I decided to build my own "softbox":http://www.profoto.com/product_category.php?catId=103 out of PVC. This went pretty well. Then I decided to build a light stand to hold it up with. That's where it started getting complicated.
The box weighs about 5 lbs — maybe 10 — and the light adds another 3 lbs to that. The problem is, all the weight hangs on one side of the pole so, no matter what I build, it wants to tip over. Last night, after talking to "Tony":http://livejournal.com/~joiesyguy/ I realized that it's not possible to hang such a weight on one side of a standing pole without having ridiculously wide legs — at least wider than the box itself.
So, with advice from Tony, I've realized there is only two ways to do this: a) build a frame that fits entirely around the softbox that sits on the ground and it tall enough to be useful (5′ ish), or counter-weight the light pole by placing sandbags or water weights on the feet that are on the opposite side of the light box itself.
Without bothering with the physics of levers to determine how much weight I really need, I figure 2 or 3 times the weight of the box itself should be enough (if someone has this kind of physics knowledge on hand, let me know, and I'll give you the exact measurements so you can figure it out for me).
So now I'm debating whether to go the frame route, or the light pole route. If I go the light pole route, I'm trying to decide if it would be cheaper to go buy a mic stand from a music store and adapt it to my needs, or build it out of PVC.
