CRoy

I just purchased 42" Reflectors and a Stand for them. I have never used Reflectors before. Are there any good books out there dedicated to the use of Reflectors? I have yet to find one. Thanks.

tradio Loc: Oxford, Ohio

Take a look at youtube.

Haydon

I would avoid using the gold reflector generally because it produces a rather unnatural look in my opinion. For outside portraits many feel that providing fill under the chin also doesn't look natural but in the studio it is acceptable. I don't quite understand that reasoning. Use the silver if you need to reflect from a distance and use the white for close in work. Also the white panel makes great diffusion on sunny days but it will require an assistant likely if used overhead.

Tradio is spot on, look on YouTube. There's an abundance of resources that illustrates visually better than any book can.

CRoy

Thank you for your advice.

RickSr Loc: St. Paul, MN

Joe McNally "Sketching Light". The man is a wizard with light.

jethro779 Loc: Tucson, AZ

Gene51 Loc: Yonkers, NY, now in LSD (LowerSlowerDelaware)

Funny you say that - Joe describes Daniel Norton from Adorama as an "encyclopedia of light with two legs." Saw Joe speak just this past Friday. He is outstanding at lighting, so much so that Lastolite has a line of products with his name on it.

Another great wizard of light is Fuzzy Duenkel. His specialty is big, soft ambient light-looking portraits - blending different colors of light to provide a consistent appearance, and heavy use of reflectors, many of which are DIY made with materials from Home Depot.

canon Lee

HI I do a lot of outdoor shooting and I use reflectors as "fill light". Often its difficult to position the subject so that the background looks great, which means the subject is facing into the sun and squinting. I also use the reflector as a "scrim" which means I filter out the harsh sun. Reflectors can be used as a scrim. Umbrellas can be used as "shoot through" scrims also, to filter the harsh sun as well. Using a stand outside is not practical as there is always some wind, so have an assistant to hand hold the reflector/scrim... As suggested, go to "YOUTUBE" and read up on scrims and reflectors. It is just a matter of testing and getting experience. Practice Practice Practice.. Good luck..

Thomas902 Loc: Washington DC

CRoy Dean Collins provided likely the most authoritative synopsis on creative photographic illumination every released as a video to the general public... "Dean Collins On Lighting: Live at the Brooks Institute of Photography 1991" This has been mastered by Software Cinema into a DVD... Software Cinema also released "The Best of Dean Collins On Lighting" together these have forever changed the way photographers perceive commercial lighting.

In each of these DVD's Dean removes the mystique from sophisticated lighting techniques... And his presentational skills are among the best I've ever experience... Better yet these DVD's are filled with BTS footage which is virtually priceless... While Joe McNally is an excellent presenter and a skillful photographer his work pales in the presence of Dean Collins... The commercial photographic industry today owes so very much to Dean Collin's incredible influence... What Dean achieved in knowledge base transfer has become the hallmark of our industry...

So are are those DVD's really that amazing? Yes I was fortunate to obtain them well over a decade ago before they started to disappear from the market... Best Advice? Might keep trolling eBay and maybe you'll get lucky...

Or pony up $179 for a set of "The Best of Dean Collins On Lighting" currently on Photoshopcafe or Amazon...
https://www.amazon.com/Best-Dean-Collins-Lighting/dp/B001W9OZ9A
http://photoshopcafe.com/deancollins-lighting

And $49 for "Dean Collins On Lighting - Live at Brooks Institute of Photography: 1991 DVD – 2006"
http://photoshopcafe.com/dean-collins-live-brooks

Oh, btw, this is cost effective compared with what some of the other sellers are asking (provided you can find one)

I would not sell my copies for any amount in as I still review them...
Dean's coverage of scrims and reflectors is without equal...

The fact that Dean shot in the film era is irrelevant since illumination has not changed... in fact Dean primarily shot chromes which respond to light nearly the same as digital sensors... enough said...

Hope this helps...
I wish you well on your journey CRoy...

CRoy

Thanks for the info. Now I need to get out there are practice with those Reflectors!