softbox

What-Is-Fill-Light

What is Fill Light in Photography?

Fill light is one of the unsung heroes in the photographic industry, yet the fill light in basic three-point lighting can be just as important as the key. Getting it right can make your images look much better.

Look Beyond the Softbox to Spice Up Your Portrait Lighting

What kind of lighting do you use as a portrait photographer? Softboxes are great and popular, but that also makes them potentially overused and boring. If you want to spice up your portrait lighting, you can look into expanding your toolbox beyond the softbox and into other kinds of lighting.

How to Make a DIY Softbox for Free

Almost anything can be used as a light modifier. As long as it interacts with light in one way or another, it can be considered a light modifier. In this article, I will show you how to build a do-it-yourself (DIY) softbox with things you likely already have around at home.

How to Leverage Hard Light in Summer-Themed Drink Photography

We all love soft light because it adds that dreaminess to food and drink photos that will always be great. However, recently I have been seeing more people use hard light in their food and drink photography.

The Ultimate Guide to Softboxes: The Anatomy of Light Shaping Tools

Softboxes are among the most popular light shaping tools. Few photographers have never shot with softboxes, and more often than not a softbox is a go-to modifier for beginners. In this article, I will break down the anatomy of a softbox, from physics to possible applications for it. Read on to become a master of using softboxes.

How to Build a Giant Soft Box on the Cheap

Cinematographer Shane Hurlbut of the Hurlbut Academy recently shared a great DIY tutorial in which he shows you how to build a giant soft box using just some foam core and a few lengths of 1x3-inch wood. The result allows you to create a large, soft light source without breaking the bank.

5 Ways You Can Use a Softbox to Shoot Stunning Portraits

Portrait photographer Miguel Quiles is back with the third part of his series on various lighting modifiers. Part one covered the beauty dish, part two covered the umbrella, and part three is all about the different ways you can use a softbox to capture distinctive portraits.

How to Place a Softbox to Finesse the Look You Want

Today we are going to talk about placing a softbox -- not the positions that you would use, like a Rembrandt, a butterfly, or a loop, but how to place it once it’s in position. Let’s talk about how to finesse the look that you want to achieve while using a softbox.

How to Shoot Corporate Headshots: 3 Looks in 30 Minutes

When you’re taking corporate headshots, you often have a tight window in which to fit everything in. But usually you're also going to be expected to create more than one look. Jay P. Morgan of The Slanted Lens runs through his simple setup in this 5 minute video.

How to Use a Tube Light as an Invisible Softbox

Want to try out product photography but can't afford a softbox? They can be expensive pieces of kit, but invisible ones cost a lot less. In this 6-minute video by Leo Rosas, learn how to use a cheap tube light as a makeshift softbox.

Four Ways to Get Creative and ‘Think Outside the Softbox’

The softbox is one of the staples of light shaping, but are you using it the same way as everybody else? If you need a bit of an inspirational spark to light your creative fire, this short video featuring lighting expert Andrea Belluso will show you how to, in his words, "think outside the softbox."

10 Different Ways You Can Use a Single Softbox

When you're just starting out in photography, you may not have a lot of money to invest in putting together a high-end arsenal of studio lighting equipment. By being resourceful, however, you can do a lot with a little.

In the 23-minute video by the lighting brand Sekonic, photographer Tony Corbell demonstrates how you can create 10 completely different lighting scenarios in the studio for products and portraits with a single large softbox.

Elinchrom’s New Litemotiv Softboxes Have 16 Sides

Elinchom have just announced the Litemotiv, a new extension to their lineup of softboxes. The two new modifiers are made up of sixteen sides and come in two distinct sizes. According to the company, theses monster softboxes help to create “close to perfect catchlights.”

FlashDisc is a Portable Softbox that Folds Up to Fit In Your Pocket

The FlashDisc by Fstoppers is a portable softbox that can fit into your pocket when its not in use, thanks to a design that allows it to fold up in a manner similar to portable light reflectors. It allows photographers to achieve soft directional light in situations where larger softboxes are impractical.

This Impressive DIY Human-Sized Lightbox Creates Even Lighting Anywhere in Minutes

When trying to perfectly light an object, there’s a method of shooting it inside of an environment called a lightbox -- essentially a 360° softbox that emulates the soft, natural, even lighting you would get on an overcast day.

Lightboxes are fairly small in size, meant for lighting small objects for product photographs and so on. But what if it were possible to create a human-sized lightbox for use with people? It turns out you can, and in the BTS video above, photographer Kevin Lynch shows off his version.

Walkthrough: How to Create a DIY Studio On a Budget

In a perfect world, we'd all have the studio of our dreams, and it would be filled with all of the best of gear. Unfortunately, we don't live in such a world, and more often than not we're constrained by a (sometimes very tight) budget.

Here to help overcome that challenge is Jay P. Morgan of The Slanted Lens, who has put together a video that shows just how easy it can be to build a very viable studio out of fairly cheap materials/products in a spare bedroom.

Tutorial: How to Create the Perfect Gradient Reflection for Product Photography

When it comes to taking product shots of glossy items, one of the most difficult aspects is getting the correct amount of diffusion when using softboxes. When the incorrect amount of diffusion is applied (or the right amount is applied incorrectly) this can lead to harsh reflections and minimal gradients, which isn't usually the look you're trying to achieve.

Very Informative Side-by-Side Comparison of Different Light Modifiers

A few weeks ago, we shared a video by photographer Karl Taylor that gave you a behind the scenes look at what a day-long fashion shoot in his studio was like. And even though a few of our readers poked fun at the video's obvious product placement, a lot of people learned a thing or two and came back with followup questions regarding the light modifiers that Taylor was using throughout the day.

Fortunately for us, Taylor was listening, and has produced this very informative follow-up video in which he discusses the differences between his go-to modifiers, complete with side-by-side comparisons.