I am a full time working photographer primarily shooting event photography (no weddings), portraits, the arts, etc. I bought this on a whim for use on my Nikon SB-300. I do have a variety of diffusers, but this one really is excellent for a very even spread of light in darker situations when I don't want to drag out all the gear or if I am doing an outside portrait and need fill flash with out the obvious color problems encountered.
Excellent use indoors and is so lightweight, it does not get in they way at all. It is constructed as is per the price point, but is easy to store in a cam bag. Will probably order a couple more for backup.
Highly recommended. Performs as advertised. Opteka SB-5 Medium Universal Studio Soft Box Flash Diffuser for External Flash Units (8" X 6" Screen)
very simple made from plastic, it folds so its easy to carry, its not very stylish to have for a wedding but it does the job. you need to be very close to the subject to get the full light effect, if not then you only get the middle of your photo with light and the sides go dark.
I just recived this unit today, It is a little on the big size even for a med rating. I am glad I will also be reciving a flash bracket for use the soft box is so large it almost sit's ontop of the lens when pointed straight forward. I did use it real quick for a couple of shots for my dog bouncing the light off the celing and it loos so much better then when I was using nothing. I am looking forward to using it at a wedding I am shooting next week.
This is a product that serves your purpose, but do not buy it alone as the diffuser comes with stickers that have to be struck on the flash! This spoils the beauy of my flash and hence I also bought a band manufactured by the company. The product is not expensive and serves the purpose.
I find this soft box exceptional for the price! It is plastic, yes, but it is strong and firm. It does the job of behaving like a soft box, then after all job is done, fold it flat and put it into your pocket. It is as simple as that. I use it on my Speedlite 430EX for my canon camera as portable light when I am shooting outside of my studio. I find it extremely handy and helpful.
I'm using this to do close up on macro objects (bugs really) and it seems to work great! It folds up which is nice but when it's mounted on your flash it will not fully seal on the seams. It's not a big issue because I could use duck tape or blue painting tape (ghetto). Anyways, it gets the job done, but I may mod it up a little.
This diffuser is not the answer to every lighting question but which one is? It does a more than adequate job of helping remove hot spots on the subject and it spreads the light over the subject evenly. Can't ask anymore than that for ten bucks.
I use this on a Vivitar 285HV. The fit is a bit odd, because the Vivitar has a overly large flash head. On the unit, there are gaps between the panels of the soft box (top, sides, bottom). While this may be exaggerated on the Vivitar, I think it would be the same for other flashes-- it's the nature of a collapsible softbox. In action, it does soften the shadow edges, but the effect is fairly subtle, and ultimately dependent on distance to subject and the power setting of the flash unit. A small step in the right direction. Then again, it's cheap.
This opteka soft box is genius! if you shoot often with flash this is must have because it makes a big difference, the light looks more natural and you have less burnt exposures.
it is a great addition to your gear, only negative thing is that I believe it should be cheaper than 10bucks but after all it has free shipping if you purchase more than $25. so I got the small and medium sizes.
They work almost like my umbrella and I don't have to worry in windy days that my expansive canon flashes will fly away. perfect for stroboscopic works....
I took a chance on this item and it paid off!
You might want to consider buying the extra valcro straps they recommend as it's not easy to keep the diffuser facing straight ahead when mounted AND also because the straps supplied with it attached permanently on the flash and I'm not about to do that so I use elastic bands for now.
It evenly lights up a wide scene excellently with no harsh highlights, a great product for this price. - Soft Screen Diffuser - Diffuser - Flash Accessories - Flash Diffuser'
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