Best diffuser solution for an SB600

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sparklies

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Rosie
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Hi all,

I am just starting up a business doing on-location (as in, the parents' home) child photography. From time to time I'll be photographing newborns. In an ideal world there would be stacks of natural light but of course I can't be lucky every time.

I don't particularly wish to overpower a poor newborn with full studio lights, however it would be good if I could use my SB600 in some way.. the more diffused the better. I can't guarantee that bouncing would always work (e.g. pink ceilings etc!) so I probably need a solution on the flash itself both off camera and on camera. I already have a fong diffuser which helps a little but it's still too much for a little baby.

There seems to be an absolute ton of options, so can someone help me narrow it down? I don't want to spend an absolute fortune, but I'm willing to spend a bit for the right thing.

Thank you very much! :)

Rosie
 
personally if your main fear is startling infants then i dont think any diffuser will help. diffusers might soften an image, but they will still give out a harsh burst of light.

your d90 with the ISO ramped up a touch , along with your 50mm 1.8 wide open and as much ambient light as possible will give you great results.

just my opinion and a bump!

Al
 
I just got an umbrella to go with my sb600 and seems to be working fine. Some will say that it's not powerful enough but I think it's doing alright so far
 
Thank you everyone!

seventythree - Most of the time I will definitely try to make the best of the available light, but especially in the winter it isn't always going to happen and end up too noisy, so this would be for the rare occasions when I need something else. It's a good point that anything would startle an infant, so I guess just something that diffuses the light as much as possible to remove harsh shadows would be best!

kardo - Which umbrella did you get?

awp - I haven't yet done any newborns although I have one scheduled any day now when he gets out of hospital! Most of the children I've done are my own, although in the last week (literally!) I've started properly portfolio building with other people's children. Wow, they are so much easier than my own utterly jaded pair :LOL:

Rosie
 
Me thinks awp was asking kardo for few pics *but could be wrong!!!! I have a sb600 and would be intesting too.....
 
Softbox or brolly on a stand should do the trick.
 
I bought a softbox from flash in the pan for my sb800 & it is really good,It did not cost very much about £30. I think.It really is an excellent piece of kit for the money. regards colin
 
brownjl - Good point!! :)

HoppyUK - Cool, thank you! What would you recommend as a way of attaching the SB600 to a stand? Presumably there are proper attachment things of some sort?

coljun - Thank you very much for that recommendation - will definitely look into that!

Rosie
 
sparklies said:
What would you recommend as a way of attaching the SB600 to a stand? Presumably there are proper attachment things of some sort?
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The best option is the Manfotto 026 Lite Tite but it's perhaps overkill and you'd also need a cold shoe to mount the flash to it.

Mrs Flash's wee son Graham, who is a forum advertiser, can sell you alternatives.
 
sparklies said:
brownjl - Good point!! :)

HoppyUK - Cool, thank you! What would you recommend as a way of attaching the SB600 to a stand? Presumably there are proper attachment things of some sort?

coljun - Thank you very much for that recommendation - will definitely look into that!

Rosie
Click to expand...

I use one of these Interfit jobbies. It's strong and fairly light (plastic, not metal) but there are loads about for £20 or so.

The little ball adapters that FITP sells are very good for flash guns only, but don't take the weight of a brolly or softbox so well.
 
Thanks very much everyone - great advice! Newborns or not, I think it's definitely worth getting a proper stand and softbox for my SB600 for those times when I want to travel by public transport to shoots (I live in London, so driving is often a nightmare) and don't need the whole backdrop business :)

Rosie
 
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