Virtues of a shoot through umbrella v foldable reflective diffuser

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HebburnMackem

HebburnMackem

Striker
Which is more flattering; A shoot through umbrella or a foldable reflective diffuser that slips over the end of the flash for a couple shot in low light?
Any other general issues or comments?
Obviously the latter is easier to move around and set up.
(Both are using off camera flash)

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dependant on colour, light power, diffusion and distance I would guess. Ive tried them and struggle to be honest. we use softboxes and reflector brollies at the club. I find the bigger the reflector the softer the light but you can change all of that with distance I guess.
 
MaDMaCKeM said:
dependant on colour, light power, diffusion and distance I would guess. Ive tried them and struggle to be honest. we use softboxes and reflector brollies at the club. I find the bigger the reflector the softer the light but you can change all of that with distance I guess.
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What did you find challenging?
 
Simple - the bigger the area light is being diffused through the more diffused and soft it will be. I'm sure you can work out the rest from there ;)
 
is it indoors or outdoor you're shooting? The reflector could be used to direct the flash onto a wall, or ceiling to bounce it if indoors but I doubt it would be that much direct-able than simply zooming your flash.

You'll get a lot of spill with the reflective diffuser in that position, or you could wrap it round as a snoot but that would be no good for a couple as the light would be too focused.

The umbrella would be better for a couple shoot but theres a few variables even with that as to how soft the light will be. Such as how close the flash is to the couple and how close the umbrella is to the flash. Further away, the softer the light.
 
HebburnMackem said:
Any tips, do's don'ts, use cases or recommendations beyond that?
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It mainly comes down to balancing the ambient and flash… the reflector you posted will still create a fairly harsh light as the bounced surface is pretty small, anything coming from it will be direct and a bit brash. If you get your ratios wrong it'll not look all that great.

I find something like a shoot through people take more care over and think more about what they are doing… on camera flash accessories have a habit of making people switch off a little and hope for the best. As with off camera flash through umbrellas it's a case of working out how much ambient there is and using it to create a good balance.

Bounced flash is better than either for event or wedding photography if you can find a suitable surface as the area of diffusion is far greater
 
ajax_andy said:
It mainly comes down to balancing the ambient and flash… the reflector you posted will still create a fairly harsh light as the bounced surface is pretty small, anything coming from it will be direct and a bit brash. If you get your ratios wrong it'll not look all that great.

I find something like a shoot through people take more care over and think more about what they are doing… on camera flash accessories have a habit of making people switch off a little and hope for the best. As with off camera flash through umbrellas it's a case of working out how much ambient there is and using it to create a good balance.

Bounced flash is better than either for event or wedding photography if you can find a suitable surface as the area of diffusion is far greater
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The reason I ask is because Cliff Mautner seems to have a very basic lighting solution for weddings that is mostly just the folding reflector over the flash gun. No soft boxes, no umbrellas etc

(BTW he loves to talk over people)

 
As that's 1 hour 13 mins long I'm going to just take your word for it :D

Different strokes and all that though… personally I never use OFC apart from staged shots at weddings and even then I try to avoid it unless it's necessary. Natural light or bounced flash the rest of the time. I have a large on flash soft box for occasions when there is nowhere to bounce.

As with anything find what works for your through experience as people like different stuff depending on the look they are going for.
 
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