For 10 years I've built a studio in the Nevada desert to photograph participants at the annual Burning Man festival. This year I used two Photoflex umbrellas and really appreciated the extra increase in light output. The 45-inch, silver-lined umbrellas provided about a full stop more light, with no bleed-through from the back of the umbrellas and a noticeable increase in contrast in my negatives. Positioning the light head at different distances to the umbrella surface allowed me to vary the light beam and control fall-off on the edges from none to about a half stop. Also, the umbrellas are very tough. At the end of the trip I just power-washed the dust off and returned them to use in my studio. |
