no Lightsphere made for my flash?

[aimee_lyn]

Hi everyone,

 

I own a Promaster 7500DX flash and am tryin to purchase a Gary Fong lightsphere

cloud. I have googled, gone to the Gary Fong website and even tried ebay. No one

seems to make the lightsphere to fit my model flash. Does anyone have the

slightest idea where I could find one? Or if they even make one for my flash?

 

Also, I am making sure the Gary Fong is right for me at this moment. I don't own

a studio so all my work is outdoors. I mainly just shoot models. These may

necessarily not be portraits but more like fashion and bikini shots. I have

always just used my flash but I guess I am just getting bored with it. My

lighting is just blah. I am looking to add some punch to my photos..but as a

full-time college student, I am on a tight budget. The Fong diffuser is only $50

bucks...I don't have much to lose, however I just want to be sure that people

have seen this thing work!

 

Last thing, if Fong doesn't make the lightsphere to fit my flash, what are other

options that I have? I am looking for something that will light my subjects

better. I work in the shade, outdoors, and use my flash for lighting the

shadows. What would work better with improving my overall lighting, that isn't

very expensive?

 

Any advice or help on this would be greatly appreciated! I have posted this

question in other forums on the internet, only to recieve answers such as:

"Don't waste $50 bucks! Clean out a milk bottle and tape that on your flash!"

Um, no thanks.

 

Aimee

[garry edwards]

I think you've already been given good advice, but if you really want one...

 

I'm moving this thread to the Wedding Forum, although your question is about lighting I think that the wedding forum is more likely to have readers who can answer your question. Best of luck with it.

[picturesque]

I just looked, and there is a LS listed for the Promaster 7500, but it fits tightly--so says the note. Otherwise, they list the dimensions of the openings of the various LS models, so you can match your flash head dimensions to the closest LS model dimensions.

 

As for the light quality with it, the LS is best used indoors, because the nice, soft quality comes from bouncing the flash's light against the walls and ceiling. You can use it outside in the upright position with the dome on, but you're losing a lot of the flash's light--wasting it, actually for a result which is not that different from other modifiers that don't waste so much light. In the straight ahead position with the dome on, the results are not unlike using a small on-flash softbox like the Lumiquest softbox, with again, more light wastage.

 

It is hard to suggest any other lighting gear or modifiers for "better" lighting--the term is too subjective. Outside in the shade, I would think all you would need is a tiny burst of flash to fill eye sockets, and bare, direct flash is fine for that since it is only a small part of the exposure so the flash lighting pattern is basically invisible. That or using multiple flash while backlighting with sunlight--that's been done in the glamour industry for a long time, and you use either bare headed flashes or flashes with softboxes. Maybe try a ringflash???

[richsimmons]

Well, you could go with the whaletail by Fong which fits by strapping, so it shouldn't be a problem. I was looking into the Ulitmate Light box myself. There's an interesting review here

 

http://griffindesignandphotography.blogspot.com/2007/01/best-flash-on-camera-flash-tool-your.html

 

that shows the ULB is twice as big as the LS (go 1/2 way down on the page for a photo.) A full kit is $100, $110 for pro, but you can buy piece meal if you want and start at $30. They do make one for your camera and shipping is free.

[don_hill]

If your lighting is blah, you should consider getting the flash off camera. Modifiers can

help, but they are only one piece of the lighting puzzle.

 

A good place to start is strobist.blogspot.com. There is lots of inspiration and plenty of

instruction.

 

On camera flash will always be dull, and your money would be better spent on an off

camera solution rather than just diffusing the light. Another option would be to attend a

one light workshop found at www.onelightworkshop.com. A good description of the

course is guerrilla lighting, or how to do amazing things very inexpensively.

[steve_c.5]

Aimee: You're on the right path in trying to use the Lightsphere. I speak from experience. Disregard the nuts and naysayers you found in other forums.

 

I got my Lightsphere and it wobbled on my flash and did not fit tightly. However, it does have an internal flange, and when I push it on the flash a bit further, the internal flange stretches around the flash and now fits tightly. I don't think this was the design intention, but gosh darn-it, I needed it to STAY ON! And, it works.

 

Now, in lieu of this working for your case, try this: Get some black elastic band from a fabric store (you won't need much) and get a round hole punch (like for paper). Punch 4 small holes in the sides of the Lightsphere base, two on each side (the long sides, not the short sides). Then, thread the elastic through the holes, so that the bands can be long enough to stretch a bit, and wrap around the upper part of your flash. In other words, they slide between the upper head and the lower body, which is usually a very slim area. Now, the tricky part is to fix the elastic so that it looks good. If you can sew, you can do this with thread, either on a machine or by hand. A better fix is to use a metal crimp that you can often find in fabric stores to affix the loose ends of the elastic to the band itself. I created a .GIF graphic to illustrate this (see link). You just need an elastic band to hold the LS on the flash head in some manner. Hope this helps!

[daniellane]

I would suggest that you give the Demb Flip-It a look.

 

http://www.dembflashproducts.com/flipit/

 

I've used it at a number of events and I have been very happy with the results.

[jaimie blue]

Reflectors and if you don't have an assistant use a c-stand and clamps. I love reflectors for outdoors above all flash type lights and actually any artificial lighting. And I agree with Nadine regarding a ring light.

[viet_ngo]

Outdoor, models & bikini shots & LS, am I missing something? why the heck would you want a LS for that?

 

Use what others suggested, strobist is a good start, a a reflector or strobe would be better.

 

Steve: You get good results from your LS, that's great, but no need for names calling here. I used a LS and found it to be a waste of time, effort and my cut down my light power outdoor.

[fotografz]

The effect of a LS outdoors is difficult to detect unless you are doing a head-shot from 2

feet away. The main difference with shots made at a regular distance is that a LS reduces

the light output by scattering the auxiliary lighting to the sides and rear with nothing for

that light to bounce off of ... so your flash works harder to no effect.

 

Amiee, if you are not satisfied with the quality of your lighting outdoors, I'd suggest the

first place to look is the ambient light, not the flash. Try disciplining yourself to look for

the best existing lighting scenario ... train your eye to see natural light and it's effects on

your subject. Take a look at Jeff Ascough's work to see a master of available light wedding

photography.

 

After getting that down pat you'll most likely only need a touch of flash to fill some

shadows areas ... with heavier flash capability being the exception rather than the rule-

(like when shooting a backlit subject, or if you're forced to shoot in bad ambient light).

 

Mother Nature has provided us with a fabulous array of possibilities if we just look for

them ... instead of blasting away with our whimpy artifical flash guns.<div></div>

[rannbphoto]

Get Gary's newer thing - the whaletail. It has an adjustable velcro strap that will fit anything. I've tried it and it works really well!!! There's a lot more to it, but you don't have to use all the extras if you just want it to do what the lightsphere cloud will do.

[russ_butner___portland__or]

Go with the Demb Flip-It. The best thing out there, and much cheaper. I use it constantly.

 

Russ

[steve_c.5]

There's certainly no harm in trying the Demb Flip-it. It's way better than direct flash. However, from looking at the images on their site, I see the main problem with it, and it underscores the advantage of the Lightsphere. All the flash in those pictures is direct-on. The foreground is bright, and as the light falls off, the background gets dark. It's not a lot different than direct flash, except that the Demb unit is absorbing the intensity of the light somewhat by simply reflecting it...at your subject.

 

What the Lightsphere does is diffuse the direct blast of light and allow it to pass through (rather than reflecting it like the Demb), softening the light in a much more pleasing way. The second thing it does is act just like a lampshade (as Gary describes it). The wraparound indirect light bounces off all the room walls and surfaces, and softens the shadows BEHIND the subject (like those sharp shadows you see behind Superman on the Demb website), and provides a much more natural lighting look.

 

The domes further modify the light pattern. The white dome acts as an artificial "ceiling", reducing the light going up (but still allowing some to pass through, which is important). This works in rooms with black or dark ceilings, or outdoors at night with NO ceiling. In daytime, I point the unit directly at the subject with the white dome on, and it gives a nice soft fill light and catch light for the eyes.

 

The amber dome turns the entire flash burst from the unit into a tungsten light source, to match tungsten-lit rooms. Then, simply set your camera for a tungsten white balance, and you have shots that look great and well-balanced!

 

The chrome dome has a horizontal kicker panel inside, that directs more light forward, increasing your light output for larger group shots. The open hole in the top blasts direct light to reflect off the ceiling, to add downlight to the room.

 

The Whaletale is a modification of these principles, and I understand it works well too. For me, the Lightsphere is just simple and effective.

 

Learning to balance your flash output with the flash compensation dial, and using the Lightsphere will make any indoor shots better.

[fotografz]

Aimee said: "... so all my work is outdoors. I mainly just shoot models..."

 

Not indoors, outdoors.

[aimee_lyn]

Ah Thank you so much everyone for your responses. It's so nice to see real humans wanting to help! :)

 

Ok, so I do understand now why I shouldn't really need the LS, since all my work is outdoors. I have been browsing and came across a portable softbox. I think Photoflex makes it and it is inexpensive. So I guess my next question is: What other items would I need to get to go along with this? I know it comes with a stand but what about some kind of cord? I'm not exactly sure what kind it would need to be....

 

Can't you tell I am new to this?

 

Aimee

[picturesque]

If you're talking about the Photoflex on-camera XTC softbox, it doesn't need a cord or cable. You put it on your flash head, and the flash can be directly attached to your camera. If you are talking about syncing off camera flashes with softboxes, you either need to hardwire them to your camera or use a wireless system, which can be expensive. You might try the reflector idea first, but I'd start with a pretty big reflector. Full length fashion shots are often done with 4x6 foot reflectors. You can make them cheaply from white foam core boards but they are hard to manage outside without assistants since they (and softboxes) will become sails in any bit of wind. You can use off camera flashes without softboxes too. Try reading strobist columns first.