Fun fact, that file you pointed at that is 145MB in size is actually a PSD. The file extension doesn't indicate the type of a file, the file header does. The file header is the first two bytes on the file. For the other files the header is 4949 2a00, typically used by a TIFF. The Balanced Black file is 3842 5053 which is the file header for a PSD.
@@robhallphoto I am not sure what the internal PSD metadata tracks but if you rename it as a PSD and open it in PS you can view the metadata of the file as well as some of the adjustments that were made. Whilst minor, exposure was bumped by 0.05. I assume this was a RAW adjustment made by ACR. I am not certain, but if levels or similar (non-ACR adjustments) I highly doubt these would have been recorded in the PSD internetal metadata. Regardless, it is clear that there is evidence of fraudulent activity.
@@ltshinta Yes the ACR in the file info suggests little adjustment, the question is what type of layer work was done that forced the file to become a PSD rather than an ARW.
@@bkcampb the TLDR is that it can be proven with digital forensics that the example files he provided have been tampered with by using adobe photoshop.
Glad you guys did this video and I didn’t have to.. I’m already labeled as angry all the time.. anyways if it counts for anything I approve this message lol I don’t want to hate on a creator but this is product is leaning on pushing misinformation and just kind scheming…. Wonder how many people who bought this are going to report overheating lights from having to boost up power so heavy and/or choke up on that modeling light heat … we’ve all made DIY mods some work some don’t but we don’t try to swindle the public by trying to claim it defies physics…anyways nice job gents 👍
You slippin man! Could have hijacked this whole concept... bust out some Hefty trash can liners with the black gaff tape, and made you a BROOKLYN Black Dish-box. Im clicking on that tutorial ASAP!
Brandon just want to have his own beauty dish like Manny Ortiz. I watched his videos but never got interested on buying his product. I would rather use standard reflector than his black beauty dish.
No disrespect to Brandon Cole but, as beginner photographer watching his black soft box introduction video I was quickly reminded of a wise man’s words. “Stop the CAP!”😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂 Thank you so much for putting this into perspective. Get a refund 😂😂😂
When Brandon first came out with this product and tried to sell it to all of us I made the comment of why don’t I just turn my strobe light down a couple stops and just get the same effects. But I got told that I am trying to keep a black man from making money and I don’t know what I was talking about. I used to follow his channel and after those comments popped up that I was against him trying to make some money I just stop following him because the black dish was truly a flop in my eyes. Then to see this video you guys come out with takes a lot because obviously you’re gonna get backlash because I got it just for making a comment against it. I see a lot of products that have photographers names attached to it. And then I might not have the name brand Profoto, Wescott, or Broncolor soft boxes that are all over $250. I’ve been truly happy with my Glow softboxes. And the first softbox I spent over $150 for was the Glow Parasnap 36inch softbox which is on my light stand 95% of the time. Do you wanna game changing quick opening softbox try one of them. Now me, I want every small business to do great. But you got a put the work in and sell quality products. this is not one of them.
@@cinful1 yeah I'm not saying he's a bad photographer anything. I just think the black dish is a waste of money and all you have to do is turn the power down on your strobe light to get the same results. It is not game-changer it is a waste of money. But they act like I have no clue what I'm doing and I own my own photography business. I think I do know what I'm talking about and I use nothing but strobe light for all my photography work
@@LMActionsports The glow softboxes are fantastic for the money! And yes, you can achieve the same thing by simply turning your light power down (and using a similar-sized modifier). There's so many benefits of that too, longer battery life, shorter flash durations, faster recycle time, and less wear on your strobe / flash tube.
what they meant was you should let a black guy scam people, same people who say blacks should get 2 votes or get let off for crimes, or they can't be racist. they know he's wrong but they want him to get away with it. they don't actually care that his product is trash, they know it is
Thank you so much. Anyone who over talks specs like a used car salesman is a scammer. Thank you for putting this product in the garbage pile. Can’t believe this scammer claims to be a professional.
Haha, it's hilarious, this junk product only $50-70 in China. It has become an industry joke, such as if you want to laugh at a photographer just ask him: Did you buy a black dish?
Bravo. This video was well done. If ya know you know, but I think this is a great example of the power of marketing. This is an example of convincing someone a blue sky isn’t blue.
SMH SMH SMH I'm an a$$, let's just say I could purchased at least 5 of those 51" Umbrellas you made a video using. BTW, thanks for making that. Hey, you live and you learn - I am going to mess with a couple of those Umbrellas though.
Thanks Ab. Yes, it's scary how much marketing can move people, even when it defines logic. Redefining "negative fill" and some people out there are believing it!
I'm thinking of taking the concept a step further by replacing the diffuser with a black fabric. Do you think a simple black veil is enough, or do I need something really opaque? I know the ideal would be bricks, but it's hard to find black ones.
Depends on how much specularity you want to get rid of. Although, I also heard of this ancient technique where you get softer light when you point your softbox directly AWAY from your subject.
That guy does not like to be challenged on the basics of photography guidelines. I did one time on his channel and he got very aggressive and defensive. Stopped following him because I could see through his antics. He is a decent photographer. But can’t be better because he thinks that only he knows everything photography related. Sad to see him shoot himself in the foot with this charade of a product exposing that being a good photographer does not mean you have a monopoly on photographic knowledge.
Thank you so much for calling this out!!!! 🎉🎉🎉🎉 Brandon Cole is a good photographer but promoting the black dish like it's the most amazing invention ever is just fraudulent. 4 stops of light loss is insane!!!!! 😮
No photographer who understands basic light principles would ever buy this. The first time I saw this thing I died laughing. It's like bouncing light off the black side of a V-flat
Oftentimes these products are not even the "invention" of the photographer. Like many other products, some brands will target individuals for plastering their face on a box in hopes to sell products because said person has a global reach. This is happening too often on RUclips and it may just be what happened here. That said, Brandon should have known better and not been motivated by the potential dollars from sales. I do not follow Brandon, but if I did, I would be upset that someone I "looked up to" is out promoting to make a buck on something we know is not a real product. We all know that this product is a joke, it is no different than a shake weight, a scheme. My hope is that Brandon learned his lesson but most importantly, is legally protected because this has grounds for a false advertising lawsuit or worse, a class action. Best of luck.
Yes our industry loves the licensing of our rock stars on products. I believe in this instance BC is the creator of the product and owner of the business that sells it.
Who ever thought black would be smart should get they hand smacked but side note DO YALL REALIZE this the same packaging and design layout for Manny Ortiz beauty dish. they just swapped the photos and words... i think its a CREATOR OUTREACH program like call of duty doing with streamers... #hmmmm
I think Brandon could have made a product called the Black Dish in name only and it would have been successful. It would be fantastic branding and the products wouldn't need any superfluous claims about intangible traits such as "best" or "softest" light. Just make a standard softbox and call it the Black Dish. They'd sell. Instead he's sunk what I imagine was a significant amount of savings, a loan, or perhaps investor's money, into R&D/Manufacturing/Shipping/Marketing for a product that's not any better than a $20 shoot through umbrella and is DUPING photographers who support it.
@@NoahStephens in branding only as a marketing vessel, since that was what he was also going for in reaching an intended audience. The literal application is obviously not working.
Why would you have spent the money? Just watching his videos and reading the label on the box should have told you. Understanding how light works should have been you first clue
@@Zetaphotography This is why we made the video though. If you haven't learned the principles of light yet, you accept what you're being told without resistance. It's the same concept that has powered the weight loss industry for decades.
Thanks for this, i suspected as much. When I raised my conerns with Brandon, he became very defensive. I like his work and the strong colours he edits too. But this black dish. Hmmmmm.....
I think most of us saw right through this modifier from day one! It's unfortunate because I think Brandon is a good photographer. He has tainted his reputation with this product.
I think he is, too. Hate his retouching but he lights well and he knows a good bit about posing. But he's relying on the hope that most people don't know the fundamentals of light and the fact that this is the only Black-owned business to come out with these black modifiers. He plays the race card HARD as part of his marketing, continually citing that the "haters" are trying to keep Black people down and all that nonsense. Of course, many people buy into it because idiocy.
When I first heard of this dish. I immediately thought "what an idiotic idea". But, with a photographer willing to prostitute his reputation; and a lot of b.s. verbiage touting it's 'benefits'. I'm sure they will make a reasonable return on a useless, resource wasting gimmick. Thanks for taking the time to let others know about this. Hopefully preventing people from wasting their time and money.
Because he isn’t as good as he pretends to be. His lighting is always wrong. I told him he did the opposite of what he said he tells his models and he got super offended and wanted lie and argue
I'm glad this video was posted. People have to call out scammers, so others don't fall for it and waste their money on stupid products. Brandon is scamming people, with his false advertisements. 😁
Brandon says stuff in some of his videos that if you don't know better you would regard as gospel. He once used a large shoot through umbrella in one of his studio lighting videos. The man says - and I shit you not - that the umbrella is not a light modifier as it doesn't modify the light, it simply changes the path of the light *CRINGE*. I couldn't let that one go as a lot of newbies eat his shit up like it's Chic-fil-A or something. He tried to school me when I brought it up in the comments and made himself look even more foolish. I told him that the umbrella is very much a light modifier because when the light passes through it, the light quality changes, which means it's *MODIFIED* and to modify something is to *CHANGE* that thing from its current state. Nobody in the comments section challenged what I said because either (a) they researched it and realized it was true, or (b) it just sounded like common sense really. Either way, it was very telling because his fans typically don't hesitate to come to his defense for most things.
excellent breakdown and explanation of light theory 👏👏 thanks for spending time to debunk all the claims of the black dish. It is important for photographic beginners to be educated on truth and facts and not marketing BS
When I first saw this product I thought to myself, "....yeah, that doesn't make sense...." It's all just marketing, and as others have said, snake oil sales.
I hate to speak on another photographer but I turned away from Brandon years ago. He regurgitates techniques but always does the opposite of what he’s teaching. Proof is in his photos but he will argue and defend himself anyways. His saving graces are decent editing and TnA
Come on people. Why would you think black would some how enhance light. You are better be off using cardboard and thin foil. This product is ridiculous.
He was claiming that somehow the black material of his special modifier, diffused and spread light differently to white alternatives.... WRONG!! Spreads it exactly the same way... just at a much lower intensity... reducing the effective power of your flash in the process. Should stick to shooting eye candy, rather than trying to redefine laws of physics
I would go further and say that because the inefficiency of the black walls the spill around the resistor plate will create an uneven light beam/pattern hitting the diffusion surface ie. a hotspot. Other lighting modifier designers/manufacturers spend time and money and go to great lengths actually defeating that hot spot. BC is in sever denial of both the physics and results. Furthermore he is committing the cardinal sin of photographers -- falling in love with his own work.
And he keeps equating intensity to softness, which is always hilarious to me. Then again, he's the same guy who told me in the comments of one of his videos that the shoot through umbrella umbrella he was using in studio in the video doesn't modify the light, it just changes the path of the light. I had to actually tell him what light *modifiers* do lol.
Wait till they release a black diffuser to put in front of it....to be fair you get zero over exposed highlights using it but your images are completely black too ☺️😁
Specularity is not contrast but how highlights are reflected. Contrast is a ration of highlight to shodow, I am surprised by someone trying to sell this concept. That said the Profoto hardbox is really cool>
This product is literally a waste of energy... just power down the output of the flash and adjust the distance, if needed. Your flash, battery and wallet will thank you forever. (commented bf watching the video, let's see if i got it right xD)
Awesome thank you Brandon is a RUclipsrs not an educator or a photographer just a RUclipsrs. Over the years he would say stuff and j would make comments his fan club would flame me so I stopped I use a profoto D2 with a mola I could not see his dish matching that set up so I opted out wasting my money. I am a local PPA member and a national PPA member better education there. I am happy that he is getting better over the years as a working photographer with a studio I just could not justify it. Thank you for testing this. Again just a RUclipsrs promoting his product
You have given consistently good, highly technical advice throughout the lighting spectrum, Rob, and I almost bought that product. Now I can’t. It’s practically counterintuitive: wouldn’t the photo industry have done this already? It must passed on it. Just seems like a vanity project, in spite of me wanting to see the entrepreneur succeed. Mr. Cole is otherwise my superior in experience. Modifiers have been white, silver, or gold forever (except gels which can be anything).
Honestly, most of these RUclipsr’s products are completely BS. They’re claiming to essentially have somehow discovered/develop some new systems/techniques that somehow evaded photography masters for a hundred years. They basically are preying on newbies who don’t know any better. I wanted to support Brandon Cole, but the more I watched, the more I realized he didn’t know as much as he portrayed. And when he released the Black Dish, I immediately dropped him. Thanks for looking out for younger photographers who are susceptible to these sales traps.
When I want a pure white backdrop behind my models I use black paper but blast twenty AD1200 strobes (24,000 watts total for a nice even background) each with their own black beauty dish attached. Works perfectly!
Hilariously over hyped product. Brandon Cole is an Ok photographer but he probably needs to double check his physics books on how light behaves before making any more ridiculous claims.
@@cinful1 he can't shoot on the go -based on his "portfolio"- those shots are abhorrent, especially the wedding ones, who would ever want those things delivered as a result of a paid photo service?
The manufacture had produced a defective product by forgetting to add the reflector into the softbox. They didn't want to take the lost so they needed to makeup a gimmick product marketing ploy. They then needed a RUclipsr to peddle their product that would stealth under the radar of educated pro photographers. Most of us didn't take the bait. Also most of us didn't have a platform or skill set to make a thorough video to help our community. TY
Once the light passes through two layers of diffusers, the material used there will have more influence on the quality of the output than the interior. And to have such a crappy output without diffusers in place is a terrible design.
I could see this working for studio work in small spaces as you won't have to worry about your light not having the capability to be turned down enough LOL.
Thanks for the test. IMHO the Elinchrom Octalight is the last word in soft portrait light. . Spend the money and enjoy the benefits.. The black light is obviously just hype.
Thank you for the excellently explained video! I'm considering getting Manny Ortiz's Beauty Dish since EZ Glow isn't available here in Europe, and the shipping costs are too high. However, I'm unsure whether to get the one with a silver or white interior... Is there a significant difference between them, and what would you recommend?
The white will give you less contrast, with less specularity, and generally softer light, while the silver will still give soft light but with a bit more "punch" and specularity, being a little bit of a harder light. Just depends on the look you like.
Thank you for this review. When the product first came out and people started ragging on it, I defended him, but I did try to speak with him regarding the claims he made about the product and he pretty much gave me his aaa to kiss, so I stepped back.
Glad to have stumbled on this video because the black dish threw me off bad and I wondered what other thought. I have watched BC for years and enjoyed his style for what it is. With this, I felt like he thought he found a clever marketing edge that was really just a terrible gimmick. It made me question his understanding of what he is doing in the world of photography.
We’re still not sure whether he doesn’t understand what he’s doing or is willingly making stuff up just to make sales. There’s since been some questionable takes from him, like when he said his softbox was blocking his subject’s face from the sun even though the cast shadow of the softbox was way below the talent’s face 🫣
After a year has passed Im wondering how sales are now. The idea that light is bounced off of a black surface vs being mostly absorbed was a little hard to swallow. But most telling to me is that I cant think of one top photographer in the world that is using this.
The most mindblowing thing in all of this was when Phottix announced Raja softboxes with Black interiors. I was worried that such a large modifier brand would further legitimize this terrible idea, thankfully they disappeared shortly after being announced.
I went to the site from Instagram and looked iver everything. The Black Dish was too expensive amd wasnt worth it in my opinion. But as I dug deeper in the site, i noticed that everything on it has the exact same description. Everything, including the black stand. And even in this video when he shows the box, the word "distinct" is misspelled. Huge red flag #2. No credibility, and as a black photographer, I'd love to support other ones trying to make it happen, but i cannot support this.
I think it would produce different results when using only outer diffusion and without plate. It would act like a scrim with bare bulb with flagged sides. And it should have more contrast because of single point of light source instead of bounced reflected light from all over inside of softbox. But this BD will work only without plate and with only outer diffusion. Adding plate is ridiculous. It's like covering with hand. It could only work if plate were white and inners of sofbox is glossy, because glossy surfaces reflects. Like transparent glass would reflect light. And I doubt it would be something beautyful.
I was about to bite as his youtube videos showing what you can achieve with the products are stunning. I might just test out a cheap set up first to see what I can achieve. I already have the premium camera body / lenses.
in product photography ppl use grey diffusion cloths same principle...you can control grey/black diffusion cloth rather than using a white diffusion cloth
And constant light sources with no control over the light output/intensity are used in those instances. Therefore, different fabrics are used to control it and make up for the lack of settings on the light source. In, this case when using a strobe on people, the settings can be controlled, therefore you don't need a grey/black fabric/surface to control the intensity because it can be done directly with the settings on the strobe.
To all detrimental comments, remember that black bounced light matters, it is as important as bounced white light. Also I would like to introduce our breakthrough product: black mamba oil, it is used in conjunction the black bouncer to further soften the results
Fun fact, that file you pointed at that is 145MB in size is actually a PSD. The file extension doesn't indicate the type of a file, the file header does. The file header is the first two bytes on the file. For the other files the header is 4949 2a00, typically used by a TIFF. The Balanced Black file is 3842 5053 which is the file header for a PSD.
Good find!
@@robhallphoto I am not sure what the internal PSD metadata tracks but if you rename it as a PSD and open it in PS you can view the metadata of the file as well as some of the adjustments that were made. Whilst minor, exposure was bumped by 0.05. I assume this was a RAW adjustment made by ACR. I am not certain, but if levels or similar (non-ACR adjustments) I highly doubt these would have been recorded in the PSD internetal metadata.
Regardless, it is clear that there is evidence of fraudulent activity.
@@ltshinta Yes the ACR in the file info suggests little adjustment, the question is what type of layer work was done that forced the file to become a PSD rather than an ARW.
Waaaaaay over my head
@@bkcampb the TLDR is that it can be proven with digital forensics that the example files he provided have been tampered with by using adobe photoshop.
The semi fraudulent shipping charges are enough for me. Thanks for the warning.
I bought some of his presets/luts once and they were soooooooooo BAD 😅
….straight to the comments I go 🏃🏾♂️💨
😂😂
sir this is a Wendy's
I'm reading everything
😂😂😂😂
You 2 😂🤣😂🤣
Glad you guys did this video and I didn’t have to.. I’m already labeled as angry all the time.. anyways if it counts for anything I approve this message lol I don’t want to hate on a creator but this is product is leaning on pushing misinformation and just kind scheming…. Wonder how many people who bought this are going to report overheating lights from having to boost up power so heavy and/or choke up on that modeling light heat … we’ve all made DIY mods some work some don’t but we don’t try to swindle the public by trying to claim it defies physics…anyways nice job gents 👍
You slippin man! Could have hijacked this whole concept... bust out some Hefty trash can liners with the black gaff tape, and made you a BROOKLYN Black Dish-box. Im clicking on that tutorial ASAP!
@@rongreit9677 bruh Brooklyn would never put their name on this wack ass shit
Thank you Seth!
Not leaning on, it *IS* pushing misinformation lol.
@@rongreit9677 LOL.
Shots fired… absolutely hilarious the claims that one guy was making. Good on you for calling out BS
Anyone who has used light for any time at all saw through his claims within moments. Black subtracts, white reflects. It's not magic, it's physics.
2:55 "Light isn't sauce" 🤣🤣🤣
I'm going to start selling bottles of light sauce!! "Bring latinx flavor to your photography"
@@alexiscuarezma I'd buy that sauce 🤣
@@JustinHaugen I’m taking pre-orders now 🤓
That was my favorite quote 😂
@@alexiscuarezma, 😂😂😂
Brandon just want to have his own beauty dish like Manny Ortiz. I watched his videos but never got interested on buying his product. I would rather use standard reflector than his black beauty dish.
No disrespect to Brandon Cole but, as beginner photographer watching his black soft box introduction video I was quickly reminded of a wise man’s words. “Stop the CAP!”😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂 Thank you so much for putting this into perspective. Get a refund 😂😂😂
Thanks for taking one for the team!
Wow
Anytime!
@@RyanTroysaid what a lot of people have been thinking so let's not kid ourselves
Yeah man, he really ate that shipping fee for you Canadians 🤣
Veronica didn’t even buy into THIS scam!!!
When Brandon first came out with this product and tried to sell it to all of us I made the comment of why don’t I just turn my strobe light down a couple stops and just get the same effects. But I got told that I am trying to keep a black man from making money and I don’t know what I was talking about. I used to follow his channel and after those comments popped up that I was against him trying to make some money I just stop following him because the black dish was truly a flop in my eyes.
Then to see this video you guys come out with takes a lot because obviously you’re gonna get backlash because I got it just for making a comment against it. I see a lot of products that have photographers names attached to it. And then I might not have the name brand Profoto, Wescott, or Broncolor soft boxes that are all over $250. I’ve been truly happy with my Glow softboxes. And the first softbox I spent over $150 for was the Glow Parasnap 36inch softbox which is on my light stand 95% of the time. Do you wanna game changing quick opening softbox try one of them. Now me, I want every small business to do great. But you got a put the work in and sell quality products. this is not one of them.
I’ve called him out a few times and he always backpedals, gets offended, or flat out lies
@@cinful1 yeah I'm not saying he's a bad photographer anything. I just think the black dish is a waste of money and all you have to do is turn the power down on your strobe light to get the same results. It is not game-changer it is a waste of money. But they act like I have no clue what I'm doing and I own my own photography business. I think I do know what I'm talking about and I use nothing but strobe light for all my photography work
@@LMActionsports The glow softboxes are fantastic for the money! And yes, you can achieve the same thing by simply turning your light power down (and using a similar-sized modifier). There's so many benefits of that too, longer battery life, shorter flash durations, faster recycle time, and less wear on your strobe / flash tube.
what they meant was you should let a black guy scam people, same people who say blacks should get 2 votes or get let off for crimes, or they can't be racist. they know he's wrong but they want him to get away with it. they don't actually care that his product is trash, they know it is
I always have the impression Brandon being a tool.. Then I saw him reading the script…
This is a bad product
More of a scam
Thank you so much. Anyone who over talks specs like a used car salesman is a scammer. Thank you for putting this product in the garbage pile. Can’t believe this scammer claims to be a professional.
Haha, it's hilarious, this junk product only $50-70 in China. It has become an industry joke, such as if you want to laugh at a photographer just ask him: Did you buy a black dish?
Bravo. This video was well done. If ya know you know, but I think this is a great example of the power of marketing. This is an example of convincing someone a blue sky isn’t blue.
SMH SMH SMH I'm an a$$, let's just say I could purchased at least 5 of those 51" Umbrellas you made a video using. BTW, thanks for making that. Hey, you live and you learn - I am going to mess with a couple of those Umbrellas though.
When we gonna see that Par-AB-olic? I’ll do a video on that any day if you pull through on it
@@LastXwitness Woah woah woah. Par AB olic? We'd formally like to get on the list for review copies!
Thanks Ab. Yes, it's scary how much marketing can move people, even when it defines logic. Redefining "negative fill" and some people out there are believing it!
I'm thinking of taking the concept a step further by replacing the diffuser with a black fabric. Do you think a simple black veil is enough, or do I need something really opaque?
I know the ideal would be bricks, but it's hard to find black ones.
:D How about a lead sheet? Better light and also protects Superman.
@@motherless1000kryptonite!!!
Depends on how much specularity you want to get rid of. Although, I also heard of this ancient technique where you get softer light when you point your softbox directly AWAY from your subject.
@@robhallphoto LOL.
🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣
Thanks for actually calling out some of the more egregious snake oil in this industry.
😁😁😁😆😆😆😅😅🤣🤣🤣😂😂😂😂 All black. Might as well just turn off the light source and hold a candle.
That's just stupid...lol
That guy does not like to be challenged on the basics of photography guidelines. I did one time on his channel and he got very aggressive and defensive. Stopped following him because I could see through his antics. He is a decent photographer. But can’t be better because he thinks that only he knows everything photography related. Sad to see him shoot himself in the foot with this charade of a product exposing that being a good photographer does not mean you have a monopoly on photographic knowledge.
This is the Soulja Boy console of the photography world.
Thank you so much for calling this out!!!! 🎉🎉🎉🎉
Brandon Cole is a good photographer but promoting the black dish like it's the most amazing invention ever is just fraudulent.
4 stops of light loss is insane!!!!! 😮
define good...
Yes 4 stops is indeed insane, and highly restrictive - forcing photographers to keep their light extremely close or use much larger flash equipment.
No photographer who understands basic light principles would ever buy this. The first time I saw this thing I died laughing. It's like bouncing light off the black side of a V-flat
Oftentimes these products are not even the "invention" of the photographer. Like many other products, some brands will target individuals for plastering their face on a box in hopes to sell products because said person has a global reach. This is happening too often on RUclips and it may just be what happened here. That said, Brandon should have known better and not been motivated by the potential dollars from sales. I do not follow Brandon, but if I did, I would be upset that someone I "looked up to" is out promoting to make a buck on something we know is not a real product. We all know that this product is a joke, it is no different than a shake weight, a scheme. My hope is that Brandon learned his lesson but most importantly, is legally protected because this has grounds for a false advertising lawsuit or worse, a class action. Best of luck.
Yes our industry loves the licensing of our rock stars on products. I believe in this instance BC is the creator of the product and owner of the business that sells it.
Learned his lesson? He keeps making videos doubling and tripling down on his claims, and giving attitude, too LOL.
Who ever thought black would be smart should get they hand smacked but side note DO YALL REALIZE this the same packaging and design layout for Manny Ortiz beauty dish. they just swapped the photos and words... i think its a CREATOR OUTREACH program like call of duty doing with streamers... #hmmmm
I think Brandon could have made a product called the Black Dish in name only and it would have been successful. It would be fantastic branding and the products wouldn't need any superfluous claims about intangible traits such as "best" or "softest" light. Just make a standard softbox and call it the Black Dish. They'd sell. Instead he's sunk what I imagine was a significant amount of savings, a loan, or perhaps investor's money, into R&D/Manufacturing/Shipping/Marketing for a product that's not any better than a $20 shoot through umbrella and is DUPING photographers who support it.
Why would it be “Black” then? 🤔
@@NoahStephens in branding only as a marketing vessel, since that was what he was also going for in reaching an intended audience. The literal application is obviously not working.
@@NoahStephensyou know why, so don't even
@@livesongs82 Yes, I do know why and it’s a stupid reason. There’s no such think as African American light modifiers
Never trust a “photographer” that tries to sell you presets
Fun fact, Brandon is still trying to justify the legitimacy of his product by arguing in the comment section on RUclips. I have lost respect for dude.
Turns out we aren't even photographers🤣🤣🤣
@@robhallphoto yup. I quit 😝
Very sad😢
Hopefully, we're done talking about this FOREVER 🤣 10:34
OMG... he didnt spell check the marketing spiel on the box... what a muppet 🤦♂️😂😂
$500!!! Nothing like almost premium prices for subpar products.
Anyone who bought this deserves to be scammed
@@Chris-ey7zy you aren’t wrong
He didn't pay that much for the product itself, though.
I was literally just thinking about trying this product. This review is right on time. Thank you.
Why would you have spent the money? Just watching his videos and reading the label on the box should have told you.
Understanding how light works should have been you first clue
@@Zetaphotography This is why we made the video though. If you haven't learned the principles of light yet, you accept what you're being told without resistance. It's the same concept that has powered the weight loss industry for decades.
Thanks for this, i suspected as much. When I raised my conerns with Brandon, he became very defensive. I like his work and the strong colours he edits too. But this black dish. Hmmmmm.....
When I saw the title “black dish” I was sure this was click bait… my head is still baffled by the claims given… you know… physics
Great Video. I like Brandon’s videos. But this black dish is a bit comedy. Fav line. The laws of physics don’t apply. 😂
I think most of us saw right through this modifier from day one! It's unfortunate because I think Brandon is a good photographer. He has tainted his reputation with this product.
I think he is, too. Hate his retouching but he lights well and he knows a good bit about posing. But he's relying on the hope that most people don't know the fundamentals of light and the fact that this is the only Black-owned business to come out with these black modifiers. He plays the race card HARD as part of his marketing, continually citing that the "haters" are trying to keep Black people down and all that nonsense. Of course, many people buy into it because idiocy.
😂😂😂but why would anyone buy into the idea of light "mixing and rolling " black dish.
When I first heard of this dish. I immediately thought "what an idiotic idea". But, with a photographer willing to prostitute his reputation; and a lot of b.s. verbiage touting it's 'benefits'. I'm sure they will make a reasonable return on a useless, resource wasting gimmick.
Thanks for taking the time to let others know about this. Hopefully preventing people from wasting their time and money.
From day one I knew this was more snake oil .I once challenge the photographer and he did not step up to the plate.
Because he isn’t as good as he pretends to be. His lighting is always wrong. I told him he did the opposite of what he said he tells his models and he got super offended and wanted lie and argue
Best Review ever.
I'm glad this video was posted. People have to call out scammers, so others don't fall for it and waste their money on stupid products. Brandon is scamming people, with his false advertisements. 😁
Brandon says stuff in some of his videos that if you don't know better you would regard as gospel. He once used a large shoot through umbrella in one of his studio lighting videos. The man says - and I shit you not - that the umbrella is not a light modifier as it doesn't modify the light, it simply changes the path of the light *CRINGE*. I couldn't let that one go as a lot of newbies eat his shit up like it's Chic-fil-A or something. He tried to school me when I brought it up in the comments and made himself look even more foolish. I told him that the umbrella is very much a light modifier because when the light passes through it, the light quality changes, which means it's *MODIFIED* and to modify something is to *CHANGE* that thing from its current state. Nobody in the comments section challenged what I said because either (a) they researched it and realized it was true, or (b) it just sounded like common sense really. Either way, it was very telling because his fans typically don't hesitate to come to his defense for most things.
excellent breakdown and explanation of light theory 👏👏 thanks for spending time to debunk all the claims of the black dish. It is important for photographic beginners to be educated on truth and facts and not marketing BS
Send it back for a full refund.
When I first saw this product I thought to myself, "....yeah, that doesn't make sense...." It's all just marketing, and as others have said, snake oil sales.
I hate to speak on another photographer but I turned away from Brandon years ago. He regurgitates techniques but always does the opposite of what he’s teaching. Proof is in his photos but he will argue and defend himself anyways. His saving graces are decent editing and TnA
What's an example of him doing the opposite of what he teaches?
Come on people. Why would you think black would some how enhance light. You are better be off using cardboard and thin foil. This product is ridiculous.
Thanks for this lol
such a great breakdown, thank you.
He was claiming that somehow the black material of his special modifier, diffused and spread light differently to white alternatives.... WRONG!! Spreads it exactly the same way... just at a much lower intensity... reducing the effective power of your flash in the process.
Should stick to shooting eye candy, rather than trying to redefine laws of physics
I would go further and say that because the inefficiency of the black walls the spill around the resistor plate will create an uneven light beam/pattern hitting the diffusion surface ie. a hotspot. Other lighting modifier designers/manufacturers spend time and money and go to great lengths actually defeating that hot spot. BC is in sever denial of both the physics and results. Furthermore he is committing the cardinal sin of photographers -- falling in love with his own work.
And he keeps equating intensity to softness, which is always hilarious to me. Then again, he's the same guy who told me in the comments of one of his videos that the shoot through umbrella umbrella he was using in studio in the video doesn't modify the light, it just changes the path of the light. I had to actually tell him what light *modifiers* do lol.
Brandon Cole got this idea one night while drinking with his friends at a Flat Earth convention, right?
Wait till they release a black diffuser to put in front of it....to be fair you get zero over exposed highlights using it but your images are completely black too ☺️😁
lol this is funny.
I would suggest him to use the Vantablack paint on that diffuser and name it "Dark Matter".
It’s just a less efficient softbox. Brandon Cole, is a classic case of Dumb or Liar? Maybe a bit of both.
If he was paid to promote it, he's not dumb! 🙂
@@robcompton6099 what is he? smart? honest? credible? NOT!
ouch
Specularity is not contrast but how highlights are reflected. Contrast is a ration of highlight to shodow, I am surprised by someone trying to sell this concept. That said the Profoto hardbox is really cool>
This product is literally a waste of energy... just power down the output of the flash and adjust the distance, if needed. Your flash, battery and wallet will thank you forever. (commented bf watching the video, let's see if i got it right xD)
I like Brandon and I think he is a great photographer, but he needs to cut the CAP.
What CAP? Aid this spelling error like what’s written on his boxes
@@Zetaphotography, "CAP" means lies.
Awesome thank you
Brandon is a RUclipsrs not an educator or a photographer just a RUclipsrs. Over the years he would say stuff and j would make comments his fan club would flame me so I stopped
I use a profoto D2 with a mola I could not see his dish matching that set up so I opted out wasting my money.
I am a local PPA member and a national PPA member better education there.
I am happy that he is getting better over the years as a working photographer with a studio I just could not justify it.
Thank you for testing this.
Again just a RUclipsrs promoting his product
I’ve called him out a few times and he always backpedals, gets offended, or flat out lies
He doesn't honor hos return policy at all. Stay away
Did you have a bad experience? If so, I'd be curious to learn more - DM me on IG @YvensB -YB
Thanks for your informative review of the Scammer Dish!
You have given consistently good, highly technical advice throughout the lighting spectrum, Rob, and I almost bought that product. Now I can’t. It’s practically counterintuitive: wouldn’t the photo industry have done this already? It must passed on it. Just seems like a vanity project, in spite of me wanting to see the entrepreneur succeed. Mr. Cole is otherwise my superior in experience. Modifiers have been white, silver, or gold forever (except gels which can be anything).
Thank you for calling out this BS product and bringing receipts.
Dude went full Terence Howard. Tried to debunk everything physicists know about light with a black softbox.
Honestly, most of these RUclipsr’s products are completely BS. They’re claiming to essentially have somehow discovered/develop some new systems/techniques that somehow evaded photography masters for a hundred years. They basically are preying on newbies who don’t know any better.
I wanted to support Brandon Cole, but the more I watched, the more I realized he didn’t know as much as he portrayed. And when he released the Black Dish, I immediately dropped him.
Thanks for looking out for younger photographers who are susceptible to these sales traps.
When I want a pure white backdrop behind my models I use black paper but blast twenty AD1200 strobes (24,000 watts total for a nice even background) each with their own black beauty dish attached. Works perfectly!
Of course this gets you a softer background!
Hilariously over hyped product. Brandon Cole is an Ok photographer but he probably needs to double check his physics books on how light behaves before making any more ridiculous claims.
He really is ok at best. He really can’t light. Highlights are always on neck and chest. He gets away with post processing and TnA
@@cinful1 he can't shoot on the go -based on his "portfolio"- those shots are abhorrent, especially the wedding ones, who would ever want those things delivered as a result of a paid photo service?
@@cinful1 nah he is great
The manufacture had produced a defective product by forgetting to add the reflector into the softbox. They didn't want to take the lost so they needed to makeup a gimmick product marketing ploy. They then needed a RUclipsr to peddle their product that would stealth under the radar of educated pro photographers. Most of us didn't take the bait. Also most of us didn't have a platform or skill set to make a thorough video to help our community. TY
Once the light passes through two layers of diffusers, the material used there will have more influence on the quality of the output than the interior.
And to have such a crappy output without diffusers in place is a terrible design.
What a RIP OFF !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! SAD
I could see this working for studio work in small spaces as you won't have to worry about your light not having the capability to be turned down enough LOL.
When asked about light falloff, i was told 1/2 to 1 stop. Clearly that was not accurate.
You lose one stop of light with standard diffusion fabric alone
@@JustinHaugen And some diffusion panels closer to 11/2, even almost 2 depending on thickness.
Thank you so much for making an honest video and all the warning. Very Grateful.
Thanks for the test. IMHO the Elinchrom Octalight is the last word in soft portrait light. . Spend the money and enjoy the benefits.. The black light is obviously just hype.
I support Brandon and alot of other photographers on YT. But this product didn’t click to me. So it was a pass.
thank you for calling BS on this one
Thank you for the excellently explained video! I'm considering getting Manny Ortiz's Beauty Dish since EZ Glow isn't available here in Europe, and the shipping costs are too high. However, I'm unsure whether to get the one with a silver or white interior... Is there a significant difference between them, and what would you recommend?
The white will give you less contrast, with less specularity, and generally softer light, while the silver will still give soft light but with a bit more "punch" and specularity, being a little bit of a harder light. Just depends on the look you like.
What kind of a tool would buy this garbage of a scam?
Thank you for this review. When the product first came out and people started ragging on it, I defended him, but I did try to speak with him regarding the claims he made about the product and he pretty much gave me his aaa to kiss, so I stepped back.
"and he pretty much gave me his aaa to kiss" I'll be damn!!!... I bet you weren't that surprised though..
@@LMoProVisualComm SMH, well guess that man dont want to be told that wrong is wrong and "Light is Light". 😉
why did you defend him
Thanks for an honest fact filled no hype review.
Thanks. I will never buy it because I am a technical guy and I can see it makes no sense., but it's important to share the info.
Great finding on this marketing BS. Thanks
Glad to have stumbled on this video because the black dish threw me off bad and I wondered what other thought. I have watched BC for years and enjoyed his style for what it is. With this, I felt like he thought he found a clever marketing edge that was really just a terrible gimmick. It made me question his understanding of what he is doing in the world of photography.
We’re still not sure whether he doesn’t understand what he’s doing or is willingly making stuff up just to make sales. There’s since been some questionable takes from him, like when he said his softbox was blocking his subject’s face from the sun even though the cast shadow of the softbox was way below the talent’s face 🫣
After a year has passed Im wondering how sales are now. The idea that light is bounced off of a black surface vs being mostly absorbed was a little hard to swallow. But most telling to me is that I cant think of one top photographer in the world that is using this.
The most mindblowing thing in all of this was when Phottix announced Raja softboxes with Black interiors. I was worried that such a large modifier brand would further legitimize this terrible idea, thankfully they disappeared shortly after being announced.
Sometimes the emperor has no clothes...
There's a sucker born every minute
Lost all respect for Brandon
Oh my... 🌚
for his next trick he's going to create a white negative fill card
LMAO. Love it!😂
Oh physics!
I Cringed.
"This allows photographers to really capture distint features of their models."
Me, screaming into the void: WHAT DOES THAT MEAN?!!
lmao thanks bruh
Great video
I went to the site from Instagram and looked iver everything. The Black Dish was too expensive amd wasnt worth it in my opinion. But as I dug deeper in the site, i noticed that everything on it has the exact same description. Everything, including the black stand.
And even in this video when he shows the box, the word "distinct" is misspelled. Huge red flag #2.
No credibility, and as a black photographer, I'd love to support other ones trying to make it happen, but i cannot support this.
I think it would produce different results when using only outer diffusion and without plate. It would act like a scrim with bare bulb with flagged sides. And it should have more contrast because of single point of light source instead of bounced reflected light from all over inside of softbox. But this BD will work only without plate and with only outer diffusion. Adding plate is ridiculous. It's like covering with hand. It could only work if plate were white and inners of sofbox is glossy, because glossy surfaces reflects. Like transparent glass would reflect light. And I doubt it would be something beautyful.
The BBC should use this product to light all future episodes of ‘Doctor Who’. 🤣
I was about to bite as his youtube videos showing what you can achieve with the products are stunning. I might just test out a cheap set up first to see what I can achieve. I already have the premium camera body / lenses.
in product photography ppl use grey diffusion cloths same principle...you can control grey/black diffusion cloth rather than using a white diffusion cloth
And constant light sources with no control over the light output/intensity are used in those instances. Therefore, different fabrics are used to control it and make up for the lack of settings on the light source. In, this case when using a strobe on people, the settings can be controlled, therefore you don't need a grey/black fabric/surface to control the intensity because it can be done directly with the settings on the strobe.
I'm green to studio lights and alway want to support my folks. So happy I saw this cause I immediately hated it without diffusion.
Thank you for this videos, in order to save my money on this.
Very informative video. BTW, the box has a spelling error! It should read 'distinct' and not 'distint' 🤔🤦😁
I like they part where they point that out in the video.
To all detrimental comments, remember that black bounced light matters, it is as important as bounced white light. Also I would like to introduce our breakthrough product: black mamba oil, it is used in conjunction the black bouncer to further soften the results
LOL. Good one.