Ken Size

Aug

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Ken Size

Six Flash Diffuser Secrets for Professional Photographers: Exposing the Myth of Size

"Bigger is better" is just as much of a myth in the realm of flash diffusers as it is in other areas. For an on-camera diffuser to not produce undesirable harsh shadow, it would need to be not just big but large to the point of being unwieldy and impractical.

The following six flash diffuser secrets for professional photographers help make the point.

Secret #1: The on-camera diffuser alone, regardless of size and design, cannot produce the desired soft lighting. It is the bounced light that does this!

Contrary to common belief, smaller is better, when it comes to on-camera flash diffusers.

Secret #2: You need a lot of bounced light and a little fill light to create a well lit, shadow-free image.

Camera manufacturers designed their flash heads to swivel and tilt, so that they can bounce light off ceilings, walls or nearby objects. If you want to bounce light off both a wall and ceiling, at the same instance, you will need some way to split the light output into multiple paths without diffusing or diluting intensity. The best method is the use of mirrors to manipulate the light path.

Many popular diffusers on the market today cannot effectively bounce light off ceilings and walls, because there is too much energy loss involved. This is because the moment the light strikes a diffuser, whether it's reflected or transmitted through, much of its intensity is diminished due to diffusion and dilution. The actual light striking the wall or ceiling needs to be at full strength, concentrated, so that the bounced light will have enough intensity returning to the subject being photographed.

Secret #3: Bouncing light effectively requires the full energy and intensity of the original light source.

In addition to the energy robbing nature of translucent diffusers, due to the milky-white material, there is another inefficiency about them. They are designed to spew light all around, in the hope of striking a suitable surface (or surfaces) to bounce the light. If the room is small enough, there is little risk of underexposure. Once more distance comes between the camera and the subject or a group of subjects, however, underexposure will become more apparent, as the flash struggles to produce enough power to overcome the loss of intensity caused by the filtering (restricting light passage) effect of the milky-white material.

Secret #4: The flash unit has to work extra hard to push more light through a translucent diffuser to achieve correct exposure.

What if there's absolutely nowhere to bounce the light: no ceiling, no nearby walls, pillars or people standing around wearing white clothes (really)? In this situation, it's advisable to just go with direct flash, as soft lighting cannot be achieved without the "bounce."

Secret #5: If there's no ceiling or wall to bounce light, then use direct flash. There's little to gain from using a diffuser.

Every lighting situation is unique, with its own unique opportunities and pitfalls. One fixed solution for all occasions is not effective. As the famous psychologist Abraham Maslow once observed, "I suppose it is tempting, if the only tool you have is a hammer, to treat everything as if it were a nail."

Secret #6: "Move & Modify" is actually no secret at all. You need to adjust and adapt to the opportunities at hand.

The next time you see a flash diffuser that is bigger than yours, you might want to reflect upon this verse:

Think big but go small. The bigger the diffuser, the harder the shadows fall.

Hopefully, the above six flash diffuser secrets for professional photographers have helped you realize the myth of "bigger is better" in the realm of flash diffusers. By improving your knowledge of diffusers and how they work, your flash photography results will significantly improve.

About the Author

Ken Law is the inventor of the PRESSlite VerteX, the flash modifier that makes it possible for you to get the lighting you want as fast as you need it, using just one hand. To learn how you can finally make your flash do what you want it to, visit http://presslite.com.