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10/28/2007 12:36:10 AM · #1 |
I will be taking engagement photos outdoors . I have money to buy a disc reflector or a Gary fong Lightsphere Which one do you think I should purchase?
I was also going to switch between both of my lenses to experiment to see which I like best for portraits. Which do you think? Nikon AF Nikkor 50mm f/1.8D or Tokina AF 12-24mm f/4.0 AT-X 124AF Pro DX?
I feel like I have to stand to far away from my subjects with my 50mm lens.
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10/28/2007 12:45:20 AM · #2 |
Will you have an assistant with you to help with the reflector?
As for the LS ... I like it indoors, with walls to bounce the light around, but I really don't care for it too much outdoors. Mostly it just "loses light". It redirects light away from the subject (out the sides of the LS), but with nothing to bounce it back towards the subject the light is simply lost (lost light doesn't mean soft light, it's just wasted energy).
I'm sure I'm gonna make some people mad by saying that. But I'll grant one thing, it does increase the size of the source of light "just a bit". The LS is larger than the flash head. And the larger the light source, the softer the light. But at the distances people normally shoot at ... the size difference really won't make a lot of difference.
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10/28/2007 12:55:13 AM · #3 |
I'll mirror what David said about using the LS outside.
As for your choice of lenses take them both but for portraits I'd stick with the 50mm. Quick and you can get some really beautiful shots at f2.8. Be careful with anything lower than that or you'll be too soft in some areas of the shot.
JMHO.
Good luck!
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10/28/2007 01:03:47 AM · #4 |
I'll third what they say about the lightsphere outside. I've about given up on the LS altogether, probably because I don't shoot much indoors and I can't stand what it does to my photos when I use it outdoors, mainly itty-bitty ugly catchlights.
That being said, I love my reflector. :) |
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10/28/2007 12:30:28 PM · #5 |
| of course if you can afford the lightsphere go for it and just stop at walmart or any place that sells those flexible car window shades (to keep the sunlight out), you can usually find a set that is black on one side and silver on the other for about $10-$20. Or even go with the tin foil on cardboard trick, but as stated you will probably need an assistant or two to help out. I have used the sunshades as blockers but not as reflectors yet...(tried, but couldn't get my wife to understand what I was seeing and wanted her to do lol.) |
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10/28/2007 12:40:58 PM · #6 |
| For outdoor shots I use the ProMax System by Lumiquest. It is what they call the 80/20 system that is suggested for indoor use with the addition of inserts to direct the flash toward your subject when there is nothing else to bounce the flash off of. I've never used the Lightsphere, but it makes sense that with nothing outdoors to bounce the flash off of the Lumiquest ProMax system would work better. |
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