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Gary Fong's Lightsphere

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Gary Fong is one of the best PR people in the business! He’s done a great job in touting his product and ignoring the physics!

Fact – a softbox works well if it’s large in relation to the subject AND close to the subject! A 6’ softbox 6 feet from the subject gives a very soft, spread light. The same softbox 30; from the subject is a point-source. The sun on a cloudy day is diffused, on a sunny day it’s a point source.

Any diffuser you can reasonably carry, unless you’re using it at 6” for a macro, is a point-source. If it’s a StoFen diffuser for &15, it’s a pont-source. If it’s a section of milk-carton, it’s a point-source. It it’s a Gary Fong Lightsphere, at $50, it’s a point-source. But since you spent $50 on it, it’s BOUND to be better that a cheapie Sto-Fen!

If you’re aiming at the ceiling, a diffuser just cuts your light quantity, unless you are using it for wide-angle. Save yourself some money – do some experimentation with a piece of plastic, and then get a Sto-Fen, since you MUST have a diffuser to use a flash! Yes, I have a Sto-Fen, but usually don’t use it.

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BJCP National
 
I work at a big Toronto Photography studio and my boss and co-workers seem to love the Gary Fong Lightsphere they have a few of the clear version, when fired straight up it seems to give good results.

I've also met some other photographers who love it, although I think they said they knew Gary Fong personally :)

I was looking to buy a flash bracket for vertical photos (so I dont get ugly shadows) but considering the price of a bracket and the wire, it is ALOT cheaper to get the gary fong thing, the downsides are probably going to be, that my flash will need more power, and will not have as long reach and I may run out of battery power quicker though, As with any diffuser it should cut down some light.

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Meow
http://public.fotki.com/LindoPhotography/
 
Get yourself a sheet of inkjet paper or the foam from the art store, a pair of scissors and make yourself the bounce card as described in the video on abetterbouncecard.com.

Works beautifully! Takes two minutes and costs about $2!
 
All the Fonger-ators give you (much of the time) hollow eye sockets
(too much light up, not enough forward)

Notice in his instruction video: He has the ISO raised to 400 and up...
and he is shooting at too-wide-apertures !

This means: the fonger-ators all suck-up too much power.

The Joe Demb bounce system is by-far the best...
you can instantly change the up-vs-forward power ratio !
Much less power wasted.

bimthecat

JoeDemb bounce card:

 
After I got it I spent some time experimenting with it. This room had a 10' cieling, shot with my 550EX on a Canon 20D with it pointed straight up. Manual mode, 1/125th f/2.8 at ISO100



Outdoors, pointed forwards with the dome installed and some very uncooperative subjects. 1/50th at f/4.0 at ISO100, same camera/lens as first one.



Indoors, large group, trying it out there not sure if I'm happy. Seems to not get near as much of the room as it claims too. 10' ceiling, roof is white, the wall color might have had something to do with the light fall off. Canon 5D, 1/160th, f/8, ISO100.



I do feel a bit snake oiled with the video on the website vs. the instructional video that comes with it. The video on the website is edited. The first shot was AV mode on the camera, then he flips to M mode on the camera. On the canon he was using this changes the way the flash works (fill vs. main light) and I felt it was misleading a bit in that iit looks like he just fired without, then with and the difference was blatant.

I also have the Joe Demb device ( http://www.dembflashdiffusers.com/ ) but haven't liked what I get from it, light seems too harsh. I've not played with it as much though.

Prior to these too I had used some lumiquest promax velcro on big bounce/pocket bounce/softbox things but never liked them. however I need to re-use them now and test out since I've figured out on camera flash better than I used too. I think my disappointment was more in my skill with the camera than the light modifier.

YMMV, you may think it's a scam, dunno, it works as advertised to me and I'm not really handy at the DIY thing so it didn't hurt my feelings to spend $49 on one.
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http://public.fotki.com/trekkie
http://www.thescribeoflight.com
 
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