Shoot-through brolly

mr.si

mr.si

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Simon
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Hi all,
Due to be receiving my first speedlight of Monday. I've been reading up on softlight by use of a translucent brolly to shoot through. I almost bought a lastolite 40" one today but decided not to.

I was just wondering what you all use and what size you generally go for?

There are quite a few offerings on Amazon or eBay, which are where I generally shop but I don't want to get a cheap one if it won't be as good as a branded one...

Your advice is most welcome.

Si
 
Now someone might come along with test data to the contrary, but my view on shoot through brollies is that they're close to disposable. The don't do anything complicated, the cheap ones last years and cost under a tenner.
 
For Speedlites mine are somewhere around 30" for a single light. I do have a 43" reflecting umbrella which is good with 2-3 Speedlites, good for wide coverage fill.

I recommend you use a Stofen cover with the flash to spread the light more evenly into the umbrella. When buying a bracket, make sure it allows your flash (and trigger if you are using one) to point towards a central point in the umbrella.

As Phil says, around a tenner a piece is typical. I've spent more, but I can't tell the difference.
 
Thanks both for the advice. I bought a 43" shoot through umbrella from Amazon for about £10. It's huge! So I probably will get a smaller one.

Thanks too for the advice about the bracket Jenny, I shall have to check mine now. My yn568ex arrived the other day so it's all getting very exciting.
 
Agree with Phil, umbrellas are cheap enough to be disposable and I'm not convinced that expensive ones are that much better. If a stand falls over, there's a good chance it'll get bent regardless.

Disagree with Jenny's suggestion of using a Stofen. That'll just spread even more light around the room.
 
The great thing about brollies though: when your light stand is blown into a pond, they float long enough to allow you to grab the stand before the flashgun gets wet. :)
 
And no need for a green gel :thumbs: Must try that sometime :D
 
Hi. I bought a small umbrella but have never used it as yet other than setting it up once.I must admit I was confused that the speedlight sat high up on the shaft.So could someone point me in the direction for a bracket that allows the the speedlight to lie down next to the shaft.Just Googled them but was getting the run around.

Gaz
 
cargo said:
Hi. I bought a small umbrella but have never used it as yet other than setting it up once.I must admit I was confused that the speedlight sat high up on the shaft.So could someone point me in the direction for a bracket that allows the the speedlight to lie down next to the shaft.Just Googled them but was getting the run around.

Gaz
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They're fairly difficult to find and often bodged, in the past I've used two small brackets so I can mount the flashgun horizontally. In my softbox I use a Heath Robinson setup to hang a flash upside down over the shaft. There are elastic mounts in the states perfect to fasten a flash along the shaft, but I've never seen any for sale over here.

But that said, I'm not sure we don't over think this; how much higher than the shaft is the head of my flashgun compared to the flash tube of my studio head?
 
Hi Phil, not sure about the studio head scenrio as i'm not as advanced as yourself but thanks for the info, youre no doubt correct about over thinking stuff, as it is becoming apperrant to me that most things in photography are over thought___Gaz
 
cargo said:
Hi. I bought a small umbrella but have never used it as yet other than setting it up once.I must admit I was confused that the speedlight sat high up on the shaft.So could someone point me in the direction for a bracket that allows the the speedlight to lie down next to the shaft.Just Googled them but was getting the run around.

Gaz
Click to expand...

A Lastolite Brolly Grip can be mounted on a stand (or hand held) and allows for the flashgun to lay parallel to the umbrella shaft.
 
Thanks Beth.That did show up when I Googled but never thought it could be used on a stand.

Gaz
 
Disagree with Jenny's suggestion of using a Stofen. That'll just spread even more light around the room.
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If there is excess light spill caused by the Stofen this can be minimised by moving the Speedlight closer to the brolly.
 
redsnappa said:
If there is excess light spill caused by the Stofen this can be minimised by moving the Speedlight closer to the brolly.
Click to expand...

One of the problems with shoot-throughs is the large amount of uncontrolled spill they produce, eg half the light is bounced straight out of the back and around the room. Stofens distribute light around 180 degrees, making things even worse. That cannot be reduced without positioning the gun very close to the umbrella, actually 'inside' it, creating a hot spot.

The best method is to keep the gun a reasonable distance away from the brolly, thus reducing any slight unevenness caused by the raised head (it actually doesn't make that much difference in practise) and optimise the light coverage with the zoom head.
 
I got a cheap brolly but the spill was a bit much. Got a cheap octo softbox for similar money and am getting better results
 
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