Soft Box Diffuser
May 27, 2022 21:34:15 #
Our weather has been off-and-on rain along with a cool spell for a week now although the weatherman is promising clear and warmer weather to return...Yeah, I've heard that too many times before.
Mark's post on diffuser experiments spurred me to experiment with the assortment of flashes and diffusion that I have and that I have made. I took a quick walk along the fence before dark to try the small softbox on the Speedlight. I have a larger one that I will try tomorrow along with my dual-bendy arm flash and DYI Rosco Flux Tuff White diffusion and the Meike dual-head flash to compare the various options....IF...it doesn't rain.
Mark's post on diffuser experiments spurred me to experiment with the assortment of flashes and diffusion that I have and that I have made. I took a quick walk along the fence before dark to try the small softbox on the Speedlight. I have a larger one that I will try tomorrow along with my dual-bendy arm flash and DYI Rosco Flux Tuff White diffusion and the Meike dual-head flash to compare the various options....IF...it doesn't rain.
May 27, 2022 22:55:19 #
May 27, 2022 23:35:59 #
May 27, 2022 23:58:56 #
kpmac wrote:
Nice experiment, sippy.
Thanks, Kpmac. At times, I feel like a shark meaning that if I ever stop moving that I'll sink to the bottom.
May 27, 2022 23:59:43 #
Curmudgeon wrote:
That one seems to work pretty good Sippy
Thanks, Curmudgeon. I've got several combinations to try in the field yet to go.
May 28, 2022 07:52:22 #
May 28, 2022 08:20:51 #
May 28, 2022 09:05:48 #
ecobin wrote:
Looks good.
Thanks, Elliott. The sun is out this morning so I'll have more time outdoors to try different things out.
May 28, 2022 09:06:37 #
Manglesphoto wrote:
Thanks, Manglesphoto. I believe that the weather will be favorable for us for a bit now.
May 28, 2022 11:32:57 #
desmo.rob
Loc: Sisters, OR
Thanks sippy! For each config, would you mind sharing a photo of the rig? I've been slowly starting to configure my rig. current setup:
1. EOS RP
2. Laowa 100mm 2x
3. Godox V1c with X2T-C remote trigger
I'm now looking to construct a diffuser and also wanting to develop a bracket setup as holding the camera/lens with one hand with the flash in the other is quite cumbersome. I just happened to luck out and find a sheet of diffuser material from a discarded 40" or so LED TV, so once I have my setup a bit more completed I'll report out on it.
One question in my mind is whether or not a second flash is a worthwhile investment.
Cheers!
Rob
1. EOS RP
2. Laowa 100mm 2x
3. Godox V1c with X2T-C remote trigger
I'm now looking to construct a diffuser and also wanting to develop a bracket setup as holding the camera/lens with one hand with the flash in the other is quite cumbersome. I just happened to luck out and find a sheet of diffuser material from a discarded 40" or so LED TV, so once I have my setup a bit more completed I'll report out on it.
One question in my mind is whether or not a second flash is a worthwhile investment.
Cheers!
Rob
May 28, 2022 12:16:34 #
May 28, 2022 15:56:23 #
desmo.rob wrote:
Thanks sippy! For each config, would you mind shar... (show quote)
Rob, this is my assortment of macro flash gear. I have four flash systems: TTL Speedlight, Laowa dual-flash with long "bendy arms", Meike twin head flash, and an LED ring flash. Each has its advantages and frankly, there are no wrong choices for the goal is to get the illumination softly onto the subject. How that light is generated does not make a sizeable difference compared to the importance of getting the diffused light onto the subject.
For diffusion, I use Rosco Roscolux Tuff White which is a durable material that has the look and performance of vellum tracing paper yet it will not as fragile and it is water-resistant. I've used packing foam, plastic milk cartons, styrofoam, plastic food containers, silk fabric, plastic shower curtain, white paper, and just about anything that grabs me that I think may diffuse the light.
Twin flashes have the advantage that they can be positioned at different angles and each head can be set to a different power. However, they too must be diffused and the closer the "main power of the flash" is to the subject, the more possible it will produce harsh specular highlights.
Keep in mind, when we shoot macro, the end of the lens is VERY close to the subject compared to shooting a group portrait of people with a flash. The physical law of light is that the intensity of the light varies to the square of the distance. When the flash is set to 100% the intensity will be 2% or 1/64 of the intensity eight feet away.
Other than DIY diffusers, slip-on-flash softboxes are quite inexpensive and they can be quickly added and removed from a standard Speedlight.
The more perfect diffusion of light is much like the quest of the Holy Grail. Just about the time that we think we are close to it, something drives us to keep looking...and looking...and looking.
May 28, 2022 16:01:19 #
Fotoartist wrote:
Yeh. No harsh shadows.
Thanks, Fotoartist. These were taken with the 5X4 softbox. I have an 8x11 softbox that I have yet to test. The smaller one is more convenient for getting into the thickets to shoot the tiny wildflowers and critters so if there is little difference, it will be one of my choices for the field.
May 28, 2022 16:53:53 #
Thanks for sharing all this Sippy!
> Rob, I envy your owning a Godox flash. Those are highly regarded. Having not yet completely solved the diffusion problem, I can't say from experience what is the best solution. But those who have cracked that nugget do post pictures of their rigs, and its valuable to look at them and copy copy copy. Well, if one wants to. It is a hobby ...
> I've been lately wondering if the better all around approach is to use a single flash head, mounted right on the hot shoe. That is not how I do it, since I have the Venus twin flash. But folks who use a traditional single head on the hot shoe seem to more often get the results that I want for myself. This may be bc the flash source is pretty far away, while the diffuser face can be very close to the subject. This buys distance to let the light spread out.
Here is a Facebook group to look into: https://www.facebook.com/groups/1833312540247277/?notif_id=1541113934494651¬if_t=group_r2j_approved You can join, and scroll down thru to look at the various designs. The best ones tend to be of the sort that I describe.
> Sippy, your simple diffuser for the dual head flash reminds me of Thomas Shahans' diffuser that he uses for the same kind of flash. You can see his review of that flash here, with the simple diffuser: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8JbJzENXjz8 I've made one pretty much just like his, and it can work surprisingly well. Its not perfect, though, but I have yet to find a diffuser that is.
The issue I have lately with dual heads shows up when taking pictures of shiny subjects (ladybugs, jumping spider eyes). Here, one sees the face of the diffuser as a fun-house mirror reflection on the shiny surface, and if a dual head flash is used one almost always sees two brighter central spots in the reflected area. To me its more natural to have just one bright spot. Its exceptionally difficult to not have a bright central spot at all.
> Rob, I envy your owning a Godox flash. Those are highly regarded. Having not yet completely solved the diffusion problem, I can't say from experience what is the best solution. But those who have cracked that nugget do post pictures of their rigs, and its valuable to look at them and copy copy copy. Well, if one wants to. It is a hobby ...
> I've been lately wondering if the better all around approach is to use a single flash head, mounted right on the hot shoe. That is not how I do it, since I have the Venus twin flash. But folks who use a traditional single head on the hot shoe seem to more often get the results that I want for myself. This may be bc the flash source is pretty far away, while the diffuser face can be very close to the subject. This buys distance to let the light spread out.
Here is a Facebook group to look into: https://www.facebook.com/groups/1833312540247277/?notif_id=1541113934494651¬if_t=group_r2j_approved You can join, and scroll down thru to look at the various designs. The best ones tend to be of the sort that I describe.
> Sippy, your simple diffuser for the dual head flash reminds me of Thomas Shahans' diffuser that he uses for the same kind of flash. You can see his review of that flash here, with the simple diffuser: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8JbJzENXjz8 I've made one pretty much just like his, and it can work surprisingly well. Its not perfect, though, but I have yet to find a diffuser that is.
The issue I have lately with dual heads shows up when taking pictures of shiny subjects (ladybugs, jumping spider eyes). Here, one sees the face of the diffuser as a fun-house mirror reflection on the shiny surface, and if a dual head flash is used one almost always sees two brighter central spots in the reflected area. To me its more natural to have just one bright spot. Its exceptionally difficult to not have a bright central spot at all.
May 28, 2022 19:01:59 #
Mark, There is the science behind illumination and then there is the art of application. The science is the easy part, much like being able to read music. The art is like being able to pleasingly play music which is by far more difficult and one that even the best readers may never be able to achieve.
I really, really like the Laowa twin head flash used with the large and wide diffusion panel. The downside is that it is not the agile option when walking through the thickets where most of the activity is that I want to document. Limbs, twigs, and leaves tend to be in the way more often than not. Other than those times, it performs as well as I want.
The catchlights created from the main light source are very, very difficult to avoid and the more reflective the subject the more irritating they can be. The reflections in the eyes are the first indicator and a bit can be done to soften it in post. Yellows and whites of the subject are easily blown out of detail so that becomes a variable in the better choice of diffusion for the subject also.
I've played with diffusion on the heads of each of the Laowa (Venus) flash, however, I have yet to find anything that I like or that does not get too ommly gommly hanging out there and ending up getting hanging up on the brush (what would a walkabout be without getting in there with the ticks and chiggers).
The search for the Grail is afoot..!
I really, really like the Laowa twin head flash used with the large and wide diffusion panel. The downside is that it is not the agile option when walking through the thickets where most of the activity is that I want to document. Limbs, twigs, and leaves tend to be in the way more often than not. Other than those times, it performs as well as I want.
The catchlights created from the main light source are very, very difficult to avoid and the more reflective the subject the more irritating they can be. The reflections in the eyes are the first indicator and a bit can be done to soften it in post. Yellows and whites of the subject are easily blown out of detail so that becomes a variable in the better choice of diffusion for the subject also.
I've played with diffusion on the heads of each of the Laowa (Venus) flash, however, I have yet to find anything that I like or that does not get too ommly gommly hanging out there and ending up getting hanging up on the brush (what would a walkabout be without getting in there with the ticks and chiggers).
The search for the Grail is afoot..!
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