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Archive 2005 · Tip for omnibounce users

  
 
meejahor
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p.1 #1 · p.1 #1 · Tip for omnibounce users


Stop using it :-)

I was a die hard omnibounce user for many months, then after a comment I read on this site I decided to go a few weeks without it and use the 550EX's built-in diffuser.

Great results.

The flash uses less power for results that are just as good if not better.

One big advantage of the built-in diffuser is that it doesn't throw so much light out at odd angles, so when shooting from a kneeling position you can still have the flash pointing directly ahead and you don't get a bright patch on the ground. To avoid this with the omnibounce I had to put the flash head up at the 60 degrees position, with the result that it used even more power.

So... Love your omnibounce? Using a flash with a built-in diffuser? Trust me, give it a go with the built-in diffuser and see what you think. I didn't even bother taking my omnibounce with me on a shoot yesterday.



Apr 24, 2005 at 05:44 PM
Bob Bell
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p.1 #2 · p.1 #2 · Tip for omnibounce users


The built in diffuser forces the flash to 17mmm. Did you shoot your entire day with the flash that wide?


Apr 24, 2005 at 05:46 PM
meejahor
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p.1 #3 · p.1 #3 · Tip for omnibounce users


Bob,

I work wide anyway so yes.

But what do you think the omnibounce does? Even with the flash set to 105mm or whatever the maximum is on the 550EX, as soon as the light bursts into the omnibounce it gets thrown out at crazy angles.

Try a shot with the omnibounce and the flash set to 105mm, then try using the built-in diffuser. See which gives wider flash coverage.

The omnibounce has its uses, but I now feel that for my shots (general news stuff) it wastes power with no improvement to image quality over the built-in diffuser.



Apr 24, 2005 at 05:53 PM
nutek
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p.1 #4 · p.1 #4 · Tip for omnibounce users



The Omnibounce's an overrrated product, and only works when there are reflective walls around you to scatter/diffuse the light. It does not work (i.e. diffuse light) just by itself. You can try tilting the flash head to whatever angle (I've seen all combinations), but there will be minimal diffusion, since the bounce panel is physically so near the flash itself.

If you're shooting weddings, I would recommend Gary Fong's Lightsphere II. Clunky and bulky yes, but I have had good success using it, and it diffuses the flash light beautifully.

meejahor wrote:
Bob,

I work wide anyway so yes.

But what do you think the omnibounce does? Even with the flash set to 105mm or whatever the maximum is on the 550EX, as soon as the light bursts into the omnibounce it gets thrown out at crazy angles.

Try a shot with the omnibounce and the flash set to 105mm, then try using the built-in diffuser. See which gives wider flash coverage.

The omnibounce has its uses, but I now feel that for my shots (general news stuff) it wastes power with no improvement to image quality over the built-in diffuser.




Apr 24, 2005 at 06:07 PM
NonFiction
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p.1 #5 · p.1 #5 · Tip for omnibounce users


The omnibounnce is pretty good at what it's designed for (throwing a bit of light forward while simultaneously bouncing light off a nearby light/neutral colored ceiling). It is of essentially no use when the flash is used outdoors or anytime the flash is pointed forward. All it does then is eat battery power.

What softens light is not the milky plastic but the size of the source relative to the subject (and the Omnibounce makes a big source by using the ceiling, as well as adding a bit of direct fill.

The Lightsphere thing makes the direct fill component a bit bigger, and that's how it gets softer lighting on close-up subjects.



Apr 24, 2005 at 10:11 PM
moondigger
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p.1 #6 · p.1 #6 · Tip for omnibounce users


The omnibounce works well for certain situations and not for others, like any other tool. I have had excellent results with it, but then again I'm careful to use it only in situations where I know it would be useful. It's not on my flash for every exposure.


Apr 24, 2005 at 11:27 PM
Robert Taylor
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p.1 #7 · p.1 #7 · Tip for omnibounce users


i place a strip of foil on the back of mine so the light goes forward more, simple


Apr 25, 2005 at 12:23 AM
nutek
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p.1 #8 · p.1 #8 · Tip for omnibounce users


The fact that the Omnibounce requires walls/ceilings to work makes it not very useful in many situations. If you already have a neutral/light-colored ceiling to work with, simple bouce flash with a white reflector card will already work wonders.




Apr 25, 2005 at 12:44 AM
bquinn
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p.1 #9 · p.1 #9 · Tip for omnibounce users


One thing I did notice about using the omnibounce was that it helped out with shadows. I was taking pictures of my brother with a nice buck (deer) last fall and got shadows on his sweatshirt from the rack. It was a bright sunny day and I was shooting a back lit angle so I need to add some fill flash. When I saw the pictures I was so mad because of the shadows. Later I took more pics with the omnibounce and what-do-ya-know, no shadows.

Maybe there is another way to eliminate this, but using the omnibounce was quick and simple.



Apr 25, 2005 at 08:54 AM
jazzy17
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p.1 #10 · p.1 #10 · Tip for omnibounce users


I have to agree with the original omnibounce post about ditching it.

My experience photographing indoors: the Omnibounce just drains the battery life quicker and makes the flash work harder. I have also found I have lost a quality in the final picture compared to not using the omnibounce. I have personally found it easier to tilt the flash and use bounce and reflection at a basic level. I also tend to quickly adjust stops on my 580EX and horizontally move the head as necessary based on initial histogram checks.

Seems to work for me as a newspaper guy told me he thought some of my pics were better than their regular photographers as there was less flash burnout...and I'm just a keen amateur.



Apr 25, 2005 at 09:14 AM
Burdie
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p.1 #11 · p.1 #11 · Tip for omnibounce users


Has anyone experiences with Lumilux?

Bram



Apr 25, 2005 at 09:55 AM
bfphoto
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p.1 #12 · p.1 #12 · Tip for omnibounce users


Have to second Gary Fong's Lightsphere. I have used all the on-camera light modifiers over some 20 odd years, and this is by far the best at difussing shadows and giving even light distribution. It really looks weird, but it does work.


Apr 25, 2005 at 10:57 AM
Mr Joe
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p.1 #13 · p.1 #13 · Tip for omnibounce users


The Lightsphere looks goofy but it works really well.


Apr 25, 2005 at 11:38 AM
meejahor
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p.1 #14 · p.1 #14 · Tip for omnibounce users


Yeah I don't think I want to turn up at a football match with one of those things on my flash :-)

Sorry but credibility goes a long way towards getting the picture because you need people to have confidence in you, and to co-operate. If they think your gear looks silly then that's a lot of your credibility gone.



Apr 25, 2005 at 11:57 AM
nutek
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p.1 #15 · p.1 #15 · Tip for omnibounce users


For football of course no... the Lightsphere is not meant for shooting that.

But I've found the Lightsphere to be a good conversation starter topic - which helps breaks the ice when you're shooting up-close with people. People tend to stop and ask what is that thing on your flash - and a few words of explanation of why you are using such a device, and showing them the pictures you took goes a long way in helping you ease into the crowd and take better, more relaxed photos. If you're not fooling around when taking pictures, I don't see why the Lightsphere will make you less credible as a "professional" photographer.



Apr 25, 2005 at 01:58 PM
coarphoto
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p.1 #16 · p.1 #16 · Tip for omnibounce users


I've been using the lightsphere for awhile now and i really dig it.... I know this will sound smug as well as arrogant (I don't mean for it to...Honest i'm a good guy) but when a client views my images any credibility questions go right out the window...if a client needs to question my methods they can shop elseware - they (clients) seem to forget that your previous work is what reeled them in in the first place....


Apr 25, 2005 at 02:59 PM
Duncan Staples
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p.1 #17 · p.1 #17 · Tip for omnibounce users


Andrew - if your credibility is shot by funky looking equipment, you have bigger problems than your equipment. In 20 years as a professional I have never been asked about my camera equipment by any of my customers other than to ask if I shot medium format or not from previous educated wedding customers. My customers know that I will use the right equipment for the job regardless of how weird the equipment looks.


Apr 25, 2005 at 03:05 PM
Mark Sisco
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p.1 #18 · p.1 #18 · Tip for omnibounce users


I have a related question for you Lightsphere users/lovers. I used mine for the first time this weekend, and I used it mostly in a very large auditorium where the ceiling must have easily been 30+ feet high (plenty high enough to accommodate a 2nd floor or a balcony level, even though there is no balcony). I will be shooting a wedding in this location next month.

How do you successfully use your Lightspere in a situation like this? I had mine pointed up without the dome on, which is the way I understood it should be used. Most of my photos were well underexposed, even when I boosted FEC +2/3 and +1. Subjects were sometimes up to 15-25 feet away. I shot at ISO400, 1/60th @ f/5.6.

Would appreciate any advice here. Maybe I'm simply stretching the physics beyond being able to get good results under these conditions. I have not tried it with the dome on - if I remember correctly, it is to be used for low ceilings.

Last question - where can I find the online instructions for using the LS. I can find the video clip, but not the written instructions that I saw a couple of weeks ago.

Thanks!

Mark



Apr 25, 2005 at 03:28 PM
coarphoto
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p.1 #19 · p.1 #19 · Tip for omnibounce users


Give it a try with the dome on.... your flash has nothing to bounce off so it just continues on skyward...nothing bouncing back.....with the dome on it kind of bounces around and radiates from the sphere itself giving up even illumination


Apr 25, 2005 at 03:38 PM
Mark Sisco
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p.1 #20 · p.1 #20 · Tip for omnibounce users


coarphoto wrote:
Give it a try with the dome on.... your flash has nothing to bounce off so it just continues on skyward...nothing bouncing back.....with the dome on it kind of bounces around and radiates from the sphere itself giving up even illumination



Victor,

I'll have to give this a shot. The two things that throw me off with this logic is 1) it is suggested that the dome be used for LOW ceilings (where there would presumable already be plenty of surface for bouncing), and 2) I recall Gary's written guidelines reference using the LS2 pointed up without the dome for a shot he took outside in the dark (nothing to bounce off of, not a fill flash situation). Perhaps I misread it or am remembering wrongly. This is one reason I have been trying to get back to those instructions again.

Thanks.

Mark



Apr 25, 2005 at 04:06 PM





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