[Jewelry making - Article 00057] - [Orchid] White Acrylic Domes...vs...Cloud Dome

[Randy Smith]

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    Hi all you " White Acrylic Domes"-ers 

    Maybe I can save you a little time and maybe money in the long-run
    if I give you some of my experiences. I've tried what you have in
    mind, basically, my middle name is 'cheap', and I try to save a
    nickel when ever possible. 

    I have tried white acrylic domes, milk cartons, lamp shades, light
    boxes, reflector cards, photographic diffusers, photo bounce lights,
    light reflectors both cloth and metal, light tents, all sorts of
    plastic diffusers, and they all are lacking . 

    1) The first thing the Acrylic Dome is missing is THICKNESS.  In a
    thin acrylic dome, the light transmits through it, and it acts as a
    slight diffuser.  The Cloud Dome, due to its thickness, acts like
    optic fiber, conducts the light all through the dome and the jewelry
    piece  gets illuminated from all sides without hot spots.  My
    experience is that the thinner acrylic domes give hot spots.  I have
    some shots of 2" marbles I made, which are like taking pictures of
    round mirrors, and they don't have hot spots.  

    2) The second thing the thin acrylic domes are missing is STABILITY.
     I can stand on my Cloud Dome, and I weigh 250 lbs...solid muscle of
    course..<G>. There isn't much depth of field at 8-10 inches, but
    every little bit helps.  I like to set my aperture at f22 or f32,
    which gives me the best dept of field. The exposure at this aperture
    on a cloudy day might be =BD sec. or as much as a second or two
    depending on the light.  A thin flimsy dome will give vibrations
    which tend to dull/blur the picture. 

    3) The third thing the other methods are missing is SPEED.  Speed in
    setting up, speed in taking down.  I have a quick connect on the
    cloud dome, and a matching male connector on the bottom of my
    camera.  I can snap the camera into either a tri-pod or the Cloud
    Dome with a flick of the finger.  The Cloud dome is always ready to
    go, just pick it up and shoot.  There is no preparation time if you
    are shooting outdoors shots like flowers, Wedding Rings on hands.,
    etc...and very little indoor setup for jewelry, stones, chains...see
    my Web Site, http://www.rocksmyth.com/clouddome 

    Good Luck with your shots, whichever route you take. 

Love and God Bless
-randy
http://www.rocksmyth.com 

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