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Foldable softbox
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Bessel have a cheap one.
You may find it's not as nice as your Lencarta and you can end up with different colour temperatures as different brands use different coatings on their diffusers so it might be worth paying the extra.
You may find it's not as nice as your Lencarta and you can end up with different colour temperatures as different brands use different coatings on their diffusers so it might be worth paying the extra.
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Thanks guys.
It will mostly be used for products so a square/rectangular one will be better I think. I still haven't 100% decided whether to go for softbox or stripbox. Ideally I'd like both, but can't justify spending £200 for that at the moment.
I will have a think about it and probably will go for the Lencarta one. Too bad they don't have smaller stripboxes as well.
It will mostly be used for products so a square/rectangular one will be better I think. I still haven't 100% decided whether to go for softbox or stripbox. Ideally I'd like both, but can't justify spending £200 for that at the moment.
I will have a think about it and probably will go for the Lencarta one. Too bad they don't have smaller stripboxes as well.
Garry Edwards
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Rectangular is a much better bet for product shots, most of the time. Octa boxes can overhang the front too much, and although that can be dealt with by getting the softbox at the right angle, there isn't a lot of point in having to solve a problem that shouldn't exist in the first place.
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A strip sounds like a good idea as the 60x90 will be quite similar to your 100x100 both in handling and result.
This isn't ideal but if you can't find the right size you could consider using some cinefoil to mask the front, as Garry has mentioned previously you'll lose a lot of power when doing this but it may get you the results you desire and add some extra flexibility if you don't have the perfect modifier on hand:
This isn't ideal but if you can't find the right size you could consider using some cinefoil to mask the front, as Garry has mentioned previously you'll lose a lot of power when doing this but it may get you the results you desire and add some extra flexibility if you don't have the perfect modifier on hand:
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That was my thinking. As I will be only buying one of those modifiiers at the moment, I think the second softbox will give greater flexibility. I can always flag parts of softbox to reduce the size of the light, while it will be much more dificult to make a stripbox look bigger if needed to.
Sooner or later I will also add a stripbox to my collection but at the moment I can only pick one of the two modifiers.
Sooner or later I will also add a stripbox to my collection but at the moment I can only pick one of the two modifiers.
Garry Edwards
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Well, I see that you've put your name down for my product lighting workshop, so it might make sense to hold back on your purchase until you've seen my own approach. I always find that I get ideas from the way that other people do things.
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Yes, I have, but I'm still unsure whether I'll be able to attend. As much as I would love to go it is a 4.5 hour drive each way which is not a massive problem but being away for a full day might be.
I'm still unsure so more likely I will be buying one of the two modifiers before the workshop anyway. The plan is to use 100x100 as top light and the smaller softbox as side light/fill light/second light. I have a plan in my head but am unsure whether it will work until I try it (obviously).
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In a situation like this what are the advantages of small vs medium softbox used for sidelighting?
This is the view from camera. Top light is large softbox on boom arm, right is a bounce card, left is another studio strobe with small (60x60) or medium (60x90) softbox. What would be your choice of a modifier (small vs medium softbox) for that situation.
Am I right thinking that small softbox would create harder light (than a larger one)? However both softboxes are big in relation to the subject, so will it matter that much?
This is the view from camera. Top light is large softbox on boom arm, right is a bounce card, left is another studio strobe with small (60x60) or medium (60x90) softbox. What would be your choice of a modifier (small vs medium softbox) for that situation.
Am I right thinking that small softbox would create harder light (than a larger one)? However both softboxes are big in relation to the subject, so will it matter that much?
Garry Edwards
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It isn't about size, it's about relative size. The smaller softbox on the left is not only smaller but further away, so produces much harder light than the larger and closer softbox overhead. Actually I'm not too sure of the point of that overhead softbox anyway... it does seem to be tilting forward a bit, but it would need to tilt forward rather more to stop producing soft light and just produce a backlight...In a situation like this what are the advantages of small vs medium softbox used for sidelighting?
This is the view from camera. Top light is large softbox on boom arm, right is a bounce card, left is another studio strobe with small (60x60) or medium (60x90) softbox. What would be your choice of a modifier (small vs medium softbox) for that situation.
Am I right thinking that small softbox would create harder light (than a larger one)? However both softboxes are big in relation to the subject, so will it matter that much?
I can't tell you what I personally would do in that situation, I never really know how to light anything at all until I actually start doing it, but my guess is that I would probably use a honeycombed beauty dish instead of the overhead softbox.
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The top softbox is a mostly behind the subject and tilted towards the camera. The subject is positioned on white backround. It is meant to create backlighting and illuminate the background itself.
The sidelight is there to create shape and give the subject some depth by creating shadows. Fill card is there to lighten up the shadows without filling them completely.
I was just wondering about the size of the side softbox. Will the 60x60 be big enough or will I need 60x90 but you have answered the question in your first sentance Garry. It is about relative size. So even 60x60 will be big enough if I get it close to the subject. Light fall off however will be greater and shadows deeper but I can balance that out by getting the bounce card closer on the other side.
It looks like 60x60 might be enough for most of the stuff I plan to shoot (still life/small products).
Because there are no 60x60 profold softboxes another question is how Chiaro one will work with a Profold sofbox I already own? Is it made from the same materials as Profold series? How long does it take to put it together?
The sidelight is there to create shape and give the subject some depth by creating shadows. Fill card is there to lighten up the shadows without filling them completely.
I was just wondering about the size of the side softbox. Will the 60x60 be big enough or will I need 60x90 but you have answered the question in your first sentance Garry. It is about relative size. So even 60x60 will be big enough if I get it close to the subject. Light fall off however will be greater and shadows deeper but I can balance that out by getting the bounce card closer on the other side.
It looks like 60x60 might be enough for most of the stuff I plan to shoot (still life/small products).
Because there are no 60x60 profold softboxes another question is how Chiaro one will work with a Profold sofbox I already own? Is it made from the same materials as Profold series? How long does it take to put it together?
Garry Edwards
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Yes, I would think that the 60 x 60 will be big enough for this type of subject - maybe too big unless you move it further away.
It takes me about a minute to put together, and is made in the same factory as the Profold models, from the same fabrics.
It takes me about a minute to put together, and is made in the same factory as the Profold models, from the same fabrics.
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I still have not ordered the softbox, but I plan to try to replace it with shoot through umbrella for the time being. I understand that this is not ideal and will lose a lot of light and most likely will have to flag it to prevent flare, but it should work (at least in theory/in my head it does).
If I get some OK results I'll post here
If I get some OK results I'll post here
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OK, so I think it worked OK with a shoot through umbrella. Probably would be better with softbox, but for matte finish like few products I shot yesterday an umbrella is fine too. I have a shiny set of knifes for my next project, so that will test my setup (and my skills) much more.
I also forgot just how big 100x100 softbox really is (have not used it in a while). With a strobe and a boom arm it was taking lots of space (and that is one thing I don't have - space). I'm glad I've waited with ordering, now I'm sure 60x60 softbox will be more than enough for my current needs.
Most likely not a most exciting photoshoot in history, also I'm not 100% sure this was the best possible angle to show off this product, but here it goes. The iron was really old and full of scratches, so there was a lot of photoshop required. Probably would be better to show SOOC shot, but at the end of the day this is about lighting products and I've not changed that in PS.
I also forgot just how big 100x100 softbox really is (have not used it in a while). With a strobe and a boom arm it was taking lots of space (and that is one thing I don't have - space). I'm glad I've waited with ordering, now I'm sure 60x60 softbox will be more than enough for my current needs.
Most likely not a most exciting photoshoot in history, also I'm not 100% sure this was the best possible angle to show off this product, but here it goes. The iron was really old and full of scratches, so there was a lot of photoshop required. Probably would be better to show SOOC shot, but at the end of the day this is about lighting products and I've not changed that in PS.
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