How to Light

Plasma TV's are awesome but extremely fragile. If all that happens when you turn your plasma set on is a blinking LED light or it works for a while then turns off, you may have a blown capacitor on your power supply board. This video will show you how to fix the problem yourse ...more

See how to install a HID Conversion Kit in a Honda Accord. Xenon Lights are better then Halogens. High intensity discharge bulbs are the best.

No light no movie. Indy Mogul teaches you how to create your own basic lighting kit for $25. Also covered are lighting basics, including three-point lighting.

See how to hack a two "D" cell Maglite to make it much brighter. This is a cheap but very power light of 700-800+ lumens, brighter than other hacks.

Mousey the junk bot is a light sensing robot made out of an old computer mouse. Bre Pettis of Make Magazine goes over how the pieces are installed and talks about some mistakes that he wishes he could have avoided. This project requires a drill, a dremel, and soldering skills.

Get started with the LilyPad Arduino! It's a sewable microcontroller that lets you embed lights, sounds, sensors, and much more into your wearables, perfect for clothing and accessories. In this Make Magazine video tutorial, you'll see how to attach the LilyPad and power suppl ...more

Samimy is at it again. And this time, his ingenuity has tackled a clever way to take something old and broken and restore it to something new and useful. What are we talking about? Modding a broken hard drive and some busted cell phones into a useful rechargeable USB / solar-p ...more

Learn three different studio portrait lighting techniques using just one light.

Why settle for static lighting when you can bring on the big guns? Learn how to make a Christmas lights controller so your lights blink. Happy holidays!

A laser light show is possible to replicate with the diffraction grating effect. Different laser effects can be created using a variety of materials: small motors and diffraction grating pieces, and mirrors. It's possible to create searchlights, crystal balls, spring patterns, ...more

Check out this clip, and learn how to light your Zippo in the fastest possible way by doing the "Lightspeed" trick. This trick requires a little practice but is a very impressive way to get your cigarette or candles lit. Follow along for a step by step and learn the little tri ...more

In this trick - which is perfect for any restaurant or bar - you will learn how to light a candle without actually ever touching a flame to the wick. Don't think it's possible? Think again! You will learn exactly how to do this illusion and amaze everyone around you. Score som ...more

In this video tutorial, viewers learn how to make a guerilla spotlight using household items. Users will simply need a cardboard cylinder and a light source. Te materials used in this video were a toilet paper roll, piece of aluminum, gaff tape and a lamp. Begin by cutting a c ...more

Have you become a Jedi in your Star Wars delusional mind? If so, break out of the the asylum with a Jedi lightsaber. Oh, but you don't have a lightsaber yet, okay. Well, this video tutorial will show you how to make a very inexpensive LED light saber with the most basic parts ...more

You can get an expensive ticket for driving with a busted tail light. But that's not all. Driving with a faulty brake light can be dangerous. Replacing the bulb is a simple task that takes only a few minutes. You Will Need *A screwdriver *A replacement bulb *A friend’s help ...more

You don't have to pay an expensive mechanic for something that you can do yourself! An experienced auto mechanic shows you the way to replace the brake lights and tail lights on a Honda Accord. You will need a flat head screwdriver, a Phillips screwdriver, a 10mm wrench (or so ...more

Kip "Kipkay" Kedersha is known for his intriguing and clever how-to and prank videos, even when he teams up with MAKE Magazine. He will show you how to tweak, hack, mod, and bend any technology to your hacking needs. No electronic device, gadget, or household item can stand th ...more

Going towards the infinite white light means something totally different these days. When we talk about the infinite white light, we're thinking less spiritual and more aesthetically pleasing. That's because a background consisting of a blurry, infinite white light is one of t ...more

Here we assemble the RED ONE camera into a 22 lbs ultra light hand-held version, perfect for documentary filmmakers and ENG crews. Thanks to Indie Rentals - http://indierentals.com/

Do-it-yourselfer Kipkay salvaged parts from an old parallel port scanner and made a flexible, super-bright light in this how-to video. The modification is done by extracting the lamp and running it through clear tubing. He mounted the new lamp above his keyboard for night typi ...more

This video compilation shows you how to create various LED and fiber optic hacks and projects the average Joe can assemble to create one hell of an awesome, wild party.

Check out this instructional lighting video that explains how to make cheap barn doors for your lights. For this project, you will need a total of 4 hinges, 12 nuts and bults, a screwdriver, cardboard, scissors, and a lighting fixture. This is a simple guerrilla filmmaking tut ...more

In this video you will be shown an interesting method of recycling old CDs. The creator suggests using old CDs to make wall mountings for circular dimmer switches. He starts be using his router to create a circular indent in a piece of redwood this if for the CD. He then cuts ...more

Artist Matt Busch shows how to render a full value monotone comp for his STAR WARS 30th Anniversary movie poster. In addition to getting into the nitty gritty of light and shadow in sketches, see Matt show you how to draw Stormtroopers, as well as busting out his killer happy ...more

If you're having a hard time using any of the ranges or the oven on your stove, it may be because of the pilot light. This is an important part of the appliance that allows it to work correctly. No pilot light, then you'll have a hard time cooking anything. In this tutorial, ...more

Light switch wiring can be a do-it-yourself project with this instruction from Tim Carter. You'll have no trouble wiring a light switch with his simple tips and doing light switch wiring yourself will save you lots of money.

Did you know it's possible to light a match simply by using your teeth? You can look like a total badass if you learn how to do this trick properly, although you might get burned in the process. From Revision3: Warning: This week, we're playing with matches again. We shouldn ...more

Most coin vanishing tricks rely on sleights of hand and some skill; this easy magic trick just uses the physical laws of light refraction, and is much easier than that makes it sound. Learn how to perform this disappearing coin trick, great for a night out at a bar, by watchin ...more

In this video, we learn how to make lightning with a spoon and a balloon. First, you will need to gather a spoon and a balloon. Once you have these, blow up the balloon then tie it on the end so it's sealed. After this, rub the balloon on your hair and then slowly move the spo ...more

If you want an electrical circuit to send power to an object, like a light, you're going to need resistors. This video, part of an excellent series on basic electronics by Scotty, will teach you how to make a circuit with resistors and an LED light, a real function piece of el ...more

A light meter can prove to be an invaluable tool on any film set, allowing you to quickly and efficiently set lights and know the correct exposure values of those lights. Light meters were initially designed for still photographers and cinematographers can easily calibrate the ...more

Rave light shows are one of the most intimate and enjoyable experiences that people can share at a rave, but getting started when you don't know what you're doing can be a scary thought. Watch this video to learn how you can perform some basic glove lighshow moves like the fig ...more

Give yourself the hottest PS3 controller out there by modding it and adding some sweet LED flashlights. The LEDs will light up in accordance with your game play for a whole new level of enjoyment. This three part video series will take you through the whole process every step ...more

Don't drive in the dark. Learn how to remove burned out dashboard lights and replace them with new bulbs in this free car maintenance video from Part 1 of 17 - How to Replace dashboard lights. Replace dashboard lights - Part 2 of 17. Click through to watch this video on expert ...more

In this video tutorial, learn how to create a really beautiful, eye popping, neon light "magic effect". Brighten up your asthetic presentation with this cool Photoshop trick, originally found on this blog. This tutorial is constructed using Adobe Photoshop CS3, but please note ...more

Want to put some electronics into your terrain piece or diorama? LED lights are great. You can use tiny watch batteries, which are small and efficient. LED lights are cheap, they come in colours, and you can find them in all kinds of broken gadgets. Watch this instructional vi ...more

Make a $100 super bright cop flashlight for less than $10, as shown in the steps of this how-to video. This flashlight is brighter than a Surefire and is so easy to do. You will need a compact flashlight, a Krypton flashlight lamp, a file or drill bit, and 3 volt batteries. Wa ...more

Magic is a wonderful thing. But so is science. So, which category does this mystifying candle trick fall in? Perhaps both. You only need three items to perform this magic trick: a lighter (or matches), a candle, and a candle holder (if your candle is not already in a containe ...more

Matt, the Shirtless Apprentice, demonstrates how to create dramatic lighting effects on a budget. This episode will help you to develop control of your audiences attention.

In this clip, learn how to make super powerful 9 volt LED flashlights using things you most likely already have around the house. You will make these mini-lights out of things like batteries and scrap wires. So, dig around in your garage and see what you can find to get starte ...more

This a video tutorial that is showing its audience how to mix liquid glow stick colors in order to make a white light. The first step is to gather your supplies. To complete this scientific experiment you will need to get a few different glow sticks, preferably red, blue, and ...more

This tutorial shows you how to replace a rear light on a 2003 Ford Focus. Specifically, the video shows fixing the rear brake light, but this tutorial shows how to fix any rear light (including brake/tail, reverse, and turn signal lights). It is very simple and does not necess ...more

In this video clip series our expert, Kyle Saylors, will walk you through all the aspects, parts and options for LED lights and how to use them. He will offer tips on how to work around damaged lights and how to fix them as well as how to set up preset patterns for a light sho ...more

Yes, this 3ds Max video tutorial will show you modelers and digital animators how to add more believability to your lighting with physically accurate lights, as in photometric lights, so enjoy. Autodesk's 3D Studio Max is a customizable and scalable 3D modeling and rendering ...more