Today at work I got stuck in a long line of trucks while the container yard folks closed down for their lunch break. As so often happens, while sitting there bored my mind turned to taking some photos and perhaps McGyvering something.

In my truck I keep an old Sir Walter Raleigh pipe tobacco can filled with hard candy, and while taking out a piece I noticed that the lid was diffuser-perfect translucent white plastic, and that the bottom of the can is shiny aluminum, with the sides being silverized cardboard.

I also noticed that it was juuuuust large enough to hold my smallest flash. So I hooked up a radio trigger, dropped it inside, placed a 1mm layer of polypropylene foam packing material (carried for diffusing stuff), and put the top back on it.

Then I spent a happy little while doing macro photos of translucent amber cinnamon candy placed on top of the can.

S-M-C Takumar 105/2.8 with 58mm of extension tubes
1/160 @ f22



Here is the setup:





Shot conceived, set up, and executed with materials within arm's reach, without ever getting out of my seat.

Well, that was certainly creative. Very nice result. I like it.

Ed

[JCSullivan]

Well executed. We certainly can't say your mind doesn't work.

[Mike Cash]

I would like to have done a better job of laying out the candy and framing the shot. With the lens setup the way it was, the viewfinder was pretty much pitch black at f22....which is what I had to use to tone it down enough to not completely blow out everything. With it being handheld, and with the narrow DOF due to the macro, I was just tickled pink that it came out as well as it did.