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DIY Photography Lighting Brackets

Producing quality indoor photos requires multiple lights arranged around the subject so the shadows created by any one light are canceled out by the beams cast by the others. Photographers who perform much studio work purchase lighting kits, which are supplied with all the needed stands, lights and brackets. For amateurs trying to save money, or for those who have a light with a broken brace, a do-it-yourself photography lighting bracket can be readily fashioned from a standard metal shelf bracket.

Things You'll Need

Flat, 8-inch metal shelf bracket
Ruler
Felt-tip pen
Vise
Rubber mallet
2-inch by 4-inch piece of scrap lumber
Nut

Instructions

- 1
  Locate the center point of a flat, 8-inch shelf bracket with a ruler; mark the spot 4 inches from one end of the bracket with a felt-tip pen.
- 2
  Measure the distance between the light socket mounting bolts. Divide the measurement in half and measure the result out from the center mark on the bracket -- toward each end of the bracket ̵1; and mark the spots with a pen. For example, if the distance between the light socket mounting bolts is 2 inches, measure out 1 inch from the marked spot in the center of the bracket.
- 3
  Tighten the bracket in a vise with either one of the two off-center marks lined up with the edge of the vise jaws.
- 4
  Tap the exposed bracket with a rubber mallet, bending the bracket over on the vise until the bend reaches a 90-degree angle.
- 5
  Open the vise and flip the bracket over so the unbent end is pointing up. Insert a scrap piece of 2-inch by 4-inch lumber into the vise, width-wise, between the bracket and front vise jaw. This will compensate for the length of the first 90-degree bend in the bracket.
- 6
  Align the 90-degree bend in the bracket perpendicularly to the vise jaws along the width of the board. Close the bracket and wood in the vise, aligning the second off-center mark on the bracket with the edge of the vise jaws. Bend the exposed section of bracket over at a 90-degree angle with the mallet, in the same direction as the first 90-degree bend, creating a horseshoe shaped bracket. Remove the bracket from the vise.
- 7
  Set the bracket on a tripod or light stand with one of the holes in the middle section of the bracket, between the two 90-degree bends, over the mounting bolt on the stand. Secure the bracket to the mounting bolt with a correctly sized nut, twisting the nut finger-tight.
- 8
  Twist the mounting bolts from the light with your fingers. Align the holes in the ends of the bracket up with the mounting holes on the sides of the light socket. Attach the light to the bracket with the mounting bolts and twist the bolts finger-tight.

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