Difference Between Umbrella and Softbox
A photographer sometimes needs some extra light when he is shooting inside. Umbrella and Softbox are the two light modifiers which are used by the photographers when they are taking photos of a model. Softboxes are more expensive than the umbrella. But it does not imply that umbrella give poor result. But umbrella are not always useful. The difference between umbrella and softbox is in relation to the requirement of a photographer.
Umbrella and softbox have different features. They are used by the photographers for lighting purposes. Umbrella is cheaper and easy to carry. On the other hand setbox is expensive and less easy to carry and set up. The umbrella and its stand costs less than $ 50. Umbrella is flexible and spreads the light in uniform. It is very useful for group portraits as it spreads wider light. It spreads light in all directions. It is so cheap and simple that some people do not favor it for prestige.
There are two types of umbrellas. First type is shoot through which is placed between the lens and the flash. It throws light at the subject. Its light can easily be controlled. Another type of umbrella is the reflective umbrella. It is placed behind the flash. It reflects the flash light on the subject to be photographed. It throws more light than previous type. Its light cannot be controlled easily. Reflective umbrellas are of different types. The bigger is the umbrella, the softer its reflection will be.
To control the light, softbox is ideal. It is better in case of individual portrait. It gives more defined light. The light of the softbox may be directed to wherever one desires. So, it is easier to control. The amount of light from softbox can be fine tuned with the help of louvers.