One of the core components of photography is lighting, and I've been making good effort to get better at it. After much study and research, I decided to purchase the 180cm parabolic umbrella. From the YouTube videos I watched, it was something I really needed.
Prior to purchasing the umbrella, my lighting setup was pretty good, but I wasn't satisfied with it. I wanted to be able to achieve so much without needing so many lights. So far, the 180cm has been worth every penny. It's quite cheap actually 😁.
The 180cm produces softer light especially because of its size. And this was what I wanted. Aside from the quality of light, the direction of light was a plus, then the coverage area.
My previous lighting setup made me dedicate a light that lit up my subject from the waist down. Because my key light was from the top. And since the studio isn't so high up, the light only lit from my subject face to the waist. This setup was amazing for half portraits. But I struggled with full portraits.
With the 180cm umbrella, I feel all my lighting problems are solved. I'm able to create more dramatic portraits, and it's amazing. I need to get a v-flat, and when I do, I'd completely quit whining about lighting.
After I purchased the umbrella, I put it to test immediately, and created photos of my friend, that doubles as a fashion stylist;
In the portraits above, you can see how soft and even the light falls on my subject. That's exactly how I want my studio portraits to look like. I'm still learning and researching; so if you got any more hints on how I can better utilize the umbrella, I'd love to hear it.
Here's a photo a the new modifier;
That's the setup for a portrait session I had few weeks ago.
It certainly gives beautiful light - lovely soft quality but slightly directional to allow a nice contrast. The white wall and ceiling of the studio should help with subtle fill light.
Usual problem of a large light source reflecting in glasses, which for the style of shot in this series isn't a big issue, but could require very careful head positioning for portraits.
Looking forward to seeing more of your work with it.