Softbox: What Is It And When Do You Use One?

by kim Updated: June 30, 2022

A softbox is a type of photographic lighting device that is used in many different types of photography to create soft, diffused light.

They are made up of a reflective interior and an exterior that diffuses the light and spread it out in a more even fashion.

Softboxes are popular because they create more pleasant, even lighting than direct light sources.

They are also often used to control shadows and highlights, while providing better control over the quality of light.

Let’s take a closer look at the components of a softbox and when you would use one.

Definition

A softbox is an iconic and versatile tool for photographers, cinematographers, and video professionals. It consists of an umbrella-like enclosure lined with a reflective surface that evenly diffuses light into the subject. This soft light can be used for portrait lighting, product photography, videography, and much more.

The term “softbox” comes from its ability to create a seemingly softer source of light than bare bulb lights or umbrellas and other devices without the reflective lining. It is easy to set up, economical to purchase, portable to move around locations, provides a quick setup of controlled lighting with flattering results and precise light control options like color correction gels or grids.

Generally speaking when it comes to lighting there are two factors: The intensity (power) of the light reaching the subject and the quality of that reaching light – the softbox produces the most effective combination of these two elements by providing both softer controlled lighting with precise shaping (there are different shapes available). Softboxes come in a variety of sizes which can be used depending on your setting needs; larger boxes create a large-detailed area coverage as opposed to smaller ones which will give you more focused light coverage for small areas like products or windowsills.

Types of Softboxes

The basic types of softboxes are rectangular, strip, octagonal and round. Rectangular softboxes are the most common. These are often used to light products in photography studios and for creating soft light indoors or outdoors in a variety of situations.

Strip softboxes are essentially a rectangle divided horizontally into two equal halves. These are excellent for photographing furniture, clothing or related items with side lighting to emphasize texture patterns, folds or lines.

Octagonal softboxes provide more even lighting by reducing the direction of the light source as well as controlling spill light into unwanted areas. This makes them particularly useful when shooting event photos or working with multiple models in an image. They also work well in commercial product photography applications when shooting reflective surfaces like jewelry or watches where glare can be an issue.

Round softboxes (also known as beauty dishes) offer a direct and focused quality of light that especially works well in portraiture and is perfect when making small details pop in product photography shots like food items or cosmetics products.

Benefits of Using a Softbox

A softbox is one of the most commonly used light modifiers used in photography. Softboxes create soft, flattering light that is ideal for studio and portrait photography. It’s also popular among event and wedding photographers due to its ability to create consistent and attractive results. In this article, we’ll go through the benefits of using a softbox.

Soft, even light

Softboxes create a flattering light because they have a built-in diffuser which diffuses and softens the light which gives you that beautiful, even, soft light. Softboxes are often used when you want to take a portrait and highlight the features of your subject by controlling the lighting.

Softboxes are great for portrait photography because they create high-quality images that look professional, with fine details that remains sharp and attractive. They produce almost no hard edges or hot spots along the edges of your subject, allowing for better focus on their facial features. Rather than just one concentrated point of light like other lights might produce, the output from a softbox will cover more space on the subject’s face and provide evenly distributed lights. Furthermore, it also allows you to be very specific in how much and where you want the lighting to fall which is perfect for portrait photography.

Control light direction

Using a softbox is the most efficient way to control and direct light output when working with continuous lighting and flash systems. A softbox, also known as an octabox or large reflector, is a photographic light modifier made up of a rectangular box-like structure and an internal diffuser. These key features act together to help create even, natural-looking lighting for portraits and other photographs that require soft edged directional light.

The four sides of the softbox can be adjusted independently by rotating the main front flap, enabling you to cover more or less of the internal diffuser. The size of the modifier determines how much area it will cover (from headshots to full body portraits) while maintaining consistent results throughout. Thanks to its shape, light from a softbox is also more even than what you’d get from an umbrella. The walls surrounding the internal diffuser help focus your illumination on your subject while limiting the amount of spill – which reduces any possible contrast loss in your scene.

Softboxes come in various sizes according to their power output and are often collapsible and portable for on-location shooters. With this tool, you have control over color temperature (by changing bulbs or panels), contrast ratio (by altering how much area you cover), directionality (by rotating it accordingly) and much more – all designed to keep reflections in check while giving you complete control over lighting direction for any creative vision.

Create a natural look

Light can be one of the most important elements when it comes to creating studio-style photographs. When used correctly, a softbox can help you create a more natural look without having to worry about harsh shadows or unnecessary highlights.

A softbox is an artificial lighting unit that usually consists of four sides which are lined with a diffusion material. The sides fold together and then mount onto a lamp, giving the light source an outer shell – much like a box or tent. This design creates beautiful, soft lighting that emulates natural window light or diffused outdoor light.

Using these modifiers create flattering, diffused light that gets rid of hard edges and harsh shadows for many types of photos including portraits, product photography, still life photography and videography. Softboxes come in various sizes from small to extra large depending on the type of look you are going for in your shots and the size of objects you are shooting.

Some popular uses for a softbox include: portrait photography; beauty & glamour photography; product photography; still life photography; food photography; interior design & architecture photos and videography. Softboxes are also useful when photographing larger items such as cars or even landscapes as they provide more controlled diffusion than conventional lamps.

When to Use a Softbox

Photography can be a tricky part of filmmaking, and one of the tricks of the trade is understanding when to use a softbox. A softbox is a type of light modifier that alters the quality of light, diffusing and controlling it for a more natural effect. Softboxes can be used for a variety of different types of shots, from product photography to portrait shots. Let’s look at a few examples of when and why to use a softbox.

Portrait Photography

Portrait photography is the practice of taking and producing photos of an individual or a group. It includes head shots, family portraits, senior photos, maternity portraits and more. In portrait photography, lighting is key in order to bring out the warm tones and textures on a subject’s face as well as create noticeable catchlights in their eyes. Softboxes are one of the most used lighting modifiers when it comes to capturing perfect portraits because they provide soft light that can be easily adjusted to fit the needs of any photographer.

A softbox is simply a light-diffusing box most commonly used for lighting subjects in portraiture and close-up work. Softboxes are usually square or rectangular and consist of an open box frame with one or more reflective interior walls lined with diffusion material – usually a white fabric like nylon or muslin. The diffusion material softens the light coming from a bulb or flash, making for softer shadows and a broader spread of light over the subject – good for eliminating harsh lines. They also have adjustable openings to maximize control over how much light you want your softbox to output so you can make sure you get just the right amount each time.

Softboxes are great tools for portrait photography due to how easy they are to adjust while still providing excellent quality results each time you use them. They can be used indoors on their own as natural fill light in place of traditional lighting fixtures or outdoors as additional fill light combined with existing sunlight sources. Photographers can also use them up close on their subjects in order to create special effects such as adding catchlights into people’s eyes when shooting outdoors without studio lights. In addition, softboxes are very versatile pieces of equipment perfect for all types of portrait photography settings; they will always find uses both in close-ups and full body shots!

Product Photography

Product photography is an ideal application for using a softbox. Products are often reflective and glinting, which can be difficult to shoot even with a detailed set-up of multiple lights. When using a softbox, it’s important to determine whether you need the soft light from a large source or the harder light from a smaller source. This decision depends on the look and effect you are trying to achieve—from blurred edges and smooth lines for product viewing (soft light) to harsh, defined features for commercial advertisement (hard light).

The industrial look of direct lighting highlights every detail of an object and looks great in product marketing scenarios. Softboxes can create more natural-looking photos that add dimension and depth—while eliminating harsh shadows—for successful product shots across all businesses, shapes, sizes and products. Commonly used for showing off jewelry, tabletop items or clothing, creating complementary shadows around objects creates dimension by eliminating flat spots caused by straight lighting or room reflections. Additionally powerful yet adjustable control over highlights and shaping up reflections allows you to produce professionally lit photos with a complete quality finish that stands out from the competition.

Food Photography

Food photography is one of the most popular applications for a softbox. Unlike other subjects, food shots have unique needs that are difficult to achieve with traditional lighting techniques. With a softbox, you can get even lighting around the plate and add dramatic shadows where desired. Softboxes can even be used in front of ice cream and other chilled treats to prevent them from melting during the shoot.

Softboxes are particularly useful when shooting food against a white background or in close up shots. They provide smooth shadows and a bright, even light that really makes colors pop out of items on the plate. There is no hotspot either— meaning there will not be high intensity areas which could burn out delicate details in certain objects on your plate composition. Working with ingredients such as herbs and cheese can also be easier as shadows will be smoother without hotter areas that may wash details away with more intense light flashes and bulbs.

Many professionals use a combination of softboxes directly to the sides of the dishes, while using a reflector card underneath for extra brightening from below and contrasting colors in their final shots that stay within the rich natural look desired when shooting food photography indoors or outdoors off camera flash setups.

How to Use a Softbox

Often mistaken for umbrellas, softboxes are commonly used in photography for adding controlled lighting for portraits and product photography. It’s a must have for any serious photographer who wants to have more control over the outcome of their shooting sessions. Softboxes offer many benefits, such as even light distribution, flexibility in diffusing light, and portability. Let’s take a closer look at how to use a softbox.

Positioning the Softbox

The size and shape of softboxes will vary, so you should consider how the box should be oriented with respect to your subject when positioning it. For example, if you’re working with a portrait or a product shot, you may want to place the softbox directly above your subject in order to create even lighting on their face.

You can further refine the lighting by placing the box at an angle; To make light more directional, position the softbox higher up and closer to your subject. The closer it is, the softer and more directional the light will appear on an object.

When photographing people, be aware that large boxes placed too close may cast harsh shadows from their nose and eyes onto their cheeks. To combat this phenomenon – also known as “raccoon eyes” – try bringing the box further away from them or reduce its size so that fewer shadows are cast overall.

Adjusting the Light Intensity

Adjusting the light intensity of a softbox is quick and easy. The opening of the front panel should be adjusted first to control the light output; this can either be wide open or you can use flags or light control panels to control where and how much light comes out, depending on your desired lighting style. Additionally, you can adjust the power of your light by changing the distance between your softbox and your subject — contrast will increase when it’s closer, and will decrease if it’s further away. You may need to adjust both elements to get the exact look you want. When you have finished adjusting both elements, take some test shots so that you can see if you need to make any further changes before moving onto another setup or location.

Setting the Right White Balance

To get the most out of your softbox and produce the best possible image, you need to set the right white balance. White balance is a process that adjusts the overall color in an image by balancing the amount of each color in a particular light source. In digital photography, setting white balance ensures that your images are true to life and not overly warm or cold.

When working with a softbox, you should set the white balance in two different ways depending on how you plan on using it. If you plan to use strobes with your softbox, then it’s best to set your white balance manually based on what type of light source you are using. If you are shooting natural light through your softbox then it’s best to use an auto white balance setting.

Manual Settings: When working with strobe lighting, it’s important to manually adjust your camera’s white balance based on the type of lights being used. This ensures that when scrolling through different shots, there is not a noticeable variation due to changes in color temperature between shots. To do this correctly, it’s important to understand how each strobe has its own unique color temperature reading so that proper adjustments can be made accordingly for each shot and set-up

Auto Settings: When shooting natural light from a softbox, Auto WB is often sufficient because natural daylight typically gives off consistent color temperatures and doesn’t vary much from photo-to-photo when using natural light only for illumination within one setup. However, it can still be beneficial to use manual settings if conditions become unpredictable or change dramatically since manual settings carry more control over customizing and balancing multiple tones across various types of lighting sources such as hard sunlight mixed with overcast sky conditions or tungsten mixed with fluorescent bulbs casting shadows in an area etc…

Conclusion

In conclusion, a softbox is an incredibly versatile piece of photography equipment that can be used in a variety of shooting conditions. Whether you’re shooting in the studio, on-location or outdoors, adding a softbox to your photography equipment lineup can help you create beautiful, emotive images with better control of the light and shadows.

Softboxes are most commonly used for portrait photography, however they can also be used for product shots in the studio or for personal art projects at home. By manipulating the distance and position of your softbox with respect to your subject you can alter the quality of light depending on your needs. Lastly, don’t forget to consider speedlights and other portable flash modifiers when selecting softboxes for your shoot – they can be just as helpful depending on what you’re trying to accomplish.

Hi, I'm Kim, a mom and a stop-motion enthusiast with a background in media creation and web development. I've got a huge passion for drawing and animation, and now I'm diving headfirst into the stop-motion world. With my blog, I'm sharing my learnings with you guys.