjust infinitely, it will probaby be easiest if I have a stable of holders in different sizes (height and reach), each with reasonable, but limited, adjustability. Then I can grab something close, adjust it a little bit, and go. My current floor stands are about the ultimate in adjustability--but are very time consuming and fiddly to set up.

Thanks again, folks. Cheers,

--Chris