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Understanding light modifiers: what they do and how to use them

27 March 2017

Light modifiers are designed to direct, diffuse, soften or spread light onto your subject to create more attractive images. While traditionally they have been used with studio lights, there are also kits available for hotshoe flashguns, which means that you can have all the control of a studio set-up in a small and highly portable form.

Without a modifier, a bare flash is a very small light source so it will produce harsh highlights and deep shadows with a defined edge. Most light modifiers are designed to make the light appear larger and softer so that the transition between highlight and shadow is more gradual. Naturally, a modifier cuts out a little of the light from the flash but this can be compensated for by moving the light closer, boosting the flash power or adjusting the exposure with the aperture or sensitivity setting.

The most popular form of light modifier is a soft box. Softboxes come in a huge range of shapes and sizes, with models such as the Lastolite Ezybox designed to be used with a flashgun. 

A softbox is basically a fabric box that fits around a flash. Its insides are covered with reflective material to maximise the amount of light that reaches the subject while a diffusion panel at the front softens the light. As a guide, the larger the softbox, the bigger the light source will appear and the softer the light will be. 

Umbrellas are a popular alternative to soft boxes. They come in two forms: shoot through and reflective. Shoot through umbrellas are made from translucent material and the doomed outside is directed towards the subject. Reflective umbrellas are so called because they are lined with reflective material. 

The flash is directed into them in the same way as with a shoot-through umbrella, but the underneath is directed towards the subject. Rather than passing through a diffuser, the light from the flash is bounced off the reflective interior and back out onto the subject.

Cleverly, the Lastolite All in One Umbrella Kit can be used as either a reflected or a shoot-through umbrella depending on whether you use the supplied reflector or not.


Focusing the light

Occasionally, you may want to focus a beam of light on a particular area, that’s when a snoot comes into play. A snoot is essentially a cone of black plastic or metal with a hole at both ends. The larger end fits over the flash and the light is directed down and out through the smaller hole at the opposite end.

 

Finding the angle

The key to creating attractive images with flash is to find the right angle for the light. In most cases you don’t want the light shining straight onto your subject; moving it to one side helps bring out the shapes and curves. Once you’ve found the basic position for your lights you can then try angling them by tipping the softbox or umbrella one way or the other to change the quality of the light reaching your subject. 

 

For more advice on how to light your subject, read our guide -  '5 tips: Quick studio setups to live by'.