My 3 Favorite Beauty Lighting Modifiers
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- čas přidán 9. 07. 2024
- Today I'm going to share with you my 3 favorite beauty modifiers and how I use each to create very different results.
If you follow my work you know that I love shooting beauty and the endless possibilities for what we can create with the right tools, especially when it comes to lighting.
Below are my 3 favorite beauty modifiers. Each one creates very different results, but each one is important to my beauty photography. It's important to know the differences which I'll illustrate in this video.
👉 The Magnum Reflector
This lighting modifier is a hard light reflector that creates bright and crisp illumination on your subject. If i want the light to look a little more sunny or have defined edges I'll reach for this modifier. This one is a bit less forgiving than other modifiers and will definitely bring out details such as blemishes, so be careful how you use it! So why use a reflector like this? I love how much control I have over the shadows with this reflector and it's great for beauty.
👉 White Beauty dish
A beauty dish (sometimes known as a softlight reflector depending on the brand) is a softer light source but has a bit more of a pop and contrast to it. The beauty dish is (as it sounds) a dish shaped modifier that has a reflector in it that bounces the light inside it around and then out. Because of this, the light is doubly reflected, resulting in a somewhat softer light. I chose a beauty dish when I want a light that is flattering on the skin, but with a little more contrast and definition in the shadows. A white beauty dish is great for beauty, cosmetic shots etc, and is the modifier I use most often as it's the best of both worlds, it's very soft but has some qualities of hard light. I'll frequently add a grid to a beauty dish to help control the spill of light especially if I'm gelling the background.
👉 Scrim
When I'm looking to setup the softest, smoothest light possible, I go for a scrim. It's by far the softest of my 3 favorite modifiers. To put it simply, a scrim is nothing more than a frame with diffusion material. When you light the scrim with a strobe it becomes an extremely large and diffused light source. Scrims come in different sizes, 4x4, 6x6, 8x8 and even larger. The larger the scrim the softer the light. This is a great modifier for shooting a variety of things -- for beauty it helps cut down on retouching since it produces such a soft quality of light. The downside of course is that this thing can be huge and might not fit in many spaces.
So now you can see how each of these modifiers produces a different result and how each one has its specific purpose. It's not always about which tool is the best, but which is the best for the job!
Drop a comment below and tell me what your favorite modifier is! 😍
✅ Profoto Magnum Reflector: adorama.rfvk.net/mvmbO
✅ Profoto White Beauty Dish: adorama.rfvk.net/NJNOV
✅ Westcott Scrim: adorama.rfvk.net/KNZ5a
🔥 If you're totally new to studio lighting or even have some experience but feel like you haven't yet mastered it I recommend checking out my ultra in-depth class called Master Studio Lighting: lindsayadler.photo/masterstud...
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It fun working on personal projects with a friend or model. Awesome work by Lindsay and her team.
Mark Patterson : I loves this important perspective and tutorial hard light really has its place in a world of soft boxes
Right after watching your videos I feel the need to go and shoot. Thanks for these short yet very much energetic and interesting content!
Love to hear that!
I've never learned as much from anyone on lighting! You're the best!!!
Awesome as usually.
Thanks, Lindsay. You are the reason I've bought a white beauty-dish 8 years ago... and the rest is history :)
haha wow! That's a compliment. :)
I`m using TTL speedlites for my set-ups and my favorite modifiers are shoot through umbrellas and a metal beauty dish used pure, with a diffusor fabric or a grid
I built my own scrim a few years ago which works well, I'm now tempted to use it on a fantasy test shoot I have in a couple of days. Thanks for the inspiration as always!
I love the short and clear to the point video like this. Thank you so much.
LOVED IT. YOU ARE AN INSPIRATION ALWAYS.
Fantastic explanation ... Lindsay ...always important for us to choose the right tool for the objective we pursue
excellent! same model, three different looks. thanks for sharing!!! prost!
Excellent educational, qualitative and inspiring content. Images are beautiful. Direction is outstanding. Thank you for sharing all this.
Love your work and your lighting is absolutely beautiful. I have yet to use my Flashpoint 600 magnum type reflector and I just got me a scrim so I really need to use those and give them a whirl when I find the right opportunity:) Thanks for the inspirations and sharing your knowledge. Have a great week at WPPI
Wonderful as always. Thank you!
Excellent video, straight and to the point.
I got a magnum after your last video dedicated to it, and I. AM. IN. LOVE. Not only is the quality of light crisp in bringing out texture, but the shape and size of the beam of light is FANTASTIC for lighting a single subject. The natural vignette on the background and the size of the center of the light beam is so spectacular at making the subject pop. And it works PERFECTLY with my AD 600 Pro's frosted-end bulb where the bulb isn't laser-beaming light directly out the front of the bulb. A++++++++. God bless you, Lindsay. OMG. And I still need a white beauty dish! I have a silver one but need a white one. Want a scrim too. I have a small studio space, but I'll get the maximum size that will fit and make it work! Your wisdom is so legendary.
Your tutorials are always so helpful, Lindsay! I’d love to know how YOU were lit during this video? I absolutely love the lighting on you! XO
lol thanks! Just a softbox close on the right, white v-flat on the left, and rim light on the left.
You are amazing teacher and just good to see you explaining 🥰🥰
WoW - what an amazing lesson - straight to the point. I'm a huge fan !!
Thank you so much!
Always excited and inspired to see your videos. I love your online classes too. As an educator, I can doubly appreciate your excellent teaching style. Very well done.😄👍🏻
Thank you so much!
I have learned so much from you, Lindsay, thank you so much.
I'm here on a refresher as I have an album cover shoot tomorrow and you're the first person I turn to for inspiration.
If you're ever over in Manchester UK I owe you and your family a meal with us
Thank you so much! I'm happy to hear that you've learned a lot from me! I wish you luck on your upcoming shoot, hope that it's awesome! :)
@@lindsayadlerphoto Couldn’t have gone better! Great end to, well, 2020...
Here’s to a creative and prosperous ‘21 🙏🍻
Glad to hear! :)
Appreciated!
Thank you
Hello Lindsay, I most enjoy you tutorials and classes you offer. I have created some outstanding images, my opinion of course, after studying your tutorials and I am sooo excited. One image I have not done yet is with the magnum, I just noticed that you are using a d2 witH the flat frosted end to the head. I was under the impression that the magnum works better with a frosted dome flash extruding into the dish. I saw this with one of your other set ups and somewhere else online, I am assuming if you are not using the frosted dome here there may not be much of a difference in which one you use. I just thought that using a d2 flat end would create a more directional light? Can you perhaps clarify please. thank you once again for your wonderful work in helping so many photographers.
Thankyou Dear for all your videos!!
You're quite welcome! :)
In reference to your three choices, it should be pointed out that the Magnum is a Pro Photo reflector, and thus, ONLY mounts to certain Pro Photo strobe. Viewers with other brands of strobes will NOT have access to using the Magnum. That said, it is quite possible that other brands of studio strobes may offer a similar reflector in their line-up; but, if so, it will most likely be labeled as something else, not a "Magnum."
PS - I also follow Daniel Norton, likewise a NYC model/fashion photographer, currently using Pro Photo lights. Among other things, he has a weekly You Tube series sponsored by Adorama where he, too, often praises the Magnum as his personal favorite "beauty light."
PSS - Got to see your live presentation at the recent Image USA trade show in Nashville, Tennessee.
Thank you for your dedication to the education and advancement of photography.
Yes, many other brands have something similar. Same thing with a profoto telelzoom reflector-- its called long throw or other with other brands.
THANK YOU ...
Absolutely in love with your work and how wonderfully you share your knowledge and talent! Bless you ❤️
Thank you for the kind words! :D
Every time I watch your video Lindsay I hear "cha-ching"!
lol thanks
If you were to build your own scrim what material would you use for the material ( diffusion ) ?
A white bed sheet works perfectly.
amazing
Thank you!
Please, which one is the reflector holder?
I have learned a lot with your video, thank you so much. Ma'am i havee a question what is the good size for beauty dish to start up? Thank you
20-22 inches is standard, but it really depends. Larger is softer but less portable. :D
@@lindsayadlerphoto thank you so much ma'am, keep safe and God bless.
Great work! I use Lee Filter 216 filter paper for my scrims. It comes on a 25' roll so you can make your own (and make it any size). I use a brand of lighting where the circular flash bulb is exposed and using a bare flash through the 216 paper creates the most beautiful radiated & gradated light with a smooth shadow edge transition . By the way, what is a movidier (lol)? Thanks again!
Where does it say "movidier" ?
It was so great to see you at ClickCon in 2019. How much difference is there between light modifier brands when it comes to the quality of light that each creates. I understand the size relative to the subject, hard light, soft light, feathering... My question is why pay $1,400, $400 for a modifier other than the build quality. What is the reason to buy expensive light modifiers other than the above mentioned? Do different light modifiers have different color temperature?
The last modifier is something we could find a DIY solution. Does anyone know the name of the material/cloth? Thanks in advance.
I notice that you use the magnum. How do you find that it differs from the OFC Magnum on flat-faced monolights?
I like the magnum (regular) better because it is larger (a bit softer/smoother).
Hi, do you have any tutorials on the scrim beauty lighting? I have bought the Matthews RoadFlags II Frame (48 x 48") and Matthews RoadFlag Fabric, Artificial Silk - 48x48" (1.2x1.2m). The Artificial Silk diffuses and diminishes transmitted light by about 1.5 stops. Will this give the soft light you have in this video or do I need a less translucent material?
As long as you bring the scrim close to your subject (at that size) you can achieve very soft light. You just need to have relatively high wattage strobes because of how much light it cuts-- id say aim for 500 watts. Anywhoo, yes it will work and I have an entire scrim tutorial in my master studio lighting course.
Lindsay Adler Thank you. I have done some test shoots with a mannequin because of the Corona situation here in Norway. I tried with a B1 with and without a medium large softbox in front of the fabric. It seemed that the light became even softer with a softbox, but I have to do a shoot with a human being in order to see the real effects. I will check out your master class. Thank you and happy Easter!
👍
Is there a difference in light quality when using white vs silver inner color of a beauty dish?
I have a comparison somewhere on my channel (might be this video) and I do talk about it a lot. The silver lining is more specular, more punchy and is going to produce a bit of a harder light , while the white beauty dish is a bit more diffused. Same concept when using a silver vs white reflector.
For my benefit what angle is the Magnum Reflector, my standard reflectors are 55 degrees @ 20cm, whats the specs on Magnum as that link is dead?
50 Degrees, and the light spread can be controlled : 50° at position 10, 35° at position 7 and 25° at position 4.
@@s0mbry Ah so it's basically a variable version of a standard reflector? Is it the same size or bigger than 20cm?
@@ShadowlightPhotography It's 33cm I think, maybe 34
@@s0mbry Cheers matey
How much of a difference in light quality there is between the beauty dish and the OCF foldable beauty dish?
Since I don't use OCF foldable beauty dishes I couldn't tell you. If it's the same shape and texture there might be minimal light fall off, but also depends on if you're using a strobe or portable flash, how much power is getting through.
@@lindsayadlerphoto
I’ll be using the b10.
It would say experiment if you can and see which better suits you. The foldable might be good if you're traveling and need the extra mobility.
What type of reflector is that?
I think its a Tri-Fold Reflector, companies like Lastolite make it.
Thank you
Thank you