Well, this could possibly be the hokiest contraption I've ever assembled but it does work and it is inexpensive.

Have you ever wished you could get more light in front of your lens for close up work without spending $400 or $500 dollars on a flash or ring unit built by one of those 5 letter camera manufacturers?  Here is your chance.  It takes 2 9 led lamp flashlights (find 2 that are light weight, mine were made by Task Force and cost me about $15 each at Lowes).  The trick is finding some way to mount them and still have them adjustable.  I'm still looking for a better method, but since it's almost prime bug season (It's April 16th as I type) I wanted to get something quickly.  I found a couple of foam padded flexible 34" wires.  They are pretty stout, but still allow you to bend them for lighting flexibility and stout enough to keep them where you put them.  The assembly simply consists of wrapping the padded wiring around the extension tube or lens barrel and then around the lights.  You will get the idea from the images below.  I've included some images that I took after the assembly using the unit.  Total cost for this (less batteries) was less than $40.

A couple of tips though -

Go with at least 9 bulb lights. Less bulbs means less light.  You want to control the light as much as you can with your camera settings.

Make your wraps around the barrels, then remove the lens and lights and bend the loops just a little tighter.  This will help the wire hold everything tight.

A tripod would really lend a hand, but all the shots below were hand-held.

Now, where are the bugs?

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