Softbox

Thanks to the generosity of Kurbster Photography from the Strobist group, I now have a 24" x 24" softbox, originally designed to work with a studio strobe. While I have yet to figure out a way to mount it to be used with my shoe mount flashes (a trip to Home Depot is in order), that didn't deter me from testing it out. I found the results much more aesthetically pleasing than the umbrella, but the experiment was by no means controlled, and the umbrella shots were TTL, and they didn't use a photographic umbrella but a simple white rain blocking umbrella.

First are pictures of the box with and without the flash on.


This next series of images show the gentle light fall off on the subject. The relative size of the light to the subject eliminates any harsh transitions.


These last images show the effect on the shadow in back. Because the size of the light is about the same size as the subject (this would be about equivalent to a head and shoulders picture of a full size adult), the shadow on the back wall is very faint, and the light covers the subject almost entirely. The quantity of light also allows for a very good focus on the subject.


To see a comparison between a softbox and an umbrella, Zach Arias does exactly that better than I ever could here.