Beauty Dish vs. Softbox: Best Modifiers for Beauty Photography Tested

[@RonK]

to me the mola demi was the winner, but pretty funny how close all those are. thanks for the effort !!

[@JohnGress]

Thank you and thanks for watching!

[@lorenzofortunati]

Good point. Pose (the subject) is way more important than the model of modifier

[@sylvianosamia2839]

A FANTASTIC set-up is Softbox PLUS Beauty dish (center in the middle of the softbox) together.

[@russellbaston974]

I use this, technique as well, I call it 'piggy back" lighting . I first found it in a book about 'vintage' cinematography styles in 1950's, big softbox gives nice overall detail then the beauty dish highlights the face.

[@andrefelixstudio2833]

Nice video well explained , The best way to explain what’s happening with the light is how it is being projected via the diffuser or modify that you’re using some modifiers will make a light more dynamic some light diffusers will make the light diffused it’s whatever your personal preferences is when shooting a subject matter, understand light and understand how to control your light!

[@carliiiartist]

I picked the Mola! ✊🏾

[@stefaneckhorst366]

What i used often is the elb500 with the modified ELINCHROM Rotalux Indirect Octa Speedring für Rotalux in combination with the deep octa 70 and 100. Both give me nice results and soft highlights. Thanks for your testing!

[@AaronAubreyPhoto]

Great comprehensive video as always John! My picks were 1. Elinchrom White BD 2.Rotalux Deep Octa w both diff 3. Mola You brought up the catchlights..I love the ones from the Mola!! As for the 'diameter equals distance' I've heard of this before and have tried to use it at times, I definitely find with my 100cm Deep Octa, that putting it roughly 100cm away is the sweet spot for that special quality the DO has!!

[@JohnGress]

Thanks Aaron! I will try that out on my next shoot. I normally just put it as close as I can without it being in the way, but I think doing it systematically would be a better approach.

[@bobsykes]

That was fascinating and surprising! (Remember, I have zero experience using any of these lights). Of the first set of photos, I too voted for the most popular image just as you did, and from the second example they were too close for me to even remember which one I preferred. On the other hand the weird reflections off the eye caused by four of the six would completely rule them out for me. I want the reflection in the eye to look natural, which means like from the sun or from open shade outdoors. For my first ever such light modifier, I would buy the Rotolux Go for the portability above all, for the versatile look depending upon where it’s placed, and for the natural, round, eye reflection. For you, I would absolutely trade the beauty dish you have for the one the large majority and you yourself liked best, or else it will bother you every time you use it going forward, thinking you might have done better!

[@JohnGress]

Thank you so much Bob. Great insights. If I continue to use the Demi it will plague me with doubt going forward.

[@ponyonyo3805]

very interesting . but I wanted mola setti to be included in the comparison.

[@JohnGress]

I didn't really like how it preformed in previous tests so I sold it. kzbin.info/www/bejne/mpm5nYV3ibaAgsU and kzbin.info/www/bejne/eam3Z6JqfpWDrNU

[@iAmAdrianClarke]

Love me a white beauty dish, grid/sock/bare, but a photek soft lighter is also magical, as well as an overcast day with the sun barely peeking out 🙏🏿

[@JohnGress]

Ah yes the Softlighter is a great modifier. I think I should get one again.

[@iAmAdrianClarke]

@@JohnGress you should definitely get another

[@brettida5091]

I love they are so portable and product great light too.

[@iAmAdrianClarke]

@@brettida5091 gorgeous light

[@angelartsa]

Choose the Elinchrom octa, I may not be the best judge as I use that softbox often. and may have sub consciously recognized the look. At 1 metre the softbox is the best look, more flattering of her features. Good test, if I were you Id trade that mola demi, I hate having gear lying around collecting dust when someone else could make better use of it

[@JohnGress]

Thanks! I probably own too much stuff so on the block it goes!

[@razvanionita3489]

Wow! The same 2 (3) first choice . Off topic (maybe) For me picture with the Rotalux GO Octa 60 cm look better because of the position of the head (sorry for my english).

[@lkfs55]

I would change it because I like Elichrom also and own it. However, one thing to consider is the model, and the poses are more important, right? The lighting didn’t seem to have as much influence as the pose.

[@JohnGress]

I likely will. I think you're right, the content is more important than the nuances of the different lighting options.

[@arthur3038]

john.. keep the Mola.. I like a lot ,what it did to the shape of her face.. the E white beauty dish is a keeper a well.. so keep them both. The Elinchrome seem's to me is a bit more mainstream portrait light... the Mola is definitely exciting .. i wish E would produce a Go Octa larger then 60cm.. then it might be a keeper as well for me..and beats them all (in light and in handling).. My favorit the Mola

[@JohnGress]

Thanks 👍

[@andrewrice9383]

I picked the two left pictures, probably the top left.

[@ymaphilo]

Would you say a lantern light vs these two would win?

[@rodrigoferraoO]

Olá uma duvida me surgiu em investir ? Canon EOS R1 Canon - R5 Mark II Mirrorless ou Z8 nikon ou A7R6 sony .. Eu tenho a A7RIV mas me surgiu uma oportunidade de vender meu quit que eu tenho e estava pensando em migrar e sair da Sony ?

[@henryrichie3388]

Please make a judge / review about beauty dish Godox BDR W55 and BDR S55. Thank you

[@DavidAnderson-vt8iq]

Great video - great test. I have the White Elinchrom beauty dish and love it for outdoor fill with the silver disc, but tend to use the larger Elinchrom indirect boxes indoors. That said, all are a pain to travel so I'm going to try the 70cm you're using here. Thanks.

[@JohnGress]

👍🏼👍🏼 I’ll have to try the silver disc too. Thanks for the idea. 🙏🏼

[@ernie28ernie]

Hi John, can't say what you should do, but I have a Mola Demi and I will keep it, it's so much fun to use! Especially with the grid :) The differences between the light modifiers is not that big, at least per youtube for me. The Elinchrome pictures are beautiful and streamlined, maybe the Demi produces a little more character? But what do I know, maybe I have some owners bias... ;) Cheers, Martin

[@JohnGress]

I hear ya. Perhaps in the end the answer is to do whatever is easiest because the pose matters most.

[@ernie28ernie]

@@JohnGress Definitely :) The position of the light is essential too. Maybe access, handling and support from the manufacturer are decisive, but it's great to see the nuances of the different kit! ;)

[@dustinfocus]

It'd be fun to see all the products of the Mola have their own light battle. They are expensive, but I've heard the Euro was much more flattering than the demi.

[@JohnGress]

In that case you might like this video. Which Mola for your moolah? Comparing three different beauty dishes during a portrait photoshoot kzbin.info/www/bejne/mpm5nYV3ibaAgsU

[@mh7711]

Schouldn't be the best (soft) light which produces the most brightness at the outside ring of the box? So the most light is spread over a large area of the softbox-surface and the Model is surrounded better of most of the light? Sorry hard to desribe... Counter-example: when only the middle of the box is very bright, the outside very low, then the lightspot is very small, like a very small softbox -> harder light. So at 08:09 for example the Rotalux Deep Octa Softbox with W/Inner Diffusion should produce the most softening light?

[@JohnGress]

Hi Max. Having an even soft box edge to edge is normally a good thing, but it may not be the ideal in this situation. I suspect having brighter light in the center is causing the face to look slimmer in this position. Where as the Octabox with both layers of diffusion made her face look wider. However if we were trying to light a older person, we would probably want a softer light and if we were trying to shoot a full body portrait, we would probably prefer a more even light. But you're giving me food for thought when I test out Paras in a future video. I wonder if I can get a similar look as a para on flood with a 100cm deep octa with the inner diffusion.

[@jakubstrumillo]

First and six photo were my choices. So im not blind :D

[@vortac2k9]

Thanks for the info. We appreciate the work you do

[@JohnGress]

My pleasure! Thank you.

[@trypersistence]

The Elinchrom was superior in quality of light and shaping of the face. If you don't have it already, get it. :) Thanks for a great comparison video!

[@JohnGress]

Thanks! fyer making this video I switched from Mola to Elinchrom.

[@tomleiningerphoto]

Would griding the modifiers change the results? The elinchrom beauty dish is nice...

[@lkfs55]

I agree with the top 2 selections and had picked them also. A couple faces seemed distorted and may have been the distance to lens? Not just the lighting?

[@JohnGress]

Thanks! The distance of the camera to the model and lens remained the same, except for on one image where I think she leaned forward a bit. (Sorry I didn't catch it on set).

[@TeenyWeeny]

Seems like the 27" had more spill onto the background than the 24" had less spill... which this video definitely helps to decide on my use case if I want more or less spill with smaller and more narrow light than bigger dishes with more broader light, or did I interrupted that wrong?

[@JohnGress]

That’s an interesting and important observation I hadn’t considered. But if I had moved her further away from the background the differences in background illumination might have been negligible as they would all look darker. But you can’t always pick your distance.

[@JNe-t5z]

John, great test! Did the Rotolux Go Octa have the diffusion panels installed?

[@JohnGress]

Thanks! Yes it did.

[@PlamenPanchevStudios]

@John Gress I prefer Mola Demi, it produces a little more punch and more defined chick bones.

[@MrJupton1]

Picked it right off the bat!

[@JohnGress]

So you picked the Elinchrom dish too?

[@MrJupton1]

No did Not Not a fan of beauty Dish Only in certain situations where i want more punch and Model has that striking features

[@PhotoTrekr]

I've always preferred softboxes to reflectors or umbrellas.

[@PlamenPanchevStudios]

@John Gress Love Your Videos! Would it be to ask if you can send me the actual photos to compare on my computer?

[@kirkdarling4120]

You should have run the test again with a different model and using loop lighting with all the other factors the same to see if everyone made the same choices. I personally think that the more often you run the test, the closer to random the results will be.

[@brettida3936]

excellent comparison and very well executed. I did prefer the beauty dish myself. I dont own the Mola Demi but it would be interesting if you did a similar comparison with a male face. Perhaps the Mola Demi would produce great results with the male face. I think you even perhaps made a comparison video with the Mola Demi if I recall?? Anyways, great video!!!

[@JohnGress]

Thanks Brett. That is an interesting point. Maybe we would want the make face to look broader. Here are two videos I made previously about the mola. Maybe I should rewatch them. kzbin.info/www/bejne/eam3Z6JqfpWDrNU and kzbin.info/www/bejne/mpm5nYV3ibaAgsU

[@Aperazzo_Salsa_Pics]

Many thanks for putting all of these side by side! I have been suffering from GAS for a long time. I am not a pro-shooter by far and mostly shoot at events. Still I have the Elinchrom 70 & 44 cm in white, a Foxflash Demi clone in silver and a Mole Seti in white. (Bought the Demi, Foxflash and the 70cm Elinchrom at a steal second hand, else I would never have bought all of these.) Now if I (given that I do just a few shoots I do a year) manage to find a way to justify in my head owning all of these, surely a pro of your calibre can justify owing both a Demi and an Elinchrom 70 cm... Looking at the shots, I deffo liked the Elinchrom 70 cm best.

[@JohnGress]

This is why I have a 2x2' bin overflowing with softboxes! When you have 1000 brushes you still paint with the same 10. I am pretty sure I will sell the Demi and use the EL 70 BD. I also own a Mola Rayo. I sold my Setti after a side by side test last year. I'm curious to know how your filver demi compares to the Elinchrom 44. at lets say 70cm.

[@terrellsimmons7029]

Wow 👏🏾🙌🏾😌💡

[@JohnGress]

Which did you prefer? =)

[@terrellsimmons7029]

@@JohnGress yes Softbox lol

[@420sigmapower]

I think white beautydish was the bet. I like the deep ccta too . And you can use it 3 different ways.(deflected,, 1 diffuser, 2 diffuser). I have the 100cm deep octa. I also have a 2 x white deep umbrellas. I actually think i prefer white interior over silver interior because white has more accurate kelvin temperatures (around 5500-5700k). And with silver you get 5100k . so white looks more pleasing and warm to me, just like the white beautydish shows in the video. it is warmer.

[@JohnGress]

If I could only own one modifier it would be the 100 deep octa.

[@420sigmapower]

@@JohnGress I think i would go for a deep umbrella with white interior and maybe diffuser on it. That is the poor mans indirect softbox. I love the octa too with 1 diffuser because then it is kelvin warmer temperature. for some reaon.

[@MartinV.]

Great Video!!

[@JohnGress]

Thanks! Glad you enjoyed it.

[@tedsmith_photography]

I wish I had 10 friends John! :-) You're spoilt for choice!

[@JohnGress]

Well that is true! Some people were mad I didn’t ask them

[@MileyonDisney]

cool

[@JohnGress]

Thanks!

[@JohnGress]

You wanted more woman ;)

[@MileyonDisney]

@@JohnGress HA! HA! Thanks! I did notice, but I had to get out of here just then. And I think she's gorgeous. Great model for the comparison shoot. You're going to have to bring her back for one of your fashion shoots, some day.

[@andersistbesser]

They all look almost the same. Hard to say which is better

[@xtremetv8452]

Damn I can’t afford to buy your lighting books

[@jhdzmakememoryslast]

talk and show talk talk talk talk talk talk to much talk