DIY Snoot and Grid Tutorial Part 2

This is the second part of our DIY Snoot and Grid Tutorial. If you have not read the first part yet, you can find it here. This part of the tutorial will deal with making the black straw grid to use with your strobist kit. The materials and tools are already enumerated in the first part, so if you have already done the snoot and are just following up for the grid, you should already have the materials and tools ready with you.

We are making a 6cm snoot, so cut a piece of the plastic sheet 6cm wide and 21.5cm long. Mark the plastic sheet where you will make the folds as follows: 6.5cm, 4.5cm, 6.5cm, 4.5cm and finally 6.5cm. As with the snoot, there will be two 6.5cm's that will be taped together.

Cut 6cm length of black straws. I exactly used 86 pieces of 6cm straws, which i cut from a handful of black straws about 8 inches long and 6mm to 7mm in diameter.

Make a box out of the strip of black plastic strip by taping together the two 6.5cm ends using double-sided tape.

It's now time to lay the straws to make the gridwork. Start by putting two strips of tape on the inside part of the wide side of the box, then lay one layer of straw on the tape, making sure the ends of the straw are flush with the end of the plastic sheet. Instead of the double sided tape, you may also opt to use silicone sealant of the type used for sealing cracks and gaps on window sills. After laying the first layer of the straw, lay another strip of tape over the straw layer, or silicone sealant if it is what you want to use. Continue alternating layers of adhesive and straws making a honeycomb pattern. I used 11 pieces of straw on the first layer, followed by 12 straws, then followed by 13 straws, then 14 straws, then 13 straws, followed by 12 straws, and lastly, 11 straws.

When are done making the grid, tape a velcro loop strip on each side of the grid, as shown in the picture.



If you have followed my instructions in making both the snoot and the grid, the grid should be just the right size to slide inside the snoot. As you may discover, the grid piece is really meant to just slide in and out of the snoot, as if it can be zoomed in and out. Zooming the grid piece in or out can make for a tighter or broader beam of light. The design will also allow you to use colored gels easily with the snoot and grid. You may also decide to make a longer or shorter snoot and/or grid, which will give you different results. The beauty of doing things on your own is that you can experiment as you wish as you go along.

I hope you enjoyed following along with my tutorial. Watch out as I may post some more in the future. Post your comments so I will know if you liked (or disliked) my tutorial, or if you have any suggestions so I can make the tutorial more meaningful and useful.