New Year Photography with a Lightsphere
It’s been a while since my last update. I haven’t had much time to get out and take some photos. Truthfully, I haven’t been inspired in the new year yet. I have taken photos at several family events. Anyone who knows me, however, knows that I dislike taking snapshots and people photos, so that could be part of the lack of inspiration.
On a positive note, I did receive some money from Christmas gifts. I turned around and purchased Gary Fong’s lightsphere. I’ve heard great things about this, both online and from someone who actually owns two of them. The truth is, I wasn’t sure what to expect with this product. Of course, it sounds all great on Gary’s web site, but if it didn’t, he wouldn’t be selling any of them. Now that I own one, I’m still on the fence about it. I own a 580EX II strobe and I love it. Like all flashes, it can be harsh if shot directly on a subject. If you pull out the built in white card and angle the flash so you can bounce the strobe off of the ceiling or wall, it gives you a much natural light without the harsh lighting on your subject. Now, here comes the lightsphere. Built to diffuse even the harshest flash. It does just that. It diffuses the light and gives your subject a more natural light. However, there are only slight differences to either using the white card and angling the flash versus using the lightsphere.
In all honesty, I haven’t shot with the lightsphere all that much yet. I’ve only used it indoors a few times. I haven’t tried it outdoors in an evening or low light setting yet, but I’m guessing the end results will be pretty much the same. If you have a decent flash with a built in white card, you can save $45 dollars and put it towards something else in my opinion, or build yourself a home-made diffuser for a couple of dollars. The home-made version isn’t near as bulky and fits nicely in anyone’s camera bag. Personally, I’m leaning towards returning the lightsphere and doing this myself (if it hasn’t been 30 days since my purchase). Not because I like having a MacGyver diffuser or anything, but because it’s definitely cheaper, gives the same results and it isn’t bulky and will fit in my bag easily.