One of the easiest ways of making your product shots look slick and professional is to use a light box, whether you buy one from a manufacturer or build one yourself. However, if you want to up the ante a little bit, you can always utilize a 360-degree turntable to showcase not only the product you're shooting, but your exceptional video work skills as well. In this tutorial from New Amsterdam Photo Video, you'll learn how to make your own turntable out of $20 worth of materials to use for product photography and 360-degree video.

This tutorial utilizes a few things that you probably don't have just lying around, including a $10 lazy susan from IKEA, called the SNUDDA, and a $2 cloth tape measure. You'll also need some construction paper and tape.

Now, you might be wondering what you need the tape measure for. Well, the great thing about this video is that it not only shows you how to make the turntable, but how to use it and process your footage in post to get a smooth 360-degree video. So, the tape measure (and a needle/paper clip/etc) is used to set markings and measure your rotation so you can accurately edit in post. However, if you're simply shooting a video of a product spinning around in circles, the tape measure may not be necessary.

Though this tutorial is specifically designed for product photography, there are still many applications for filmmakers and those who do commercial work. The DIY turntable is cheap, easy to set up, and can give your shots a greater professional look.

Source: New Amsterdam Photo Video

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Cinematography & Cameras