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None of the standard clamp lights work for this purpose as they are all better suited for reading books in bed, or barbecuing at night. If I want to photograph very small subjects at close range, with directed light, I need an articulated, dimmable, very bright LED light source....will I have to build it myself or can I buy one somewhere?

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  • \$\begingroup\$ Something like this? google.cz/… \$\endgroup\$
    – Crowley
    Jan 30, 2017 at 20:48
  • \$\begingroup\$ Thanks for the link, Crowley....but I'd eliminated the use of a ring light. When attached to a lens, and used to build macro-image stacks, the location of the light changes as focus is moved through the image plane...disastrous for aligning stacks!. Both my subject and light source must be fixed in space. Ring lights also illuminate a subject much too uniformly for my purposes. I'd prefer a directional, single point-source lighting. \$\endgroup\$
    – Knob Scratcher
    Jan 30, 2017 at 21:08
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    \$\begingroup\$ You ought to specify that in your question - as a ring-light is the first thing anyone will think of. \$\endgroup\$
    – Tetsujin
    Jan 30, 2017 at 21:42
  • \$\begingroup\$ dollartree.com/LED-Clip-On-Mini-Spotlights/p333808/index.pro \$\endgroup\$
    – Michael C
    Jan 31, 2017 at 6:24
  • \$\begingroup\$ dollartree.com/LED-Translucent-Clip-On-Book-Lights/p338182/… \$\endgroup\$
    – Michael C
    Jan 31, 2017 at 6:24

2 Answers 2

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Get a Gorillatorch. I have no affiliation with this product other than it works and that my wife bought two for exactly that purpose. One will suffice but sometimes you want to fill in shadows.

The Gorillatorch seems to exactly fit your description: directed, articulated, dimmable and very bright.

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Option one: Buy magnifying glass with illumination, remove the lens and shoot through it.

Option two: Use the ring from above, remove much more parts, and make a mout to a camera (use the screw now dedicated to tripod).

Option three: Do-it-yourself. Make a ring array of LEDs and design the power supply and dimming. Look for articles and recommendations regarding pulse width modulation and rectifiers. If in doubt, or struggle, search through and ask Electrical Engineering here. You can use one type of LEDs, or, use several types - with different spectra, aka "temperatures", and power them separately.

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    \$\begingroup\$ For a shading you can cover appropriate part of the ring, or, when DYI approach is chosen, divide rings into several blocks and power them separately. \$\endgroup\$
    – Crowley
    Jan 31, 2017 at 9:46

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