Flashgun Light Modifiers
Unmodified light from your flashgun will provide good pictures, but the effect can be harsh with bright hot-spots and hard-edged shadows. There are many solutions for softening the light from flash units including methods of bouncing or diffusing the light before it reaches the subject.
Many strobists on a shoestring make their own light modifiers using anything from a sheet of paper as a basic bounce card to a softbox fashioned from a cigarette packet. There’s nothing wrong with DIY options but more rugged and reliable professionally-built light modifiers are now available to buy.
In this test I’m checking out four strobist systems generally aimed at portrait photography but also have wider uses. The set up is a classic outdoor low-light portrait, trying each flash modifier with both on and off-camera flash. In the off-camera shots the flashgun was placed above and to the left of the subject while I used a second low powered flashgun to lift the shadows on the right side of the model, Emma Sturgeon.
Gary Fong Lightsphere range
Former wedding photographer Gary Fong created the original Lightsphere as a portable but effective flash diffuser.
In this test I had three variants to look at and there are even more available in the range including something called a Whaletail.
The first is a Cloud Lightsphere Universal that’s much the same as the original, but partially diffused to give softer light. The Lightsphere attaches securely to any standard sized flashgun using an elasticated Velcro strap at its base. Being a fairly small diffuser, it doesn’t cover the flash’s infrared focus assist lamp so won’t hinder the autofocus in very low light. The unit is supplied with a detachable inverted dome that fits on the top to deflect more light out through the sides. Additionally, with the dome attached you can tilt the flash-head forward to give more direct flash.
In use the simple Lightsphere is genuinely a versatile and effective diffuser. Shooting indoors, with the flash-head pointed straight up and with the dome attachment removed, you can benefit from excellent ceiling bounce as well as deflected light through the sides adding catchlights.
With the dome attached the Lightsphere produces more diffused light and tilting the flash-head up into the sky or directly at the subject gives two different effects. With off-camera flash the Lightsphere can be used to give effective background illumination as will or as a keylight in portraits.
The second is the soft, rubber, collapsible Lightsphere which, as the name suggests, can be flattened down to save space. It also comes with an inverted dome attachment which needs to be removed when collapsing the unit down. With its soft rubber construction the collapsible Lightsphere attaches to a flashgun purely by friction using moulded ribs at its base. This is much more convenient than the elasticated strap method of the standard Lightsphere and but not as secure.
In operation the collapsible Lightsphere performs much the same as the basic model, although its rubber construction seems to absorb a fraction more light from the flashgun.
Lastly, I had the Lightsphere PowerSnoot, which is effectively a snoot fitted with a grid to channel the light in one direction only. Moulded entirely from rigid plastic with a chrome-like reflective finish it looks like a solid and expensive piece of kit. The black grid is fixed and not detachable so it lacks the interchangeable versatility of the Strobies and Honl equivalents.
Though you can create a stylish spot-lit look to a shot by using the PowerSnoot with on-camera flash, many people would prefer to use this modifer off-camera.
For me, the pool of light produced is not as smooth as I would ideally like and in some situations you can even see bands of shadows across the subject, especially on walls and flat surfaces. It is worth trying different zoom settings on the flashgun to get round any problems. You also need to be accurate in terms of aim because your pool of light might be in the wrong place.
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