Photek Softlighter Umbrella Over Alien Bee B800

[mcblue]

Hi,

 

For anyone who has the Photek Softlighter and AB combo (might be a

dumb question, sorry):

 

The instructions on the Photek softlighter was to "bury" the strobe

body into the diffusion fabric's sock and but not to cover the cooling

gills of the fan. It seems to imply that I should cover the body

without the standard reflector and this seems dangerous to me since

the sock may be in contact with the modeling light and/or the strobe

bulb itself. So should I put on the reflector instead?

 

Sorry, I'm a total newbie to this. I just got the stuff over the mail.

Thanks...

[sheldonnalos]

I use the Softliter with an AB400. I always use the reflector rather than pulling the sock over the body of the flash. You have to bunch the sock up onto the reflector first, then clip it onto the flash head. The sock ends up wedged up against the front face of the flash, on the outside of the reflector. This leaves all the cooling vents exposed.

 

Hope this helps!

 

Sheldon

[dave_trayers]

And I do the opposite with my AB800... I use my 60" softlighter without the reflector. I'm able to stretch the sock over the body of the strobe and at the top hook it behind the thumbscrew for the umbrella shaft. It stays on the bottom ok. My rational is that I don't want the reflector blocking light from reaching the edge of the softlighter. To be honest, I never tested it with the reflector. My point is that it works fine without the reflector if you want to use it that way.

[ellis_vener_photography]

<I> My rationale is that I don't want the reflector blocking light from reaching the edge of the softlighter. To be honest, I never tested it with the reflector. My point is that it works fine without the reflector if you want to use it that way.</I><P> You should test with the standard AB reflector or what Alienbees.com calls

<A HREF = http://alienbees.com/usk.html> The Spill Kill Reflector </A>. If you use the standard reflector slide the umbrella out until the modeling light almost completely illuminates the inside of the umbrella. Using a reflector may increase the efficiency of the light.

[dave_trayers]

Ellis,

 

Thanks for the tip about the Spill Kill Reflector.. I'll give it a try.

[peter_martucci]

the softlighter sock is made of nomex. It should be fine (no fire hazard) even when in

contact with modelling lamps, although ellis' suggestion is best.

[mikeseb]

Peter is right, although the first time I used the Photek Softliter II 60" unit with my AB 800

light WITHOUT the standard reflector in place, I had the nomex collar in contact with the

flashtube in my ignorance. The collar got singed (caramelized a bit, not a functional problem)

as did the flashtube. Not sure this is really a problem but I'll try to avoid it in the future.

[mcblue]

Guys, As usual, thanks a lot for all the answers and suggestions...