Gary Fong's Whale Tail

Lightsphere I and the LS II PJ with the inverted frosted dome.

I really like the LS II PJ with the inverted dome. I find I use it more than the LSI (which looks like a piece of Tupperware)

The only complaint I have about the LSII PJ is the darn thing is a bit hard to get on the top of the flash. After you get it on it is much harder to knock off than the LS I Tupperware.

I looked at the Whale Tail, but it looked so strange I was afraid it would scare small children.

--
CDL



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http://www.photobama.com/

riddell said:

I can't see any double entrentre in there, must be an Amercian joke.

All I see is the same name as those sad, pathetic huge spoilers,
that sad pathetic young men put onto their sad pathetic cars.

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Friend of my daughters came by one night, had one of those stuck on it....I looked, said, "that's nice, you expecting it to break down?" He got this funny look, says, "no, why?"

"Well, I figured you stuck it on there so you'd have a carry handle to tote that funny looking little car home....I KNOW it's not an actual aerodynamic device, since your car won't go nearly fast enough to make it work."

He really didn't appreciate it, but I hate those silly things too.

This is one of the better flash diffusers out there IMHO. It's very versatile-- you can configure it to have most of the light going straight ahead, most of the light going straight up, or several degrees of split. The straight-ahead diffuser is larger than most so it does a great job of softening.

One of the nicest things about it is the way it attaches to the flash head. There are custom-molded slip-on shoes for all the major flashes. They fit perfectly and are easy to put on and remove.

I've been through a lot of these things over the years and although none is perfect I think this one defintely has more positives than negatives.

http://www.harbordigitaldesign.com

-john

Hey there!

It sounds like you didn't use the "soft" side. This is explained in the instructional DVD that comes with the device as well as the instruction sheet.

I made the Whaletail to be reversible. The front side has the flash lighting up the front panel for more output. While it still has an open top and back in that position - because the sloped area goes into the flash path it will be more powerful.

When you turn it "backwards" with the two flaps facing your subject - the light actually is softer than the Lightsphere because the two flat panels create a larger diffusion surface area.

Turn the unit to the soft side for super soft, flattering lighting. Try that before you sell it. And then when shooting groups, etc. just rotate your flash barrel around. I demo this in the DVD.

--
Gary Fong
http://www.garyfong.com

Its like anyhting Fong... The practice never equals the hype.

Any flash modifier can help but none will be perfect for all situations.

Buying from Fong ultimately benefits Fong the most.

Dennis Lathem wrote:
.

Dennis Lathem49692 said:

I looked at the Whale Tail, but it looked so strange I was afraid
it would scare small children.

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In some situations, that could be a plus.

--
Charlie Self
http://www.charlieselfonline.com

I do a lot of event, band and party shoots and even though most of the ceilings are painted black I really love how the LS PJ II-Clear performs in almost any situation. I've used it exclusively when doing portraits as well and in difficult lighting situations and I have to say that the light it makes is a great deal more pleasing than people using those little omni's. Granted... it gets a lot of attention from people asking what it is and what is it used for.

One problem I have with the LS is that the dang thing will fall off of there if you're not paying attention and someone bumps into it. I had been wanting to check out a comparison between the LS and the WT performance in the same area but have yet to see anyone post it. I got a little extra money on my last pay check though so I think I'll go ahead and spring for it and see how it does. If it is at least as good/effective as the LS then it'll be worth the extra cost of not having it fall off my camera just from someone bumping into me. Also, the gel kit is a nice added bonus to try out.

It would be nice to check out the performance of the different flaps and the studio version of the WT but I did not see all the items listed in the videos available on the site.

--
TANK

'Why is it everytime I need to get somewhere, we get waylaid by jackassery?' - Dr. Venture
http://www.myspace.com/servantoflove

Reminds me of the plastic urinals they give you in the Hospital, lol.
--

We are all just Plagiarists of a real Artist, and her name is Mother Nature. http://www.pbase.com/digitaldevo/root&page=all

I need to see some reviews of this thing. I'm curious. I love gadgets.

Send me one, I'll review it!

I also want the Fong sweater-vest.

Gary Fong is photography's answer to Ron Popeil. They both sell overhyped, overpriced junk that nobody really needs. Unfortunately, people will pay almost $150 (shipping included) for a plastic gizmo that costs about $10 to manufacture.

Bill Rogers said:

Gary Fong is photography's answer to Ron Popeil. They both sell
overhyped, overpriced junk that nobody really needs. Unfortunately,
people will pay almost $150 (shipping included) for a plastic gizmo
that costs about $10 to manufacture.

Click to expand...

Can't wait till my Gary Fong T-shirt and "Getting Rich" 2 DVD set arrive.
Anyway,
wonder how that whale-tail mirror flap looks?
--
Rudi -
15 years in Blade Runner Tokyo - back in Sunny Sydney now

I sold the one that I had. I found it useless and not worth the price. I lost about $15.00 during the process. The Omni Bounce fits my needs much better. I can remove the Omni Bounce and put it in my pocket when not needed. The Whale Tail was too big for such use and did not produce the "soft" light that I was expecting.

I am not trying to speak badly aboht the Whale Tale, I'm just giving my opion after having used it.

Here's my personal opinion based on my experience with the unit. Again, caveat, this is merely my personal opinion and personal experience with the unit.

The unit arrived with an issue regarding the flaps which kept coming off when they were moved. The plastic was not uniform and showed a problem in the forming of the unit. The plastic in the hinge area shows clear signs of stress which makes me wonder how long they will hold up prior to breaking.

While the unit is usable, I refuse to pack this thing along and use it based on the poor workmanship and quality. I'm sure the diffusion of light works well but the unit needs to be re-engineered.

I mean who wants flaps popping of every time you adjust the thing. Maybe this is an isolated instance. However, just looking at the engineering on this shows me there are problem areas which are bound to fail over the course of normal wear.

As for me, I'm still waiting for my RMA to return the unit.