Easy to make circular + thin softbox light for photography or just to look cool in the corner of your room!

A softbox is a diffused light source often used in photography to add fill in light, gives a nice soft light...great for portraits and lighting objects.

Grab an old bicycle wheel and lets make our own...

Step 1: Get Your Bits Together

YOU WILL NEED

An old 26" road bike wheel + tyre

White lycra material with stretch in both directions of the material 750mm x 750mm - available at any good fabric shop

White cotton thread

'Stretch' needles for sewing stretchy material

Elasticated cord 1300mm in length is plenty

2no. A1 sheets mounting card 1x black 1x white

Tin foil sheet [roasting sheet]

Spray mount glue

LED light strip + transformer - Natural light 4500k 12v

Some wire to extend lead if required

Solder

Sash window security bolt+ bolt to fit thread or alternatively use a tripod mount screw [to be adapted]

Evo Stick Strong Stuff glue mastic tube - also available as squeezable tube

TOOLS

Hacksaw or multitool with cut off blade

Sewing machine

Solder iron

General tools - knife, scissors...

Drill + drill bits or hole punches

Step 2: An Old Wheel?

The light is based around an old road bike wheel...

...the old tyre will act as an outer edge cover and give a soft outer edge to the light unit...

...if you want a more rugged look go for a mountain bike wheel + tyre.

Remove all of the spokes and the hub...

...either unscrew or cut out with a multi tool + cut off blade as I did.

Step 3: Card

The backing to the light is formed with mounting card...

...black on one side [so not to unduly bounce external light] and white on the inside to reflect the light [if not using foil].

Lay the wheel rim on the card and mark out the circle...

...and cut out with a sharp knife.

The mounting card I had was slightly too short on its width...

...cut out some fill in bits and tape to the main piece on the inside face.

Take a second piece of mounting card and mark + cut out the wheel rim circle on the white side...

...mark a line in 40mm from the edge...

...and cut out.

This ring will form a light baffle to stop the LED lights from being seen directly through the fabric

Step 4: Rim + Bolt

Remove the inner tube from the wheel rim...

...use the valve hole for the attachment bolt.

The idea is to be able to attach the softbox light to a tripod.

A standard camera/tripod uses 1/4"-20 UNC thread.

It is possible to buy tripod mount screws that could be adapted though I found that a sliding window security bolt has the same thread.

Remove the locking spindle and use the internally threaded barrel...

Find a bolt with the corresponding thread and bolt through the wheel rim...

...the security bolt barrel will be long enough to span the tyre width.

Step 5: Light It Up

From my research online a Natural colour 4500k LED light strip is the best for photography...

...buy one with a transformer and the LED light connector [I have put a link of the one a used in the material list]

Poke the LED light connector wires through a spoke hole next to the attachment bolt [old valve hole]...

...remove the adhesive tape backing...

...and stick to the inside of the wheel rim.

Cut the light strip to length.

LED light strips have points along the length marked with a 'scissor' symbol where it can be cut to length [normally every third LED]

Plug it in to test that it is all working

Step 6: To FOIL or Not to FOIL!

The white of the backing card would act as a good reflector...

...though I was advised that scrunched up foil gives a better broken diffused light.

Lay out some lengths of roasting foil over the back board...

...scrunch up...

...and carefully flatten out...

...giving a textured finish to bouncy that light.

Add spray mount glue to the backing board and stick down the foil...

...trimming off the excess with a sharp knife

Step 7: Glue It

Glue the cardboard back and front light baffle to the wheel rim.

I found that a glue mastic formulated to stick to metal worked best, though hot glue or epoxy glue would work as well.

Step 8: Stretchy

The front of the light will have a white fabric cover to help diffuse the light.

Choose a Lycra based material that has stretch in both directions.

You want to cut out a circle slightly smaller than the wheel rim...

...Stretch out the material to the required tautness [slightly taut] and clamp out the corners to hold in place.

Mark around the wheel rim and cut out the circle.

Step 9: Sewing

The material will be stretched over the wheel rim and held in place with some elastic cord or tape.

This can be sewn by hand though a sewing machine makes the job a lot quicker.

Load up the white cotton thread and fit a 'Stretch' type needle...designed for stretchy materials

Sew a hem a few centimeters long...

...and thread your elastic through this pocket...

...continue sewing using the elastic cord as a guide.

This technique saves having to thread the elastic through the hem afterwards.

Tie off the elastic and trim ends

Step 10: Wiring

As I also want to use this light as an ambient light in my sitting room I didn't want to see the black transformer cable trailing down to the floor...

...so solder some nicer looking thinner wire [suitable for 12v] to the LED light connectors...

...protect with electrical tape or electrical shrink wrap.

Stretch the white fabric diffuser over the front of the wheel rim

Cuttwo holes in the tyre for the attachment bolt + the wire to poke through the tyre...

...I used some hole punches though a suitable drill bit will give results as well.

Thread the LED light wire through its hole...

...and offer up the tyre to the attachment bolt, poking it through...

...carefully ease on the tyre over the rim...

...giving a nice finish to the edge and robustness in use.