If one of your New Year's resolutions is to up your flash photography game, a great place to start is the Strobist website.
The website was founded in 2006 by David Hobby, a photojournalist with The Baltimore Sun. It started when he wrote about how he lit up a photo he did of a wind-tunnel turbine.
The site covers the full spectrum of flash photography, from simple speed lights to studio flashes, with free lessons and a gear guide. There are even some tips for DIY modifiers.
If you are looking for a way to really light up what you are shooting, you might want to take a trip to the kitchen aisle of the local store.
Griffin Hammond, of Indy Mogul fame, did this video showing his plans for a DIY studio light that had the output of the equivalent of 13 60-watt incandescent light bulbs. While the video is about nine years old, his idea is still a good one.
His light uses a deep plastic dishpan for a reflector around the lights, which are in socket splitters in four light sockets, with the cake pan serving as the electrical box for the rig.
Griffin's rig uses eight 100-watt-equivalent CFL bulbs, but LED bulbs should work just as well. He estimated the cost of the rig at $85, but it's not a bad price if you compare it to a commercial rig with similar output.
You can also lower that price point by purchasing some of the supplies at your local dollar store instead of the big box stores. You'll probably still need to go to the hardware store for the lighting rigs.
Griffin's rig requires some knowledge of electrical wiring, and his video doesn't clearly show the wiring pattern. If you'd rather not bother with making your own electrical circuits, some of the commenters on the video suggested using a power strip with plug-in light sockets, simplifying that part of the project.
I would probably paint the outside of the pan black, giving it a better appearance as well as minimizing light spill.
From his video, it looks like a great option if you're shooting video or prefer to use continuous lighting in your photo studio.
