Octaboxes.
Octaboxes come in 3-, 5-, and 7-foot versions, al-
though larger octa-shaped modifiers are available for
high-end lighting. I like to think of an octabox as an
umbrella (scattered light modifier) with a softbox
front (directional light modifier): the tool provides
the best of both worlds—directional light and oc-
tagonal-shaped catchlights in the subject’s eyes. My
favorite is the Chimera OctaPlus 57, as it can easily
be changed to form a 5- or 7-foot wide octabox.
When shooting private glamour photography
with older subjects, the 7-foot octabox is the best
light modifier. It is a huge source that produces
nothing but soft, sweet, directional light. With a
light this large, you can even stand in front of it with
minimal loss of light, as most of the light will seem
to just go around you. It’s not uncommon to see
the silhouetted shape of the photographer in the oc-
tagonal catchlights that a large octabox creates in
the subject’s eyes.
Umbrellas.
Though each modifier serves its own purpose, I’ve
found that I use umbrellas infrequently in my work.
In my mind, they bring bad luck when opened in-
doors and are best used to shield yourself from rain
when you’re working outdoors! Umbrellas scatter
light everywhere. As a result, some photographers consider them a fail-safe
option for lighting up anything in their vicinity—though not always with the
vibrancy found when using modifiers like softboxes, grids, and reflectors,
which allow us to produce a more directional light.
Here’s an analogy that will help you conceptualize the way umbrellas work:
A person uses a “real” umbrella on drab, rainy days. On such days, we have
low-contrast light. The drops of rain strike the top of the umbrella, scattering
the drops all around haphazardly.
Though no one would ever take a softbox out in the rain for protection
against the elements, let’s pretend that this is the case. If you were to take a
softbox the same size as the theoretical umbrella and place it so that it was
open to the rain, the rain would fall into the box and would remain contained.
98 LIGHTING FOR GLAMOUR PHOTOGRAPHY
FACING PAGE—I photographed Devon in an industrial manufac-
turing plant where I noticed the leading lines formed by the
overhead lights. By placing my camera position low, I was able
to give the model a taller appearance and capture the lights’
imaginary diagonals, which act as leading lines toward the
model. She was illuminated by several Hensel Integra 500 Pro
Plus monolights. The main light was fitted with a Chimera
Octa57 Plus octabox. The other lights were placed behind her,
one on each side, for accent lights. They were fitted with 7-
inch metal reflectors and 10-degree grids. Postproduction of
this image was done in Adobe Photoshop with Nik Software’s
Dynamic Skin Softener filter. (CAMERA:Olympus E-500. SETTINGS:
124mm effective focal length,^1 / 40 second shutter at f/8, white
balance at 6000K, ISO 100)