So we're just going to assume that you've not got much experience with studio lighting. So this is just a standard list of modifiers that you're going to have in a studio. So you've got reflectors, you've got snoots you've got beauty dishes, you've got up to box softbox strip light shoe through umbrellas, reflective umbrellas. Also got flags and reflectors and backdrops. So what I want to do is just go and have a look at some of those modifiers and those pieces of equipment and see what they actually look like and help us to have a clearer understanding of what we're talking about before we go into the Course Info. So here we have our strobe or studio light, and we can see that this has a reflector on it and our reflector is a very small light source.

It's very directional. We're just going to use that to create a hard light Now in this image, we've got the same reflector, but now we've added a grid. This is known as a honeycomb grid. And most reflectors will have an adapter or your PI reflectors with the grid already built in. They come in different sizes, the smaller the hole, the more directional light. And the reason we use these is if we want to really thin beam of light, that honeycomb will keep the light rays in a straight line, so we get a very narrow beam.

Enough to the smaller the honeycombs. The smaller the spaces between the metal, the more tighter the beam is going to be. Now this is a snoot. So this is a long, pointed device and it has a very small how at the front, and that's going to give us a very directional beam of light. And you can see it there from the side for a clear perspective this is what is known as a beauty dish. You get some different types of beauty dish, you can either have a beauty dish where the central dome, the light hits the diamond and bounces and then shines around the rest of the big addition you get a nice directional, soft light.

Some beauty dishes come with a semi transparent center and when they come with a semi transparent scent a little bit more expensive but they can give a little bit more pleasing light because you don't get a hole in the middle of your light source. This is an aqua box. This is my favorite form of lighting. I just really like them, especially when they're graded. They have a nice deep light, a lovely wrap and they're very good for portraiture very versatile. You can use these in lots of situations.

Here is one fitted with a standard grid. Again, the grid is going to help them Be a little bit more directional and stop it flaring out at the sides. This is a simple shoot through umbrella. Very basic lighting has lots of uses though when you're trying to light a group of subjects or a large area, because it will take the line scatter it in lots of directions. This is a reflective umbrella. What this tends to do is very similar principle, but because it's bouncing into the silver side of the umbrella of a silver interior and then bouncing out, the lights going to be a little bit softer and more even as it spreads around.

It's not going to be quite as spread as a shoot through umbrella because the edges are going to stop it going out the sides whereas with a shoot, shoot through umbrella, it's going to go everywhere. This is what's known as a strip box. So it's a tall thin light. Very good for lighting edges. unfurl lamp portraits. And here's the same item with a grid.

Here is a standard softbox. These are pretty standard in any studio, and they vary in sizes. Basically you're simulating window light with the larger soft boxes and that's a way to think of these great ways to simulate a window light type look. And again, they come with grids as well. Now here's a black flag, we would use this to block some light, very important in studio photography. They have some large black flags.

You can get art card from the local art and craft shop quite cheaply. And that's a great way of creating lightweight flags, which you can then clamp to a stand. This is just Standard reflects that you get silver, you get gold, you get some variations and often these will be translucent and you can use them as a diffusion panel as well and so oftentimes they have white blank, so you can use them as a flag or a little bit of white fill. So very versatile. And it's usually good to have one or two of those kicking around in your studio.