I bought a NEEWER kit of 2 shoot-thru, 2 reflectives and 2 lighting stands for about £25 / $30. I use Yongnuo flashes and triggers. The whole setup cost about £120 /$150 and produces great results. OK it's not Pro studio gear but is gets you started for a quarter the price of a Canon Speedlight.
Gavin, thanks for a great umbrella study. I have no soft boxes and use only umbrellas and reflectors with successful results. But only by watching this video have I seen an analysis of the variety and depth of their contribution. I should have known an umbrella video by Gavin Hoey would go way beyond my simplistic approach of "stick it there, shoot from here." Always learning from you, man, and enjoying every minute of it! Thank You! ⭐x5
Another winning tutorial Gavin 👍 Hands up all those who, like me, have almost took their eye out with the pointy end of the umbrella because they didn't see it sticking out 😁
One of my biggest goals as I'm learning studio lighting is to really make informed decisions as to what modifiers I want to use for a given situation. Videos like this really help, thank you so much!
Hey Gavin. I think you "covered" everything perfectly in this video. I like umbrellas myself, specifically shoot through. 👍. Thanks for sharing this one.
Excellent video, thank you to everyone in the team! What you also regularly demonstrate is the need to start slowly, test and evaluate/understand each new technique or gear. It is so tempting when one only has a 10 or 60-minute slot, to just rush in, set up the model and shoot away.
We did a directory for my church. I am an amateur... completely. I chose the shoot through type umbrella... two of them. What I was looking for was lighting families so your comment of...flat, safe, sensible.....even lighting fit well and we got lucky. The directory worked and there were no complaints. I think I'll order the same size umbrella in the reflective type and give it a try. Fun video and best of all ... informative. I really didn't get to try the type of photography you did in this video.
Great vid as always, thanks Gavin! I recently started to shoot outdoor portraits with lightthrough umbrella and i got to say it makes life way easier especially when you deal with some weather conditions.
I believe that your videos are not only instructive and easy to watch, funny but, they feel real since things not always go perfectly smooth. Regarding umbrellas you also have the reflective white ones that are not specular. My suggestion is that you include them in any new umbrella tutorial. Also how the size and form of the umbrella affects the light
Man you are good ! What more can I say? Other than why after more than 50 years taking pictures (I am a hobbyist not a professional) I always go back to basics and end up with my faithful umbrellas and leave my other modifiers on the shelf (to mate I guess) and somehow they end up producing more modifiers that I never use.........Incredible, no?
Thanks for the video Gavin; very insightful. Always struggled with studio photography and when to use which umbrella, so this refresher was very useful!
Gavin you're my favorite Adorama guy and Sophie is amazing, she is now my favorite model on youtube. I like the fact that you take all these awesome photos with an Olympus.
Thanks for the kind words. Sounds like your on the right path to realising that for studio flash work, the lights are doing almost all of the work and the camera is along for the ride 😉
@@GavinHoey Yes Gavin and I really enjoy your studio flash series. I’m half way there and still need to master and refine lighting techniques. But you give me a lot of great ideas as my studio is almost the same size as yours.
So 👍 beautiful 🌷 and creative use of soft box with umbrella 👍😂nice information 🌷🌷🌷🌷🙏🌷
2 ปีที่แล้ว +1
Always interesting, entertaining and well presented. I enjoy watching them even when it’s about something I already know. One thing that never fails to be mentioned though is that shoot through umbrellas spill light everywhere. I know that’s true. However, it should be noted that much of this spilled light ends up being affected by the inverse square law before it gets back into the picture, same as any other light. So, it’s not necessarily that much of a factor.
Great video. Thanks Gavin! I have an umbrella 2 in 1. It is very convenient to have an umbrella that allows you to take pictures through and reflected. It is also lightweight and easy to carry anywhere.
Hi Adel. I also have several 2 in 1 umbrellas and your 100% right, they are great for travel. But of course I usually want the opposite type of brolly to what it's set-up to shoot! The low cost of umbrellas means I prefer one (or more) of each when working in my small home studio 😉
Great video as always. I see a double shadow on nose of the reflective umbrella image in your side by side, similar to what you said of the reflective pattern on the wall. Good to know to be on the lookout for that.
Thank you so much for your valuable information, I don't have umbrellas yet, but I'll try do to some exercises with my light bouncers. Greetings from Mexico, I love how didactic are your videos 🤗
Actually Gavin, I learned a great trick from Bruno Cohen, use a large umbrella in a room with walls and ceiling close, let the light spill past the umbrella to spill onto the wall/ceiling to increase the effective fill. Works for large groups so very well.
It's nice that Sophie know how to move & pose her hands. When you put the books on her head it reminded me of a youtube Wiener Dog named Harslo the balancing hound from Ireland. Check him out. LOL Nothing as heavy as books but he is a cutie. Nice video guys.
I'm an amateur always looking for ways to get great images on the cheap. The absolute best and softest light I have gotten in a portrait situation is using a simple speedlight on a stand off to one side at about a 45 degree angle.I point the light straight up with a small piece of amber gel over the lens (flash), then use the little built in white bounce card. The result is a nice catchlight and soft light that looks like ambient without any blown out highlights....If you have a high, or dark colored ceiling it's probably not going to work
Apart from all the fantastic images you create the thing I love most of all about your videos is the lack of waffle. Simple demonstrations of the right way to do it but also showing can be incorrect. No long winded facts and figures just simple representations oh and you get to work with awesome models such as Sophie and Jade Lyon.
I have a question about the flash. During the video you kept switching between having the cone on the front of the flash and no cone. It seemed like when actually shooting the model, you always had the cone on, but when demonstrating the light pattern, you had the cone off. When using an umbrella, should you have the cone on the front of the flash? Clearly this would focus the light, but if using an umbrella it seems you would want more diffuse light source to fill up the umbrella. Very helpful video, lots of practical information.
Gavin used an evolv 200 pro with reflector ("cone") when shooting the model, but Explore 300 pro with built-in reflector when showing the pattern on the wall.
Great photos, as always. One thing I did notice is how much warmer and brighter Sophie and her sweater were in the video, but they were quite muted in the photos themselves, especially in those where the leaf blower was used. Perhaps this is due to TH-cam compression or something else, but the colour differences are much more noticeable here than in your other videos. Thoughts?
Hi David. The test photos are straight out of camera. The final photos are edited usually in the way I preplanned. In this case we choose the orange jumper as it's a colour that takes desaturation really well.
Thanks for all your content. Loved it. Now not to be negative but I thought and learn my self that the level of the metal umbrella insert should be near to the end not the middle and not push closer to light. Due to size and the way light bounds back or go thru the modifiers has lots to manage and to take advantage to the way each of them is being made. Need input. I am sure that will to each photographer taste at the end but I know that the light is much better umbrella being hold the farther from light source. Thanks for any input and definitely you are one of my favorites in this channel.
Hi Roberto. Placing your flash at the end of the umbrella shaft can cause major issues. I cover that very point at 6:10 and demo the pattern of light from both ends of the umbrella... the results may make you do some further testing of your own!
@@GavinHoey thanks. I appreciated it. I got used to place the shaft at the edge like not sticking it all the way in like just barely holding it and yes without falling. I really like your creativity. Thanks so much. I enjoy your videos.
Hey Gavin. Great video as always and very instructive, but could you do one with a model that wears glasses as I struggle sometimes with the umbrella showing too much as a reflection. Thanks
A leaf blower? Fantastic idea! Small and cordless. (Ready to roll your eyes when I ask this) What’s the make and model of that leaf blower? I’m always loving your videos too Gavin!
Hi Jodi. That's my Ryobi mini leaf blower. The battery is compatible with my DIY tools but for cleanliness and safety, the blower itself is never taken out of the studio.
One of the best instructors of photography on TH-cam. Well done as always.
He is the best
Hands down the best instructor on TH-cam
I bought a NEEWER kit of 2 shoot-thru, 2 reflectives and 2 lighting stands for about £25 / $30. I use Yongnuo flashes and triggers.
The whole setup cost about £120 /$150 and produces great results.
OK it's not Pro studio gear but is gets you started for a quarter the price of a Canon Speedlight.
Gavin, thanks for a great umbrella study. I have no soft boxes and use only umbrellas and reflectors with successful results. But only by watching this video have I seen an analysis of the variety and depth of their contribution. I should have known an umbrella video by Gavin Hoey would go way beyond my simplistic approach of "stick it there, shoot from here." Always learning from you, man, and enjoying every minute of it! Thank You! ⭐x5
I really do like the way Gavin unpacks a photo shoot. Another one to try at home!
Another winning tutorial Gavin 👍 Hands up all those who, like me, have almost took their eye out with the pointy end of the umbrella because they didn't see it sticking out 😁
One of my biggest goals as I'm learning studio lighting is to really make informed decisions as to what modifiers I want to use for a given situation. Videos like this really help, thank you so much!
Hi Stephen. You're think about modifiers like me. I have my favourites of course, but there's one modifier that will do everything.
@@GavinHoey I think you meant: there’s “no” one modifier
Hey Gavin. I think you "covered" everything perfectly in this video. I like umbrellas myself, specifically shoot through. 👍. Thanks for sharing this one.
Best short video showing how versatile umbrellas really are. Well done.
Such a great instruction video from the master 👏 I've learned massively from him over the years, big thank you Gavin.
Hi Phillip. I'm glad I've been of help 👍
I never thought I'd be remotely interested in studio photography, but.......... Thank you Gary, I'm enjoying it.
Bloody love gavin! Thank you so much for this tutorial,… I’m sat surrounded by tripods, umbrellas, camera, flash, triggers and scratching my head ❤
Thanks again, you and the models would have a great collection of images from the many shoots you have done.
Excellent video, thank you to everyone in the team! What you also regularly demonstrate is the need to start slowly, test and evaluate/understand each new technique or gear. It is so tempting when one only has a 10 or 60-minute slot, to just rush in, set up the model and shoot away.
Hi Ian. Thanks for the kind words and you're spot on about building your skills by experience.
We did a directory for my church. I am an amateur... completely. I chose the shoot through type umbrella... two of them. What I was looking for was lighting families so your comment of...flat, safe, sensible.....even lighting fit well and we got lucky. The directory worked and there were no complaints. I think I'll order the same size umbrella in the reflective type and give it a try. Fun video and best of all ... informative. I really didn't get to try the type of photography you did in this video.
Great vid as always, thanks Gavin! I recently started to shoot outdoor portraits with lightthrough umbrella and i got to say it makes life way easier especially when you deal with some weather conditions.
Have been deliberating over which setup to start with, so thanks that was really helpful!
Wonderful example of both modifiers. Thank you for the inspiration.
I believe that your videos are not only instructive and easy to watch, funny but, they feel real since things not always go perfectly smooth.
Regarding umbrellas you also have the reflective white ones that are not specular. My suggestion is that you include them in any new umbrella tutorial. Also how the size and form of the umbrella affects the light
the leaf blower really added a whole different dimension !
Very clear demonstration, Gavin! ...and Sophie is striking, as always. :)
Man you are good ! What more can I say? Other than why after more than 50 years taking pictures (I am a hobbyist not a professional) I always go back to basics and end up with my faithful umbrellas and leave my other modifiers on the shelf (to mate I guess) and somehow they end up producing more modifiers that I never use.........Incredible, no?
As always, you have nailed it yet again. AWESOME JOB.
Thanks for the video Gavin; very insightful. Always struggled with studio photography and when to use which umbrella, so this refresher was very useful!
Great video Gavin, Sophie looks wonderful as ever. The sound in this post was superb
Thanks Martyn 👍
Thanks a lot Gavin, I thought I knew what type of umbrella I wanted until I saw your video. Now it looks like I'm getting both. Cheers!
Dude amazing tutorial 🙏🏾🙏🏾
Sophie is an incredible model! Gavin you have the best videos!
Gavin you're my favorite Adorama guy and Sophie is amazing, she is now my favorite model on youtube. I like the fact that you take all these awesome photos with an Olympus.
Thanks for the kind words. Sounds like your on the right path to realising that for studio flash work, the lights are doing almost all of the work and the camera is along for the ride 😉
@@GavinHoey Yes Gavin and I really enjoy your studio flash series. I’m half way there and still need to master and refine lighting techniques. But you give me a lot of great ideas as my studio is almost the same size as yours.
Loved the book balance pic and the leaf blower!! Great easy tip!!! Thanks
Thanks Annette. I think Sophie made book balancing while modelling look easier then it is!
You are the best and a model is amazing.
Great refresher on umbrellas. Thanks Gavin!
So 👍 beautiful 🌷 and creative use of soft box with umbrella 👍😂nice information 🌷🌷🌷🌷🙏🌷
Always interesting, entertaining and well presented. I enjoy watching them even when it’s about something I already know. One thing that never fails to be mentioned though is that shoot through umbrellas spill light everywhere. I know that’s true. However, it should be noted that much of this spilled light ends up being affected by the inverse square law before it gets back into the picture, same as any other light. So, it’s not necessarily that much of a factor.
Fair point when the umbrellas are at a distance Pierre. I like to keep mine just out of frame, so on head shots light spill can be an issue.
This is GREAT! Thank you Gavin for making these videos!
Thanks for the wonderful lesson
Gav is back, yay!
Thanks for this. I have both. Now I'm going to try to use the shoot through as a fill light. I just love your videos.
Thanks Patty. Shoot throughs make great fill lights 👍
Great video. Thanks Gavin!
I have an umbrella 2 in 1. It is very convenient to have an umbrella that allows you to take pictures through and reflected. It is also lightweight and easy to carry anywhere.
Hi Adel. I also have several 2 in 1 umbrellas and your 100% right, they are great for travel. But of course I usually want the opposite type of brolly to what it's set-up to shoot! The low cost of umbrellas means I prefer one (or more) of each when working in my small home studio 😉
@@GavinHoey Hi!
Outside the studio, he can save from the rain.😉
Thank you again Gavin, great stuff again .. :)
P.S. Well done Sophie, excellent Book balancing skills 😊
I was wondering if Gavin can do another product photography also? Great instructor!!
I use 1 shoot thru and 1 white inside bounce umbrella for my portraits..❤
Very informative thank you!
Great tutorial. I was looking for this solution because I’m tired of lugging my soft-boxes around, I’m moving to umbrellas. Thanks’
Great video gavin 👏 👍
Excellent explanation which is Gavin's hallmark. Great learning 👍
Great video as always. I see a double shadow on nose of the reflective umbrella image in your side by side, similar to what you said of the reflective pattern on the wall. Good to know to be on the lookout for that.
Thank you so much for your valuable information, I don't have umbrellas yet, but I'll try do to some exercises with my light bouncers.
Greetings from Mexico, I love how didactic are your videos 🤗
Awesome video!
As usual a great tutorial. Thankyou
I love using umbrellas. But I don't get anything as great as you do Gavin. Not yet anyway! One day!!
My top tip Brad... Get the umbrella close to your model and then, move it a little closer!
Very good, thanks adorama, thanks Gavin.
Actually Gavin, I learned a great trick from Bruno Cohen, use a large umbrella in a room with walls and ceiling close, let the light spill past the umbrella to spill onto the wall/ceiling to increase the effective fill. Works for large groups so very well.
Very beautiful video 👌👌
Really great video - very informative - Best Wishes Jono.
It's nice that Sophie know how to move & pose her hands. When you put the books on her head it reminded me of a youtube Wiener Dog named Harslo the balancing hound from Ireland. Check him out. LOL Nothing as heavy as books but he is a cutie. Nice video guys.
another nice one
Another thing I love about umbrellas is they are small and light when transporting.
Well done sir.🙏
I'm an amateur always looking for ways to get great images on the cheap. The absolute best and softest light I have gotten in a portrait situation is using a simple speedlight on a stand off to one side at about a 45 degree angle.I point the light straight up with a small piece of amber gel over the lens (flash), then use the little built in white bounce card. The result is a nice catchlight and soft light that looks like ambient without any blown out highlights....If you have a high, or dark colored ceiling it's probably not going to work
5:40 amazing SHOOT
Great video and very educational as always.
Great video as always. Love your work.
amazing.
Brilliant 👏
Apart from all the fantastic images you create the thing I love most of all about your videos is the lack of waffle. Simple demonstrations of the right way to do it but also showing can be incorrect. No long winded facts and figures just simple representations oh and you get to work with awesome models such as Sophie and Jade Lyon.
Thanks Paul. I have far more incorrect images then correct ones. The real skill is know which is which 😉
You are absolutely the best instructor and photographer!!!!! You make everything so easy 🤓 Thanks for all your efforts and videos.
yeayyy, Mr Gavin Hoey,. 🥰🥰🥰👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻
I have a question about the flash. During the video you kept switching between having the cone on the front of the flash and no cone. It seemed like when actually shooting the model, you always had the cone on, but when demonstrating the light pattern, you had the cone off. When using an umbrella, should you have the cone on the front of the flash? Clearly this would focus the light, but if using an umbrella it seems you would want more diffuse light source to fill up the umbrella.
Very helpful video, lots of practical information.
Gavin used an evolv 200 pro with reflector ("cone") when shooting the model, but Explore 300 pro with built-in reflector when showing the pattern on the wall.
Thanks for information
great content as always !
Great comparison. Just wondered if anyone has tried a reflector (even just white card ) behind the shoot through to see if it reduces the spill.
Top Gavin , u videos are 💯
Merci pour tout 💪👍🍾👑
Great photos, as always. One thing I did notice is how much warmer and brighter Sophie and her sweater were in the video, but they were quite muted in the photos themselves, especially in those where the leaf blower was used. Perhaps this is due to TH-cam compression or something else, but the colour differences are much more noticeable here than in your other videos. Thoughts?
Hi David. The test photos are straight out of camera. The final photos are edited usually in the way I preplanned. In this case we choose the orange jumper as it's a colour that takes desaturation really well.
Do you ever use diffuser for reflective umbrella portrait shots or without is fine.
Thanks for all your content. Loved it. Now not to be negative but I thought and learn my self that the level of the metal umbrella insert should be near to the end not the middle and not push closer to light. Due to size and the way light bounds back or go thru the modifiers has lots to manage and to take advantage to the way each of them is being made. Need input. I am sure that will to each photographer taste at the end but I know that the light is much better umbrella being hold the farther from light source. Thanks for any input and definitely you are one of my favorites in this channel.
Hi Roberto. Placing your flash at the end of the umbrella shaft can cause major issues. I cover that very point at 6:10 and demo the pattern of light from both ends of the umbrella... the results may make you do some further testing of your own!
@@GavinHoey thanks. I appreciated it. I got used to place the shaft at the edge like not sticking it all the way in like just barely holding it and yes without falling. I really like your creativity. Thanks so much. I enjoy your videos.
Hi whats the difference if you point the shoot through umbrella away from the subject?
2:35 That is why I use a reflective umbrella but with a white surface inside instead of silver, so it is more diffusing.
How come some shots you use the flash reflector on the reflective umbrella? Is it to prevent light spill?
🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥
- Swole Beast🤙🏽🙏🏽✌🏽
💙💙💙💙💙💙💙💙💙💙💙💙
A D O R A M A ! 😍😍😍😍😍😍😍
⚡️⚡️⚡️⚡️⚡️⚡️⚡️⚡️⚡️⚡️⚡️⚡️
I have a convertible umbrella and habitually use the shoot thru. This inspires me to use the reflective umbrella more.
Hey Gavin. Great video as always and very instructive, but could you do one with a model that wears glasses as I struggle sometimes with the umbrella showing too much as a reflection. Thanks
And if you take of the head modifier of the ad300pro? To get a studio light feeling?
ahh the Swiss Army knife of light modifier... cheap but very effective just dont use it outside on a windy day 😁
Thanks for another awesome video. Would love to know what those backgrounds are (8:10). Unfortunately, not a word about them in the description.
They're the fluffy rugs that are usually on the floor!
A leaf blower? Fantastic idea! Small and cordless. (Ready to roll your eyes when I ask this) What’s the make and model of that leaf blower? I’m always loving your videos too Gavin!
Hi Jodi. That's my Ryobi mini leaf blower. The battery is compatible with my DIY tools but for cleanliness and safety, the blower itself is never taken out of the studio.
Awesome
i use both like you did
Nice thanks
Holy!!! how can I make one of those corner backgrounds? is it fabric? vinyl ?
How about a reflective umbrella, but white? Just less punchy than silver?
Hope you will make a comparison between these umbrellas with the parabolic or deep umbrellas.
Good suggestion.
Hi. What do u call the red apparatus on your hand? What is it for?
Can someone tell me what is that tablet you project your tether? PS. thanks fot the nice video Gavin!
Since Gavin has overwhelming and deserved support, let me say kudos to Sophie! Lol! 👐🏾
Hey Gavin, are you tethered to an iPad? If so, what app do you have for that?
🔥🔥🔥
What flash Mount are you using to get the umbrella thru so easily? J. Payne, Charlotte, NC.
good video