description
Umbrellas are the cheapest good light shaper you can buy, easy to open, easy to pack, and forgiving. The part most people skip is where the flash sits on the shaft: slide it too close to the fabric and a 48 inch umbrella lights like a much smaller one. Five test frames at shaft lengths from 0 to 32 inches show the light spreading across the fabric, the exposure dropping slightly, shadow contrast easing, and the catchlight growing larger but dimmer.
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Light Shaping
As photographers one of our biggest challenges is the proper control of light so that we can create photographs that best represent our creative vision. Because of this a huge industry has exploded that specializes in providing tools to better control light. Many of these tools are expensive but there is one fantastic option that has remained very reasonable and that is the umbrella.
Umbrellas often have been given a bad reputation, though, because they can be difficult to control. The purpose of an umbrella is to send soft, high quality light bouncing all over to provide consistent, even, light throughout your scene.
Why Umbrellas are AWESOME
1: They are cheap.
Photography can be very expensive, but umbrellas generally are not. You can purchase a 60 inch Umbrella for as little as $30! A cheap 60 inch octobox will set you back ten times that amount!
2: They make harsh light soft.
Umbrellas do a fantastic job of redistributing condensed, directional, light so that it softly illuminates the subject.
3: They are very easy to set up.
Unlike softboxes, which can sometimes feel like absolute torture to set up in a rush, umbrellas can be set up in one simple fluid motion that takes no more than 5 seconds.
4: They are portable.
Umbrellas fold down very small and can easily be stuffed anywhere that can accommodate the length of their center column. Umbrellas also are free of any additional parts or accessories that you might forget at home.
Choosing Which Umbrella to Buy
One of the first and most important lessons a photographer should learn when first exploring the use of artificial lighting is that the softness of the light is determined by the size of the light source relative to the subject.
A 60 inch umbrella 5 feet away from your subject will have softer light than a 30 inch umbrella at the same distance. However if you were to move the 60 inch umbrella farther away to 10 feet, it would then have about the same light quality as the 30 inch one at 5 feet.
You can never go wrong by having a variety of umbrellas to accommodate different scenarios but if you were to only purchase a single umbrella it is almost always beneficial to get the largest umbrella that your space allows. You can always move a large umbrella back to make sharper light but if the umbrella is too small there is very little you can do to make it seem larger.
It is also important to make sure that you purchase an umbrella that has a removable cover so that you can use it either as a reflective umbrella or as a shoot-through.
How To Use The Umbrella
The basics are pretty simple. All you have to do is open the umbrella, attach it to your light and start shooting. Right?
WRONG!
You are missing out on a crucial part of the process and it is a part that many umbrella users never even consider.
The distance from the light source to the umbrella diffusion material can play a huge role in the quality of light the umbrella produces. The closer the umbrella’s diffusion fabric is to the light source the less time light has to disperse before passing through the fabric.
This can pose a huge problem because if the diffusion fabric is too close to the light source the light won’t be cast on the full umbrella which would mean that even though you might “think” you are using a 60 inch umbrella you are actually only casting light on a small portion of that umbrella and essentially creating a smaller light source.
After setting up your umbrella point your camera at the umbrella and take a photo. This will allow you to evaluate the distribution of light throughout the skin of the umbrella so that you can make adjustments to get the most out of the tool.
Here are some examples of umbrellas at different distances showing how the distance from umbrella fabric to the light source can vastly change the size and shape of the light cast towards your subject. Each is measured by how far the shaft of the umbrella extends beyond the edge of the strobe reflector. The examples use a 48 inch umbrella attached to an Alien Bee. Each photo example is unedited save for cropping and being converted to black and white. Distance from edge of the umbrella to the subject remains constant at 4 feet.
Shaft Length: 0 inches
Shaft Length: 8 inches
Shaft Length: 16 inches
Shaft Length: 24 inches
Shaft Length: 32 inches
As you can see by lengthening the umbrella shaft we are able to distribute the light more evenly across the umbrella’s skin. This causes the light to be less focused and more ambient. As a result the overall brightness of the exposure is slightly reduced and there is lower contrast in the shadows. The catch light in the eye also becomes larger but dimmer.
So Now What?
Go grab your umbrella and do some experimenting. Armed with this new knowledge start exploring the different things you can do with an umbrella and observe the impact it has on your images. A short-shafted umbrella setup isn’t necessarily wrong, it is just a different “right” when used appropriately. Often the change can be subtle but always remember that it is in those tiny details where an image finds its way from good to great!
Quick Reference: Settings and Tips
- Soft lightA bigger source relative to the subject is softer
- Size vs distanceA 60-inch umbrella at 10 ft is about as soft as a 30-inch at 5 ft
- BuyingThe largest your space allows, with a removable cover for reflective or shoot-through
- Shaft lengthExtend it so the light fills the whole umbrella; the tests ran from 0 to 32 inches
- Check the spreadPoint the camera at the umbrella and take a photo
- Longer shaftSofter, less contrasty shadows, slightly darker exposure, larger but dimmer catchlight
Photography Umbrellas: Common Questions
Why use an umbrella instead of a softbox?
Umbrellas are inexpensive, turn harsh light soft, open in about five seconds and fold down small with no extra parts to forget. Softboxes of the same size cost far more and take longer to set up.
Why do umbrellas have a reputation for being hard to control?
An umbrella sends soft light bouncing all over the scene. That even spread is its purpose, but it also means the light is less contained than with other modifiers.
What makes the light from an umbrella soft?
The size of the light source relative to the subject. A 60-inch umbrella 5 feet away is softer than a 30-inch one at the same distance; moved back to 10 feet, it gives about the same quality as the 30-inch at 5 feet.
What size umbrella should I buy?
If you buy only one, get the largest your space allows. You can move a big umbrella back for harder light, but there is little you can do to make a small one seem larger.
Should I get a reflective or shoot-through umbrella?
Get one with a removable cover, so the same umbrella works both as a reflective umbrella and as a shoot-through.
Why does the umbrella’s shaft length matter?
If the fabric sits too close to the light, the light only reaches a small part of the umbrella. Your 60-inch umbrella then behaves like a much smaller light source.
How can I tell if the light fills the whole umbrella?
Point your camera at the umbrella and take a photo. It shows how the light spreads across the fabric so you can adjust the shaft before you shoot.
What changes when I extend the shaft?
The light spreads more evenly across the umbrella and becomes less focused. Overall brightness drops slightly, shadows get lower in contrast, and the catchlight in the eye gets larger but dimmer.
Is a short shaft setup wrong?
No. It gives a more focused, contrasty light, which is just a different choice. Experiment with both and watch how each changes your images.
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