RingFlash Adapter for Nikon SB-800

paulbennett

paulbennett

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Paul Bennett
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Has anyone used one? Im trying to get a friend of mine to do some head shots. and as i cant really afford 2 more sb800 and PWs atm. I thought just get to me going buy one of these.

Have been looking on flickr at ringflash pics looks good but most of them are using the alien bee stuff :bang:
 
This is the sort of effect a ring flash would give thou

sera-lys-02.jpg


It's mainly used widly for macro stuff so that you can light the object up and still have a good shutter speed.

The only way would be to get two soft boxes like you said. I made my own and used it in this photo

2321240074_45ee4a90f3.jpg


Which creates the effect you seem to be looking for. I think?!
 
Had a look at the Penelope Cruz pics you posted and although I can understand you wanting to go for lights and softboxes there may be a way to get somewhere close with what you already have.

If you have a Nikon you may be able to use your flash off camera. So...... pop it on a tripod and fit a diffuser to it. In a room setting it should give all the light you need. If you don't have a diffuser........make one! Easy peasey with some tissue paper and an elastic band. To even out the light you could use a reflector (not too expensive) and if you don't have one, you can use a sheet of polystyrene.

Where there is a will, there is a way.

And if that lot doesn't work, use lights from B&Q and adjust your white balance for halogen.

Now all you need is Penelope........................:)
 
or maybe i was thinking could bounce the SB800 with the diffuser it comes with off the ceiling and down on to the bed. or Do the same without the diffuser as that would eat alot of light...I may buy the ringflash adapter to get a different feel to the shots too. got a few ideas also.

But now u mention using the CLS with the SB800 and bouncing it off the ceiling ill try that too
 
Just try different techniques using your flash off camera with CLS, the possibilities are endless with either bouncing the light, diffusing it with a very cheap foam card like the Better Bounce Card or using an umbrella.

One light should be sufficient for starting out particularly when used with a reflector. To give an example this shot was taken on Saturday using one SB-800 to camera right and it was shot through a white umbrella....

jess.jpg
 
thats a hot pic...im def going for the bouncing light off walls. as i want the soft light effect, as im going to do colour and B&W verisons.

Might invest in a brollie aswell. Which one would u suggested. i saw a transuletant one which came with a silver brollie liner too...
 
Macro ringlights are very expensive, have very limited power, beget very flat portrait lighting, and will not create those ring shaped highlights you see in some portrait's eyes! Those are created with specially made (usually D-I-Y) ringlights with well over a foot diameter!

With an SB800 and a (D-I-Y) reflector you can fake the soft light effect of a big softbox.
 
If you want the ringflash effect you'll have to use a ringflash, nothing else comes close to the same effect.

The Macro ringflashes are only good for macro, apart from the low power they are just too small to get the effect with people.

Alien Bee are OK but a bit flimsy. Try the Lencarta, a proper tool for the job at a fair price IMO
 
I do have one for my Canon Ex580 and to be honest it is a little soft. It does not have the real bite that a "proper" studio ringflash does. The reason is quite simple. Studio ringflash is more or less a bare bulb, this adaptor has plastic lenses to bounce the light around. So you are never going to get the exact same effect as a studio ringflash. The other difference is the price. If you think the adaptor is pricey, have a look at studio ringflashes. One that I used on a seminar was £600, then there was the £400 battery pack. It weighed a ton and blinded the model too. So the adaptor is a useful addition to my lighting in that I can use it on location, it does not cost £1000 and I can lift it! I'll settle for a little softness in the image since I'm not a pro and don't run my own studio.
And the pics of Peneope Cruz were done with softboxes so using an off camera flash is not such a bad idea. :)
 
AliB said:
I do have one for my Canon Ex580 and to be honest it is a little soft. It does not have the real bite that a "proper" studio ringflash does. The reason is quite simple. Studio ringflash is more or less a bare bulb, this adaptor has plastic lenses to bounce the light around. So you are never going to get the exact same effect as a studio ringflash.
Click to expand...
This is right, but the main difference is the physical size. Proper ringflashes produce the ringflash effect at several feet, the macro ringflashes can only produce it at a few inches.

As for price, they don't have to cost a fortune. This one is reasonably priced.
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Lencarta-RF-4...oryZ3860QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

There's a video of it in use too.
 
John Harding said:
This is right, but the main difference is the physical size. Proper ringflashes produce the ringflash effect at several feet, the macro ringflashes can only produce it at a few inches.

As for price, they don't have to cost a fortune. This one is reasonably priced.
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Lencarta-RF-4...oryZ3860QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

There's a video of it in use too.
Click to expand...


Thanks for the link John. I was not comparing macro ring flashes in my post I was comparing the ringflash adaptor that fits onto the flashgun (It is not macro) with the kind of ringlight in your link. I would not advocate using a full sized ringflash for macro and vice versa, they are two different products for a very good reason.

Ali
 
cherryrig said:
For that price you might as well just buy some umbrellas and still have money left over, as you can still get the same style of lighting but without the "ring in the eye"
Click to expand...

Before I answer that, I need to point out that I'm not completely impartial because I've done some testing etc for Lencarta so although I'm not on their payroll I do have an interest in their products.

Umbrellas (and any other type of tool) aren't either better or worse than any other, they all do different jobs and produce different effects. The ringflash is the only tool that can produce outwardly-radiating shadows, no other modifier comes close. It's just a fact of life that the more we learn about lighting, the more we realise that we need to get the right tools for the job.

As for the ring in the eye, some people like it and some don't. Whether you like it or not, you won't see it unless the ringflash is extremely close to the subject anyway.

I shot the video for Lencarta and you can see it on YouTube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gjvPvO7YhBU The ring catchlight shown in the video was from a shot taken about 10" from the subject.

Over the years I've used a lot of the heavy duty ringflashes from the major manufacturers and they all work well. Things have changed now with digital cameras, which don't need anywhere as much lighting power, and the Lencarta one was used at 1/8th power for all the shots in the video.
 
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