Hey, Sheldon, if you're educating people on soft light, please know that softness is determined by relative size of light source to subject. Diffusion is a separate quality. You can diffuse over and over to spread light to get less direct particles on your subject, and thus reduce hotspots, but softness is shadow quality. That is based on relative size.
My favorite was the scrim, the light falloff was so gentle and no hotspots on the skin was very flattering. The most natural looking, like your next to a big window. I'm trying a massive diffused umbrella to get this look in a more portable package.
Agreed - the scrim looked great, but I was surprised at how great the softbox looked in comparison. I may just get a giant umbrella to test the same...
This is amazing. Something I have also wanted to do but never found the time to do. The physics of it is simply the size of source but in a doc context I actually think the dome and umbrellas are wildly underrated. You, um, confirmed my bias.
It's the size but also if you are making that size (the source ) via a diff frame / softbox etc , it's how evenly you can fill that final level diff . Thats the advantage of large LED,s , you are already very evenly lighting the diffusion , which is also the purpose of a book light , but they have to be built up compared to the ease of putting on a softbox, but quicker and a much smaller foot print than a book light.
@@blnksktch Yeah but you usually want control of your key light for interviews , you don't want that light ,lighting up the whole room , ie why lanterns / umbrellas are not so good., domes with a grid will be relatively directional and not spread so much. Also best to have the background darker than your subject. Of course it's not a law :) , but 99% of interviews will be like that . Im just saying that evenly lighting what ever is your final diff screen is important to get the light soft . Which is what book lights do well as your bouncing the source into a diff , the same quality will be achieved by going direct into the same sized diff , but you need to get the light back far enough to evenly light the diff frame.
I think the scrim looks the most natural as the falloff is more gradual than the Dome 2 (which is the second best imo). Might be to do with the intensity of the light too, small changes can make big effects there. What the soft-box is great at is isolating the subject more as there is less spill on the background. So depending on the setup/mood, either is a great solution. Lightbridge looked very sourcey. I think the mirror system mainly shines (ikik) in hard light scenarios.
I really have to say, that I enjoy the casual Softbox Setup (Setup #2) the most. At the beginning I was like "Alright, let's see how much money I need to spend, to get the really good results". But now I'm almost shocked, how get just a soft box holds up to the rest and that I prefer that look! Good Video! Thank You!
It's definitely always a balance of space + available gear. I choose a book light style setup or double diffusion with softbox + grid cloth whenever I have access to that gear, but when traveling it's more been about doing the most with a small softbox and either a shower curtain or a 5in1.
Great vid! When you were putting the lantern on, did I hear you say the Zhiyuns were hard? I have a g200 and getting modifiers on and off is brutal. Super hard.
Haha yepppp - muttering under my breath. They are great lights, but hard to get a hold of to put the softbox on. I often put the softbox on the ground and then attach the light to them before I put them on the stand. Much easier.
If you scrub through it and see some of the wide shots of the whole setup, you'll see the distance. I didn't move the light the entire time, just changed the diffuser. And then the size of the light source changes with the diffuser (usually).
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Hey, Sheldon, if you're educating people on soft light, please know that softness is determined by relative size of light source to subject. Diffusion is a separate quality. You can diffuse over and over to spread light to get less direct particles on your subject, and thus reduce hotspots, but softness is shadow quality. That is based on relative size.
You explained it better than I did!
@@stelzalol time stamp it Skelly
My favorite was the scrim, the light falloff was so gentle and no hotspots on the skin was very flattering. The most natural looking, like your next to a big window. I'm trying a massive diffused umbrella to get this look in a more portable package.
Agreed - the scrim looked great, but I was surprised at how great the softbox looked in comparison. I may just get a giant umbrella to test the same...
Filters next please, black satin, pro mist, nds etc…
Oh yea - good idea. I have most of those...
This is amazing. Something I have also wanted to do but never found the time to do. The physics of it is simply the size of source but in a doc context I actually think the dome and umbrellas are wildly underrated. You, um, confirmed my bias.
Haha sometimes it's worth doing to confirm what we already know.
It's the size but also if you are making that size (the source ) via a diff frame / softbox etc , it's how evenly you can fill that final level diff . Thats the advantage of large LED,s , you are already very evenly lighting the diffusion , which is also the purpose of a book light , but they have to be built up compared to the ease of putting on a softbox, but quicker and a much smaller foot print than a book light.
@ my take is really you want to light the environment as well. The dome and umbrellas give your source and the room some context.
@@blnksktch Yeah but you usually want control of your key light for interviews , you don't want that light ,lighting up the whole room , ie why lanterns / umbrellas are not so good., domes with a grid will be relatively directional and not spread so much. Also best to have the background darker than your subject. Of course it's not a law :) , but 99% of interviews will be like that . Im just saying that evenly lighting what ever is your final diff screen is important to get the light soft . Which is what book lights do well as your bouncing the source into a diff , the same quality will be achieved by going direct into the same sized diff , but you need to get the light back far enough to evenly light the diff frame.
I think the scrim looks the most natural as the falloff is more gradual than the Dome 2 (which is the second best imo). Might be to do with the intensity of the light too, small changes can make big effects there. What the soft-box is great at is isolating the subject more as there is less spill on the background. So depending on the setup/mood, either is a great solution. Lightbridge looked very sourcey. I think the mirror system mainly shines (ikik) in hard light scenarios.
Yes, I think the Light Bridge would be great on making hard light softer, if that makes sense.
I really have to say, that I enjoy the casual Softbox Setup (Setup #2) the most.
At the beginning I was like "Alright, let's see how much money I need to spend, to get the really good results". But now I'm almost shocked, how get just a soft box holds up to the rest and that I prefer that look!
Good Video! Thank You!
Agreed! I think the softbox was my favorite (or at least tied with the scrim). Pretty amazing how great it looks.
It's definitely always a balance of space + available gear. I choose a book light style setup or double diffusion with softbox + grid cloth whenever I have access to that gear, but when traveling it's more been about doing the most with a small softbox and either a shower curtain or a 5in1.
Book lights are also my favorite, but often do require quite a bit of room.
Manfrotto Scrim is a product offering. Dont confuse it like an Arri lamp scrim or equiv. It's a product like Wescott, etc for a key.
Thanks for yet another great and informative video. A book-light style setup would probably be my go-to but the trusty 5 in 1 never fails.
I was really impressed with the 5-in-1. I thought it looked as good (or close to) the softbox and scrim.
is the scrim a grid cloth or silk, and what strength please?
It's a 1.25-Stop Diffuser from Manfrotto: bhpho.to/4eVYWXn
What are the bts cameras? I think they are more flattering on your skin tone than the crispier magenta cast from the Ronin 4D
I thought the same thing. That’s the Canon C70, the finest and most underrated camera of the last decade.
Great vid! When you were putting the lantern on, did I hear you say the Zhiyuns were hard? I have a g200 and getting modifiers on and off is brutal. Super hard.
Haha yepppp - muttering under my breath. They are great lights, but hard to get a hold of to put the softbox on. I often put the softbox on the ground and then attach the light to them before I put them on the stand. Much easier.
@@CurrenSheldon Yes I do this with the G300 , with a 90cm Godox T series dome, it's the best way for sure .
I'd want to know how large and at what distance the light source is, since that's the main factor in how soft a light source is.
If you scrub through it and see some of the wide shots of the whole setup, you'll see the distance. I didn't move the light the entire time, just changed the diffuser. And then the size of the light source changes with the diffuser (usually).