Silver Polyboard

F

finchy

Well-known member
Hi there,
we have a couple of white polystyrene insulation boards that we use for bouncing light etc but i am wondering what material/substance i need to make the other side silver so that we can get a more intense effect...?

I know spray paint melts poly board so am i looking at some kind of chrome emulsion to just brush on?

Thanks


Tom.
 
An oft-recommended method is crinkled aluminum foil attached with spray-on adhesive (like 3M Super 77). With most foils, you have the choice of the mirror-shiny side, or the matte-shiny side. And you can control the amount of diffusion by the amount of crinkling. Quite effective, lots of variation, and inexpensive.
 
yeah i did consider some sort of foil but i thought that it may produce an uneven light if it gets damaged in any way.... but i will do some more thorough tests.

Cheers


Tom
 
Well, you kind of want a crunchy uneven surface, or else you'll get a pinpoint mirror effect if it's too smooth. Mirror boards are useful for specific purposes, but a little bit of diffusion in the surface makes for a much more overall usable product.

Have you looked into insulation beadboard at home depot/lowes? It's basically silver one side and white on the other, thick foam, ready to go...
 
Thanks barry,
i just did some tests and standard foil seems to work quite well, i just wasnt sure how it would react when it was glued to the polyboard,

I havent seen that type of insulation board in stores, but i believe they had some at my old college so i will look out for it!
I purchased a sheet of mirrored card from an art shop as a test and that didnt give a very nice effect... it was, as you said, a 'pinpoint' mirror effect. I may try adding some diffusion to it and just experiment.


Thanks guys!

Tom
 
hi tom,

get yourself a roll of lee filters 273 soft silver reflector

plenty of reflection with an even spread

cheers
ian
 
Thanks Ian! appreciate the input!

As with most people in this industry... money is not freely available at the moment for me so i am trying to experiment with whatever i can find... Mainly stuff i find around the house haha

Hopefully in the future i will get to do a large order of rolls of Lee filters! haha


Cheers

Tom.
 
Last edited:
hi tom

yes i know what you mean its a bit pricey but it will last you for ages

you could always sell some to fellow filmakers to cover the cost

there is nothing like using the proper gear..it is always hassle free

cheers
ian
 
I totally agree Ian!

Maybe after christmas and when we have some more jobs lined up! haha

Im really learning how effective bouncing light can be and how it can get you out of many sticky situations!


Thanks

Tom
 
finchy said:
yeah i did consider some sort of foil but i thought that it may produce an uneven light if it gets damaged in any way.... but i will do some more thorough tests.
Click to expand...

You WANT "uneven light". You do NOT want a "mirror". If you look at the commercial reflectors, they all have a "mottled" surface of varying degrees.

If you really want a mirror-smooth reflector (for whatever reason?) you could take a "space blanket" (metalized mylar) and stretch it over a replacement window screen frame from the Home Depot (et.al.)
 
Richard Crowley said:
You WANT "uneven light". You do NOT want a "mirror". If you look at the commercial reflectors, they all have a "mottled" surface of varying degrees.

If you really want a mirror-smooth reflector (for whatever reason?) you could take a "space blanket" (metalized mylar) and stretch it over a replacement window screen frame from the Home Depot (et.al.)
Click to expand...

Yeah it was simply just because i hadn't used it for myself...my first impressions were that if the foil is creased etc then it would give a pinpoint light... i tried it with matt foil and it works great! although the spray mount doesn't stick it to the polyboard brilliantly so i think it is going to need some more attention.

Thanks guys

Tom
 
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