Professor Kobre's Lightscoop
The Lightscoop is a small inexpesive flash attachment for DSLR cameras with pop-up flashes that bounce light off the background to lower the harsh direct flash on subjects.
Ease of Use, Performance: 25/25
Look & Feel: 22/25
Features 22/25
How much I enjoy 24/25
Total: 93/100
Professor Kobre’s Lightscoop is an ingenious little piece of plastic shaped with a small reflective surface that will bounce your flash back toward the ceiling and wall behind the camera. This bounce will soften and lighten the flash on the subject in front of the camera to get rid of the harsh direct flash on your subject.
To understand this is simple, flash output from a DSLR camera such as the Canon Rebel XSi or Nikon D100 is harsh and bright from the smaller pop-up flash. This is so that the light from these small flashes has enough power to light subjects further away from the camera so these types of flashes work well under limited circumstances.
In order to soften the flash that works directly on your subject you need to do something like put up a semi transparent material between the flash and your subject or bounce the flash off a wall or ceiling. This will soften the light and make the subject more appealing and better lighted for portrait and group shots but it will also lessen the amount of light.
The Lightscoop does this easily with a small reflective surface at the back of the Lightscoop to bounce the flash light off a wall or ceiling to diffuse the harsher light on your subject. This works so well, it is a simple concept and makes for a great way to soften the light that it is highly recommended by professional photographers for amateurs and professionals alike.
Professionals use umbrellas or remote flashes pointed not only at their subject or at walls and ceilings or through semi-transparent material to get the right amount of light they want on their subject. In the field pros use various methods including handheld circles to bounce light from or several flashes to take pictures with the right lighting but the Lightscoop can accomplish this easily.
The Lightscoop is a handy and simple way to bounce light from your flash and make your subject less harsh as well as alter the color using the Warming Lightscoop. The Lightscoop comes in the two versions of Standard and Warming with the Standard being a regular silver colored reflective piece and the Warming is tinted a yellowish brown or Sepia color.
The difference of using this is quite pronounced for both the Standard and Warming Lightscoops as my example pictures will show. The Standard Lightscoop drops the light down a bit but also softens and evenly distributes the light from the flash to make the subject more evenly lighted.
The Warming Lightscoop does the same thing but tones the entire picture a warmer sepia color just like using Photoshop to alter the tones but without all the fuss of software and digital enhancement. The Warming Lightscoop may not be for every occasion but it is really fun to experiment and try out various photos as a great way to further your expertise and experience.
The Lightscoop works well for indoor lighting but probably has very limited use for outdoors as it does require the bounce effect from a wall or ceiling. For most amateur and even professionals who are shooting quick indoor shots, portraits and group photos this is easily a must.
Both Lightscoop versions simply fit onto the flash shoe of a DSLR camera and allows the pop up flash to open and close inside it but some models of cameras may not work as expected if they are not supported by Lightscoop. The company lists Canon, Nikon, Pentax, Sigma and Fuji cameras on their site that are compatible but the Lightscoop may work with other DSLR cameras that have the small pop up flash in front.
I have a Canon Rebel XT and Rebel XSi and the Lightscoop easily fits on both models and works very well, these are going to be a standard camera bag item for all my camera forays. The Lightscoop is easily one of those must have DSLR items that is a great accessory for any amateur photographer for field work such as family get togethers and holidays.
No more blinding the family as they stand for the mandatory Christmas photo and blink while the camera recharges for the nest assault. The Lightscoop is an easy to use and professional product that is easy enough for even the most novice of photographer.
Using the Lightscoop on my subjects was fun and really shows the differences with and without the Lightscoop as well as the versatility of using it. The pictures of the small stuffies on the desk is in my office and the back wall to this shot is shelves with books and items on them, not a blank white wall.
The ceiling of course is white but the room is almost typical of general rooms in a home like an office or library and is quite typical for the use of this attachment. The Lightscoop does a great job of bouncing the light off of the objects in my office and the ceiling without any setup of the area before taking pictures.
The Lightscoop is available from the Lightscoop website and plenty of other internet sites such as Amazon for about $20 for one and $50 for both. The kit with both the Lightscoops also contains the small carry pouches that fit the Lightscoops and protect them when not in use and the usual how to use brochures.
The Lightscoop is easily one of the first items I wish I had purchased with my camera and is something that I easily recommend for anyone with a DSLR camera with a popup flash. The Lightscoop is a fantastic attachment and a must have for any DSLR camera owner that it can work with.