stofen omni bounce diffuser

Crispin · 13-10-2010 11:38am #1

Anyone use them? £17 looks a bit steep for a bit of plastic... how good are they?

Fajitas! · 13-10-2010 11:47am

I find them great tbh - I like shooting bare bulb & bouncing with on camera flash, so it suits me grand - you can get all sorts of adjustable Gary Fong yokes that'll twist your light all over the place, but the simplicity of the Stofen is great, you just pop it on top and work away (:pac:).

You could probably make your own from a lunchbox, but it's as easy to just buy one and have something that fits properly.

oshead · 13-10-2010 11:49am

They have their uses. Best use is when you have a celling and/or walls to bounce off. The omni in the name indicates that it sends light in almost directions. So light goes everywhere, bouncing all over the shop and gives the impression of a large diffuser. Dosn't really have much use outdoors, except maybe for large group shots.

Slidinginfinity · 13-10-2010 3:36pm

Mine lives on my flash.

kelly1 · 13-10-2010 4:01pm

I've often wondered how useful they are. How is it better than bounced flash with the white-card extended (on the 580EX)?

Ballyman · 13-10-2010 4:24pm

kelly1 wrote: »

How is it better than bounced flash with the white-card extended (on the 580EX)?

The white card throws a little light forward to give you catchlights and help get rid of the racoon shadows.

The stofen throws light everywhere - up, down, front, back.

If you are bouncing using the stofen you may need to overexpose with the flash a little as the stofen takes a bit out power out of the flash.

kelly1 · 13-10-2010 4:37pm

Ballyman wrote: »

The white card throws a little light forward to give you catchlights and help get rid of the racoon shadows.

The stofen throws light everywhere - up, down, front, back.

If you are bouncing using the stofen you may need to overexpose with the flash a little as the stofen takes a bit out power out of the flash.

OK, thanks. I'll invest some time.

pixbyjohn · 13-10-2010 4:38pm

Crispin wrote: »

Anyone use them? £17 looks a bit steep for a bit of plastic... how good are they?

generic ones on Ebay>
http://cgi.ebay.ie/Flash-Bounce-Diffuser-CANON-430EX-430EX-II-E6B-/370365081553?pt=UK_CamerasPhoto_CameraAccessories_CameraFlashUnits_JN&hash=item563b7aa7d1

Which flashgun do you need it for ?

The Snipe · 13-10-2010 5:54pm

I'm using one on my 580EX II, I like it, sometimes it can effect browns etc. but usefull overall.

Freddie59 · 13-10-2010 6:29pm

Slidinginfinity wrote: »

Mine lives on my flash.

Same here.

ThOnda · 13-10-2010 7:34pm

I love when shooting in place where the light could bounce - it fills in the space nicely. Well worth the money (from USofA).

Crispin · 13-10-2010 7:41pm

Thanks for the replies. Very useful.

I just ordered sunpak pz42x flash, apparently takes same omni bounce as the sb600, but as this is my first introduction to flash so I decided the extra £17 was a stretch too far and I am going to mess around with some home made diffusers and see how I get on. I might stump up the extra cash if I get into the strobing =D

AnimalRights · 13-10-2010 8:47pm

I use mine to get rid of harsh light and erm RED EYES!

pixbyjohn · 13-10-2010 9:54pm

Crispin wrote: »

Thanks for the replies. Very useful.

I just ordered sunpak pz42x flash, apparently takes same omni bounce as the sb600, but as this is my first introduction to flash so I decided the extra £17 was a stretch too far and I am going to mess around with some home made diffusers and see how I get on. I might stump up the extra cash if I get into the strobing =D

The generic diffusers are very cheap on Ebay, approx 3 euro

Borderfox · 13-10-2010 10:29pm

I use to use them but cant be bothered atm, robs the flash of about 2 stops so I just bounce as normal. I have a flash bracket for when its on the camera.

stofen omni bounce diffuser

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