Turtledove diffuser for twin lites

[Marci Hess]

Has anyone used the turtledove diffuser for twin lites? What's been your experience? How does it work outside at night? Outside during the day? If you use it in a studio setting, is it used alone?

I'm photo'g insects and still struggling with the glare.

Thanks for the thoughts and experiences.

Marci
Wisconsin

[themagicdrainpipe]

I hadn't heard of the turtledove diffusers, but after looking them up they look to be a decent item. I'm sure they work well, essentially they're just two small bounce flashes for each of the heads.

[BugEZ]

Marci,

I visited your website on your prairie restoration. Impressive! No doubt a good source for macro subjects.

http://driftlessprairies.org/ecological ... e-prairie/

The diffusers mentioned look like good field kit.

Keith

[Marci Hess]

These diffusers look durable but since I don't fully understand the science of how they work, I thought I would ask this forum. Thanks for your response.

Thanks for your kind words about the website, too! Most of my insect photos are for scientific reasons and not art, yet...I like to have them done correctly. I keep improving!

[rjlittlefield]

These diffusers look durable but since I don't fully understand the science of how they work, I thought I would ask this forum.

I have handled these diffusers and seen them in use, but I have not shot with them personally. They do seem quite durable. The material is 3D-printed solid white plastic. The science is pretty simple: they are just small reflectors, a bit like tiny umbrellas but rigid. Light from the flash head strikes the reflector all over the reflector's surface, and from there it bounces to illuminate the subject. The effect is that the subject sees a much larger light source than if the flash were used directly. I think the images at https://macroscopicsolutions.com/produc ... ite-flash/ do not show the full effect, because they are overexposed to the point that the naked flashes are blown out to white over their entire surface (and then some). If the images had been exposed to show distribution of light across the flash head, which is what governs glare, then I expect you'd see a much bigger difference in effective size of the light source.

--Rik

[Marci Hess]

When in the studio, I would need to have the insect surrounded with something (like a box or milk carton, etc) for the light to bounce off of -- correct?

When in the field, would the light bounce off the vegetation? Or what other consideration should I be giving to this?

[rjlittlefield]

In their intended use, no other reflectors or diffusers are needed. You could certainly add some more diffusers to wrap around the subject, and that would make the illumination even more diffuse (coming from a wider range of angles). But the turtle doves by themselves act sort of like oddly shaped diffusers that block direct light from the flash, turning it into mostly reflected light that comes from the whole area of the turtle dove. Functionally, it's a lot like sticking a softbox in front of each head, except shorter and harder to damage.

--Rik