Instructions for a Snoot Grid
Snoots and snoot grids are used in photography to restrict the light from a hand-held flash into a focused beam. A snoot is basically a tunnel which the light is directed through, with a longer tunnel causing a smaller, tighter beam. A snoot grid restricts the light even further and allows you more control over it. Like a regular snoot, with a snoot grid, the longer the grid, and the smaller the channels within it, the tighter the beam will be when light is shone through.
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Things You'll Need
- Hand-held flash
- Black straws (0.5 cm diameter)
- Non-corrugated cardboard
- Ruler
- Pen
- Scissors
- Box-cutter or other knife
- Glue
Instructions
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1
Measure the circumference of your hand-held flash and draw a grid on a strip of sturdy cardboard that corresponds with those measurements, plus an extra half-inch wide box. For example, if your flash measures 2-by-3 inches you would draw a grid of five boxes in a row, measuring 2 inches, 3 inches, 2 inches, three inches and half an inch respectively. The length of the boxes should be the length you wish your snoot grid to be, plus an inch to an inch and a half to fit over the flash; so, if your snoot grid is going to be an inch long, make the boxes 2 to 2 1/2 inches long.
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2
Cut out the grid with a box cutter or other knife so that you have a strip of cardboard with five boxes drawn on it. Do not cut out the boxes. Use a ruler and a pair of scissors to score the lines between the boxes so that the cardboard is easier to bend in a straight line. Do not cut all the way through because you want the cardboard to remain in a single, unbroken strip.
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3
Cut a handful of black straws into identical-sized pieced with the scissors. The pieces can be as long as you want but must be all the same size and leave enough room on the cardboard for both the straws and for the finished snoot grid to fit over the flash once it is assembled.
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Start gluing the straws to the cardboard strip. Use one of the straight outside edges as a guide for placement to make sure the straws are all lined up. Glue the straws to one of the long boxes on the grid.
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Start gluing the second layer, once you have the first layer of straws glued down, on top of the first in a honeycomb pattern. The straws in the layer above should nestle in between the two straws in the layer below. Continue layering and gluing the straws in this way until you have a honeycombed stack as tall as the shorter boxes in your cardboard grid. Bend the sides up around the straws to measure.
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Let the straws sit for a while so that the glue can dry, and then bend the cardboard grid around the honeycombed stack. You will see that the extra half-inch wide box forms a tab that allows you to glue the cardboard together. Tape the cardboard closed around the straws and test it on your flash before gluing to make sure that straws do not need to be added or removed. Once you have tested the snoot grid to your satisfaction, glue the cardboard closed and let it dry before use.
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Tips & Warnings
You can cover the outside of the finished snoot grid with black or silver duct tape for a more professional look.
Cut a slit in the side of the snoot grid where the straws end to insert colored filter gels and change the color of the light from your flash.
References
Resources
- Photo Credit hole, grid image by Ni Chun from Fotolia.com
