Tutorial - Make a Light Stencil Box | Light Painting Photography - light-paint.com

Things you will need...

• A shoe box or any old piece of cardboard.
• A flashgun to illuminate the stencil
• Roll of thick black tape (not essential but recommended)
• An elastic band
• Scissors
• Pen/Pencil

Step 1 - Draw the outline

Once you have cut out the template, grab your piece of cardboard, or shoe box and flatten it out. Draw around the template to mark out the outline onto the piece of cardboard.

Step 2 - Cut out the shape

Carefully cut around the outline to make the shape of the stencil box.

Step 3 - Fold the sides and flaps

Fold the sides inwards and fold each of the flaps. The folds are indicated by the dotted line on the template, and I have drawn them onto the cardboard in the image so you can see them on the cut-out.

Step 4 - Cut out the hole

Cut a square hole into the middle of the cut-out. This is also marked on the template, which you can use to help you get the size correct if you wish.

Step 5 - Inside out?

Decide which way around you would like your stencil box to be. I have decided to use the white side of my card as the inside as it will reflect the flash better. If your cardboard is the same on both sides then it really doesn't matter which side you use.

Step 6 - Cover with tape

Use the black tape to cover the outside surface. This isn't essential, however the black will ensure the box doesn't appear in your images and will also help protect the cardboard in damp conditions.

I have been careful to only tape around the edges a little, to ensure the white isn't covered on the inside. It probably won't make much difference but it's good to make use of whatever is made available to you.

Step 7 - Make the stencil holder frame

We now need to make a frame to hold the stencil. The stencil will slot in behind this frame. Cut out another piece of cardboard around the same size as the centre square (the front of the box). Cut a hole into this piece the same size as the hole in the front of the box. Cover this is tape as before.

Step 8 - Attach the frame

Use a bit more tape to attach the new square onto the front of the box. Stick three of the outer edges down, but make sure you leave one end open so you can insert the stencil.

You should now have two separate layers with the large square hole in the middle.

Step 9 - Fold it all up

The box is now ready to be folded into shape. The folds might be a little bit stiff at first so just bend them backwards and forwards a little. Wrap the elastic band around the top flaps to hold it all in place.

Step 10 - Insert your flashgun

Insert your flashgun to ensure it fits well.

You won't to insert it far so the light can spread out to cover the entire stencil. I find using a diffuser helps too!

Step 11 - Print out a stencil

Print out a stencil. You can use any design you want, but ensure that anything you don't want lit up is black. Usually the background of a printed sheet is white, so you will have to put a black background on everything. You might want to laminate the stencils after you print them. This makes them much easier to insert and protects them against moisture and crinkles!

Step 12 - Insert stencil and start playing!

Insert the stencil into your light box. Your stencil is now ready to use. Point it towards the camera during an exposure and fire the flash. The image printed on the stencil will appear in your photo but the box and flashgun won't! Experiment to get the settings right with your flashgun, you'll probably want to drop down to 1/4 or even 1/8th power so the black square doesn't show up.