Impact Pro Copy Stand with Dual LED Panel Light Kit

Large enough for my projects, easy to assemble, and solidly built. I had to deduct points because the lights, while they work well, create hot spots on your copy material. I tried different angles and the problem remains. I will either need to add some kind of diffusion material or just skip the lights altogether -- which makes their inclusion an unnecessary added expense. (Example photo included.)

Over the years, I tried every solution that you can think of to do copy camera work without using a stand that was made for that purpose. Not that big a deal because the need to do that kind of photography was infrequent. Now that I'm shooting for historical societies in my region, it's been a requirement to do this kind of work often. Time for the real thing. Four stars for the solidity of the product. The camera stays where you put it (Nikon Z7II with 105mm f/2.8). The lighting arms can be adjusted to angles that avoid reflections (a necessity for copy stands). The lighting is strong and even. The base is flat and the column well marked and strong. Base feet are rubber and easily adjusted. The camera mount moves up and down the column and easily stays where you put it. One star subtracted mostly due to deficiencies in the column. The camera sits sagged when mounted on the column. I corrected for this by adding spacers at the base to tip the column back a degree or two. I used steel washers as spacers. Of course, now you need to adjust the position of the copy when moving the camera up and down, but it's very, very minor. And this might just be me, but I have to work to screw my L-bracket onto the mount because it's hard to see how to line it up. The finger knob on the screw is small so you have to work a little harder to twist it. Wish list includes a stronger base-to-column/mount to column connection to eliminate the sag. A geared drive to raise and lower the mount would also be good. Both are not deal breakers, and for a copy stand at this price point you're getting a lot for the money. Definitely worth considering.

The copy stand is excellent and it was very easy to set up. The arm for the camera mount is very durable so far and it's easy to move the camera up and down as needed. Using both lights turned out to be a bit brighter than what I needed: my current imaging project has some reflective surfaces and when the lights are mounted to the base board, I can't seem to set both lights in a way that they aren't reflecting on the surface and causing a glare. Luckily, the clamp mounts for the lights provide some flexibility! Instead, I mounted one light to the table the stand is sitting on so it's a little farther back from the base board and the objects aren't catching the glare in my images. I appreciate that this was adaptable for the environment I'm working in.

This makes shooting product shots and documents easy. It is very sturdy and well made. The slide column moves very smoothly and easy. It feels like it has a pulley system of some kind internally, so it is very smooth when going up or down. Makes adjusting the height of the camera simple, accurate and fast. Having a ruler on the column and a grid on the base is also very helpful if you need to repeat shots or match something accurately. The adjustable column also locks in place very secure. Specs say it can hold up to 8.8 pounds and I do not doubt that number. It held my Canon XC-10 easily. I particularly like that it has 18% grey color on the baseboard. This is so convenient for helping set exposure and color balance in a pinch. Having 2 soft lights as part of the kit is a huge time saver and super convenient. The lights give off a pleasant, soft illumination. And being able to adjust them to multiple angles is great when fine-tuning the lighting. The build quality on this stand is great. Again, the column is well-made and works well. All the parts seem like they should last a long time, especially if cared for, and I plan on taking care of this set-up. I've always wanted to try to make a "collage animation" and this stand is going to make it so much easier to try. With the grid on the base and the ruler on the column, it will really help me succeed. I'm very happy with this copy stand, and look forward to working with it more in the future.

This item reminds me of my darkroom days when I was doing film. Kind of nostalgic. The actual copy stand platform is the perfect size, the same size and feel of a manual professional color enlarger. The shipping box is large, because everything inside is well packed, and everything is isolated on their own slot, nothing moves inside during transit. The actual Copy Stand's table platform is also shipped protected in all corners and it's placed far away from the actual box's corners. That's why it's twice as big as the actual item. Chances of shipping damage is very little. To me, that's important. Now the actual item: The Copy Stand. It's lighter than a pro negative enlarger, you can easily move from a table to the floor, even for a person like me, with severe back problems. The unit works very well. I tested it by shooting a catalogue cover (it's actually my photography work) with a semi glossy finish, has black parts and there is no glare on the picture. (Don't forget to see the important pictures with tips I included with this review!) HOWEVER, to achieve the best results, it is important to know a thing or two regarding lighting and understand how light works. Here are a few tips: 1- working with large, flat items, books, art, etc, using the LED mounting arms, place the two included Impact LED lights AS FAR AWAY AS POSSIBLE from the surface platform and at a low angle, and WIDE, placing the LED lights to its extremes. That will provide you an even and ample lighting coverage. Also recommended that you set a timer on the camera (2 seconds will do) or have the camera tethered to a computer when firing the camera in case you're shooting at low shutter, or when shooting small objects such as a coin using a macro lens. Lighting: Using this product is easy and simple., but with a couple things to keep in mind. The size of the object you're photographing matters regarding light distance from it. If you place the lights close to the object you're shooting, you'll introduce hot spots and glare when the outer sides of the object is closer to the light source. So, by just adjusting the light's angle is not enough, regardless even if you were using this product or a bare floor or a wall without this product. At least an understanding of the basics of lighting is required. Another example, let's say, in a fashion shoot, if you are shooting a model close to a light source (a very desirable approach for artistic lighting control) but if she decides to place her hands closer to the light, the correct main exposure levels will have to be adjusted to her hands, otherwise, her hands will be washed out first than the rest of the body, causing it to be darker in relation to her hands. Move the lights away a little, and then, everything is equally lit. It's a simple and logical science. To make it simple to understand: The closer the light source, the more intense it will be, BUT, LESS area COVERAGE. The farther the light, the more it becomes even, HOWEVER, the lights will provide less intensity due to its distance, but MORE area coverage. Please search for "inverse square law" for lighting on YouTube. This law of Physics, not only applies to lighting and audio, but also for everything you do in life. So go check it out. It will help you immensely. Please follow my suggestions and you'll have a lot of fun with this product and improving your photography in general, regardless what you do or shoot. Cons: 1- I wish the camera mount was made of metal, for heavier cameras. But I'm aware it would increase the cost of this product. The Impact Copy Stand can also hold heavy DSLRs such as a Canon EOS 1DX MKII but it will put the Copy Stand's camera mount to its limits. The 1DX will cause the camera mount to be lean down very very slightly, about 3 degrees due to its weight. I tried also with my wife's canon EOS 6D MKII, with a battery grip. Same. But for normal tasks, it won't matter. It's perfectly ok regardless the weight of the 1DX or a camera with a battery grip. And the mount is strong and your camera will stay there, safely. No worries there. I'm very comfortable having my 1DX mounted on this product. Conclusion:: If you are photographing art, documents, paintings, book pages in which these items are what the Impact Copy Stand is DESIGNED and meant for, you'll have PERFECT RESULTS with whatever camera you mount on it, including a 1DX. What I recommend is, if your camera you're using has a battery grip, REMOVE IT to make it lighter, or better yet, use a mirrorless camera. But I still used the 1DX and there is no problem. ONLY if you're trying to digitize negatives and with a super macro lens required for the job. In this case, that's when you reach this Copy Stand's limitations. It shooting negatives is what you want to do, you'll need a lighter camera for this, or a more expensive copying stand device. The slightest tilt will cause some areas on the negative to be out of focus. Again, I just think I should mention this here in case you want to work with negatives, as this product is not designed or meant for. 2- the rising column, (yes, I removed the riser's column's protective film as per instructions in the manual) but still, when a camera is loaded, you'll need both hands, one hand placed at the riser's break as you elevate, and the other, helping by holding / lifting the camera body at the same time while rising or lowering the column. If you don't, the camera will jerk quite a lot. Do it slowly and with both hands and you're good! Overall, great tool, fairly lightweight for what it is, and it achieves professional results shooting documents, books, brochures, art, painting etc, INCLUDING macro photography such as diamond rings, coins, anything small. Just for the negative film kind of thing is can be a bit tricky. But again, that's not designed for such purpose. It's just me trying "additional things". The reason I removed 1 star is because of the column, not being smooth. I needs a little help by using two hands to avoid camera jerking. But that does NOT affect the end quality of your photograph whatsoever.