Reddit reviews tiktecklab A4 Size Ultra-Thin Portable Tracer White LED Artcraft Tracing Pad Light Box w dimmable Brightness for 5D DIY Diamond Painting Artists Drawing Sketching Animation, Black

light underneath, something wide like this. This is just the first one I found in a quick and dirty search, you can probably find cheaper. Other people have had success with a white towel in their lap with good lighting from above the work. Try the towel first of course, it's the cheapest. :)

A lightbox. https://www.amazon.com/Tikteck-Ultra-thin-Brightness-Stencilling-X-rayViewing/dp/B01M26S3VY/ref=sr_1_6?ie=UTF8&qid=1548998299&sr=8-6&keywords=lightbox

Know nothing about the quality of the above one, just first one that came up.

I use a couple methods:

• Trace onto a water soluble backing that dissolves in water after you are finished <https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B001B0S2AS?psc=1&ref=ppx_pop_mob_b_asin_title>
  
• trace pattern using a light pad and pilot frixion pen or water soluble marker. <https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B01M26S3VY?psc=1&ref=ppx_pop_mob_b_asin_title>

I bought this light table and the light can go through 5 pages of watercolor paper.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B01M26S3VY/ref=ya_aw_od_pi?ie=UTF8&psc=1

I normally have a sketch ready before hand but this will work well for you from my experience.

Scanning is costly, yeah. If you shoot a roll a week or more, it's a no-brainer, cause you'll make back your costs on what you save in paying for lab scans pretty quick. If you shoot less than that, "it depends".

If you're just shooting 35mm, a used Plustek is a great way to go, or even a new one if you want a warranty. If you also shoot medium format, I'd look for a used Epson V700 or higher; I wouldn't bother with the lower number Epson flatbeds; the resolution just isn't enough for me to make it worth the hassle of scanning.

If you already have a DSLR or other interchangeable lens camera, and especially if you already have a macro lens for it, you can also try DSLR scanning. Even if you don't have a camera, you can get set up for around $500-700 depending on what you need to buy. If I had to do it from scratch here's what I'd get.

• Nikon D3200 (24mp) and 40mm f/2.8 macro (really sharp lens) -- used $300
  
• For 35mm scanning: Nikon ES-2 film holder -- new $140
  
• For 120 scanning: Lomography Digitaliza film holder -- new $35
  
• LED tracing pad for backlighting -- new $23
  
• Cheap tripod and ballhead (tons of these on amazon) -- new $66
  
• Rocket blower -- new $10
  
• Cotton gloves 25pk -- new $24
  
• Adobe Lightroom + Photoshop package -- $10/month
  
• Negative Lab Pro lightroom plugin license -- $99 one-time
  
  So all in that's everything you need for DLSR scanning, and it comes to $707 plus the ongoing LR subscription. You could cut the cost a lot if you already own some of those things, or by using a cheaper 35mm holder than the Nikon ES-2, such as a 35mm-sized Digitaliza, or rigging up an older Nikon ES-1. You also don't need NLP and Lightroom; you could get away with free software like the GIMP. You might also be able to find a cheaper tripod at a yardsale or thrift store that will work fine, but they can be clunkier than modern ones.
  
  All that is why people say "if you already have a camera" with DSLR scanning. Otherwise, why not just get a brand new Plustek 8100i AI for $490 and get about the same level of image quality for less money, or even less with a used model. So, it kind of depends on your personal situation.

I got it on amazon, let me see if I can get a link. I will say there are a bunch of the same kinds posted around in the related items

Edit: the link for the light box I got

Thanks for the suggestions! She actually got a disappearing ink pen recently and was pretty pumped about it. I don't think she has a magnetic needle holder, so I'll look into that!

I was also thinking a light box, she mentioned she wanted one but I don't know if there are any differences based on the material being traced. This was the model I had in mind: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01M26S3VY/ref=crt_ewc_title_huc_1?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=A21H40ERIBU45K

I recommend this https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01M26S3VY/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o09_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

I bought it for class and has been working great for me.

I also said that you could "get away without the extra torso", so save yourself the re-draw if you're happy with it, just work on the arms.

I know that it's a couple extra bucks, but some tracing paper and/or a light box might really help with revisions. You can get them at any art store.

https://www.amazon.com/Artists-Tracing-Sheets-Translucent-Sketching-Lightweight/dp/B0788K7D3K/ref=sr_1_13?ie=UTF8&qid=1525955462&sr=8-13&keywords=tracing+paper
https://www.amazon.com/Ultra-thin-Brightness-Sketching-Stencilling-X-rayViewing/dp/B01M26S3VY/ref=pd_sim_229_4?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_i=B01M26S3VY&pd_rd_r=45M3ZZWCPYYH9E7AWSEC&pd_rd_w=ZPgFf&pd_rd_wg=UYM5X&psc=1&refRID=45M3ZZWCPYYH9E7AWSEC

Tikteck A4 Ultra-thin Portable LED Light Box Tracer USB Power Cable Dimmable Brightness LED Artcraft Tracing Light Box Light Pad for Artists Drawing Sketching Animation Stencilling X-rayViewing https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01M26S3VY/ref=cm_sw_r_other_apa_i_t5j7CbVYHR58V

Got something like this for my classroom.