American Recorder SIB-101CS Photo Studio-in-a-Box

I was not expecting much based on the price but I wanted to see if I could improve my photos for small ebay stuff I wanted to sell. The only down side to this package is that the lights are not very bright. I did not find this to be a big issue since I could just increase the exposure time to compensate. The fact that it all folds up into a neat thin package is really clever. The camera stand surprised me the most, it's thick metal and supported my heavy DSLR and big leans easily without feeling like I was overloading it. It even has a locking ball head to make it easy to make overhead and portrait shots. I also thought the light holders and were clever the way the legs retract into the handle with a spring. They could use a rubber pad on the bottom of the feet because the weight of the cord will pull them off the table. The built in blue or gray fabric background is also a nice feature however, because it must be folded to be stored in the kit, it has a nasty crease in it that shows in your photos. It performs as I expected and I am getting very good looking product shots. Play around with the exposure and be sure to close down the lens or you will get a very shallow depth of field. I also found that setting the self timer in my camera allowed the camera to stop shaking well before the shutter fired.

Upon opening the box and unpacking the lights I noticed parts missing (they had fallen off). The kit is a good idea but this one is quite cheap, the tripod is useless and will not support a DSLR I tried and no luck as it would not lock. The components were undersized and cheaply made. The fabric is good, not great but good -the box is difficult to keep square with the small velcro tabs. The lamps over heat in minutes and take quite a long time to cool down. Your better off looking elsewhere.

Buy American Recorder SIB-101CS Photo Studio-in-a-Box Now

The idea of this is great. The light box part is fine (although I would prefer a white background to blue and grey) and the package is slick. It's true you get what you pay for though. The lamps start heating up quickly and smell horribly and cannot be turned off without almost burning your hand. There are extensive warning notes all over the instructions about fire...they must know it runs too hot. Also, the 'camera stand' is awkward and worthless. Just use a regular tripod if you need to get this for a cheap, temporary solution.

Read Best Reviews of American Recorder SIB-101CS Photo Studio-in-a-Box Here

I have never written a review on Amazon before, and the reason is I have never felt the need. But there really isnt a ton of information out there about this, so I figured a few words may help someone else looking to purchase the SIB-100.

First of all, I bought this item mainly to take pictures of merchandise to sell on eBay and my website. I unpacked it, and without even glancing at the 1 page "manual" I set it up and was taking pictures within minutes. It's very easy to set up. (Look at the picture, then set up. It's a two-step process really.)

I have been taking pictures with it of all sorts of things all night and must say I am mightly impressed. (You can see some of the pictures I took under "customer images")

This item is not designed for your DSLR!. The camera support is not sturdy enough to hold it. However, it works like a champ for my mini-digital olympus 500. The camera stand adjusts in any way you can think of to get just the shot angle just the way you want it.

The backdrop does have a crease in it, howver I noticed I was able to diminish the crease by limiting the depth of field. (using a longer focal length and moving the camera away from the subject)

Other than that minor gripe, this will work prefectly for my needs. The lights get HOT! (As do all photo lamps) so be careful, best just to let them sit a while after you are done using them.

This is the only thing I have seen like it on the market designed specifically for taking pictures of small items all in one kit, and to sum it up, it does the job perfectly. Just make sure you of other camera support arrangements if you choose to use a SLR.

Want American Recorder SIB-101CS Photo Studio-in-a-Box Discount?

I had been shopping for a light tent for some time and had even resorted to making a temporary one out of a hanging file folder frame. Worked so-so but wasn't something I wanted to travel to job sites with.

Saw this at $66 and thought, "Why not give it a shot".

Took it out on a product shoot just after I received it. Works like a champ, looks professional, and transports easily.

The camera stand seemed a little lightweight for my Rebel DSLR until I removed the battery grip.

Overcame the camera shake on long (2.5 second) exposures by using an IR remote shutter release.

This was well worth the investment and I can strongly recommend it.