Does it matter which light box I buy? Do they vary?

AnalogueWendy

AnalogueWendy

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I'm considering investing in a thin, modern LED light light box. (Dug around and found that my old one has very hot incandescent bulbs and the white plastic seems likely to crack soon :oops: )
I'll probably stick at A4 size. It will inevitably end up being used to digitise the occasional negative, although my main reason to buy one now is to compensate for fading eye-sight. (I'm sure I used to be able to read a 35mm neg!)

The prices seem all over the place.
Does it matter what I buy? Is there any difference in the light they provide? Colour, quality, consistency, intensity etc?

Tough thing to test, even if there were a shop near me that stocks more than one. Thought I would ask for advice before creating electronic waste!
 
You only mention negs. If that’s what you’re using it for, almost any of the available models will do the job. They all seem to have some sort of brightness control.
Since I bought mine, I see that you can get them with rechargeable batteries. I find the cable on mine is a bit of a nuisance (catches in cuffs and is a temptation to the cat) so I’d investigate those too.
If you’re making critical colour-balance judgements on transparencies you may need better advice.
 
Some do give a CIE colour balance although I'm somewhat cynical about the accuracy of the cheaper ones - they may base colour on the LED specifications which may or may not be as high tolerance as critical photographic requirements need. 'Better' makes are probably using tighter tolerance LEDs but will no doubt be more costly. If its just for viewing then I'd suggest most would potentially be viable. WEX used to have a selection otherwise ebay is worth searching through. I did have some battery ones but these required a camera battery which became no longer available so became useless and rather put me off them.
 
Wendy: I use Kaiser Plano Slimlite 2453. The screen is 6.3" x 8.7", 120m VAC, and battery-chargeable. They have larger sizes. This test in the picture shows the Kelvin around the screen, which is close to 5000K. I used my NEC monitor calibration puck to take measurements.
 

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I also have one of the Kaiser Planos, and a huge old Calumet box that has a fluorescent tube in it, I think (I can't find either of them at the moment as I'm still unpacking after my recent move). The bulbs and the wiring can be "got at" in the Calumet and, I imagine, the perspex could be replaced, allowing it to run for a good while. The Kaiser will be WEEE when it fails.
 
I would't worry too much about colour accuracy, unless your job is colour matching chromes of wedding dresses for catalogues, which would mean you also have a time machine going back at least 20yrs. If this is the case can you pick me up a few boxes of Velvia at 2004 prices? Ta.

For digitising negs the exact colour balance isn't really an issue as you can set your white balance based to zero it. Also be aware that the plastic used in lightboxes can be prone to yellowing with age, so what you buy now isn't going to necessarily be the exact same kelvin value in X number of years in the future. So I wouldn't worry about that. A bigger factor is getting one with all the practicalities right - right size for your situation etc etc. I'm perfectly happy with a thin flat Jessops branded one, roughly 10x8", with a mains transformer.
 
I used to have one of those boxes, about the size of carry-on luggage. To use it for colour matching, you needed special fluorescent tubes, replaced regularly. I believe there was a special grade of diffusing Perspex too. Now departed to the great light box Place in the Sky. It was also very expensive.
It does sound as though any of the online versions would suffice.
 
For viewing negs it's not too critical, but if you want to copy them even lighting is a must. I considered making my own but decided I'd be unlikely to get things even enough.
 
I use a piece of translucent white perspex over mine. As for colour temperature, it matters as much as it matters to you. LEDs seem to retain their light colour quite well over time but poor ones can have odd spectral output which can cause occasional oddities. If you are colour critical then but from a reputable maker with specified output colour from its LEDs, otherwise much cheaper will be ok.
 
Thank you all for the helpful advice, information and suggestions. I have made a rather firm suggestion to family and I’m hoping, with confidence, for a flat, thin parcel under the Christmas tree.
 
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