Flash Light Hood, Universal Round Foldable Diffuser Softbox Shoot Macro Flash Light Lamp Hood

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Opaque plastic sheaths that are nestled over the flash head are sold and described as diffusers, and I suppose technically they are - after all they slightly diffuse the light. However, for the purposes of extreme macro I'd say these completely miss the point and are merely ornamental, as they do not actually increase the visible area that the eventual light comes from, and therefore must still produce specularity and hotspots. Light modifiers, especially diffusers are essential if you want to take control of the lighting. But what qualities really matter for macro diffusers? Let’s have a look at different light diffusers and their DIY counterparts. #1. The Sto-Fen Diffuser Flexibility. Does the diffuser work with lenses of different sizes? Does it work off-camera, too, and is it adjustable? A diffuser is not damaging to your camera or flash unit. In fact, it can help to protect your equipment by reducing the intensity of the light, making it easier to capture high-quality images.

If you are looking to improve the overall quality of your images, reduce harsh shadows, and make your lighting more natural-looking, a diffuser is a great investment. Foldable Portable Softbox 2Pcs Flash Diffuser, Camera Lens Diffuser Reflector, Flash Lens Diffuser Reflector with Storage Bags for Studio Photography Camera Lens Accessories (White) So how do you avoid these problems? There’s a variety of ways to improve the diffuser you’ve bought and to spread out the light more and make the shadows softer. You can add another layer: tracing paper, white cloth, or even paper tissues. To tell the truth, the best choice is to throw out all the diffusers you’ve bought and make your own. The diffuser-holder-ring creates an interesting reflection in jumping spider eyes for example – this is definetly unique and can look nice. The diffuser comes in multiple versions: the main version is designed to work best with Micro-four-thirds (Brendan himself being a die-hard OM System disciple) setups.

Extreme Macro Greyness Problems

Building your own diffusers and light modifiers is a great way to get your creative juices flowing, while also personalizing the types of photos you’re planning to take. It’s not always an easy process, but it’s one of my favorite parts of photography. When you design a great diffuser yourself and take some good photos with it, that’s a great feeling! The difference between an okay photo and a superb photo may all be thanks to materials found in a recycling bin. DC-G9 + Laowa 24mm Probe Lens, ISO 640, 1/13, f/14 Conclusion White nylon is another popular option because it is strong and flexible, making it easy to shape into different forms. White tissue paper is also a good option, but it is more delicate and may need to be replaced more frequently.

Say you've built yourself a nice diffused flash setup, be it using a flash on a flash arm or a horizontal flash, and you're wondering why your flash reflection on your shiny insect or pin test here isn't as uniform as it could be and still has a horrible hotspot - besides looking at the material, you might look at the diffuser shape. With a diffuser, the diffusion material in effect becomes the light transmission source, not the flash behind it. This is a very important observation to understand dealing with diffusers.Additionally, a diffuser can also help to improve the overall quality of the image, making it look softer and more natural. Do I Need a Diffuser with My Flash? Regarding the results I think the AK and the Cygnustech are on the same level, with the Cygnustech giving slightly deeper shadows. There is also a bigger variant for DSLR setups or specific lenses (like the LAOWA 15mm wide angle macro). Nevertheless, creating your own modifier will provide the most individual solution and will teach you a thing or two about lighting on the side.

This image was taken with a shoot-through diffuser at a working distance of half an inch. #4. Pringle’s can diffusers Different from the other models though, the diffusion layer has to be connected to the filter-ring-adapter (or the magnetic counterpart) with 2 screws, which makes the initial setup a bit more fiddly and time-consuming than the others (speaking about a minute here, max, so it is still not a big deal).

#5. Light Box

Which one works best for you, depends on what you are looking for and what your personal style and approach look like. The best known and also least effective one of all is the Sto-Fen diffusor, a simple plastic cap that pops on to the flash.

DIY diffusers range from the simple use of paper towels / kitchen roll, to self-made little softboxes or pringles cans, used as a light tube. There are many different materials that you can use as a diffuser for photography. Some popular options include white translucent plastic, white nylon, and white tissue paper. You can also use a softbox or umbrella to diffuse the light from your flash unit.

Employing an off-camera flash provides greater control over the lighting setup. By placing the flash off to the side or above the subject, you have more flexibility with your lighting. Similar to the on-camera setup, using a diffuser is crucial to soften the light and reduce shadows and highlights. Based on my experience, I can’t recommend even one of these diffusers. The main reason why is that they diffuse the light from a spot too close to the flash, and so they diffuse and soften the light too weakly. Another problem is the diffusion of the light before the lens. You can end up with your picture having an unwanted shadow from the lens or the lens hood. The Solution to Bad Light Diffusion Using a flash for macro photography can be tough, but it’s very important if you want the best possible results. I hope that the techniques in this article will help. The biggest point is to diffuse your flash and make sure that light is reaching your subject from all angles. Even if that requires some DIY flash diffusers, it’s absolutely worth it. Note on top of the diffuser is a white piece of plastic. This can be removed and placed below the lens to produce some fill light (ingenious). By locating the diffuser on the lens, you avoid the problems I mentioned. You get a major advantage in that you can adjust the angle of diffusion, and through that the shadow intensity as well. The perfect angle of diffusion is 45°; that gives you enough diffusion and ideal shadow softness. To minimize the shadows, tilt the diffuser so it’s almost parallel with the lens. For sharper shadows, increase the angle of diffusion to 90°. The Diffuser Itself