My camera is a Nikon D700. I use a Nikkor 35-70mm f2.8 lens for most of my shots. It is tack sharp and fast. I used a cable shutter release.... you can use a timer as well.

My camera settings are:

Large Jpeg Format

Spot focus - I always try to get the logo or the hilt in the spot for a sharp picture.

Aperture Priority - usually f8 to f11. This provides good depth of field. Adjust shutter to control exposure.

ISO is 200

White Balance is 3000k which matches the lighting

I use Lightroom photo software



I used to set up and take down my studio which included three lights on stands and a tripod for the camera..... and a table for the light tent. It took up a lot of room and was a pain in the ass. Here is a picture of my old rig:




So, I decided to make something I could leave around all the time. It is smaller in footprint and is on wheels, so I can roll it to a corner when not in use.

Starting at the bottom - It was an old cart that came from Sam's I think. I cut the height down and attached a wood top. Any rolling table will work.

Any light tent will work.... Mine is 24" x 24" x 36"

Instead of a tripod, I bought a computer monitor mounting arm from Amazon and attached a tripod ball head to it. It swings in and out of the light tent opening and is pretty steady.

I attached a second arm to hols my PC. I shoot "tethered" which means the camera is connected to the PC and the pictures appear on the monitor right after you take them. It allows for easy review.

I use 3 Cree LED flood lights. They are 18W, 3000K. I mounted them to three bar clamps I bought at Lowes. The bar clamps made it easy to attach the lights to the wood top and made for a very narrow footprint.

I added a power strip to the table so all the cords are zip tied and there is only one plug that needs to go to the wall.










Here is a shot I took at these settings:




Let me know if you have any questions.......thanks for starting this Buck!!!