Salute to the MagMod on-flash modifier

Those of you who have been with me and this blog for a while might remember the post I did nine years ago when I put my then-new Graslon on-flash modifiers to the test while photographing a rehearsals for one of the  Garfield Shakespeare Company productions in Indianapolis. 

While I was mostly pleased with how the Graslon performed, I made a point to mention my biggest grievance, which was that the modifier did not stay attached to the flash as it was supposedly supposed to. 

The Graslon company had someone monitoring the Internet at the time to detect references to the modifers in news articles, blog posts and the like. They saw my post and responded to my beef about the lack of secure fitting of the modifier. They offered suggestions, which I promised to try -- and I did. To no avail. I found that the attachment continued to not be securely afixed no matter what I tried. I stopped using it.

Then a few years later -- it's probably been five or six years now -- I came across another modifier that promised the same light-diffusing benefits as the Graslon but with much better flash attachment security, so I tried it on a money-back guarantee. 

I fell in love with the MagMod MagSphere on-flash modifier immediately, and I have not had a lick of trouble with it from the get-go. The sphere attaches to the top of the flash unit with a magnet drawn to an open-ended grip, or sleeve, that you first slip over the flash head. (The magnet is the "mag" part of MagMod). I simply leave the grip on the flash at all times; the silicone sphere, the actual modifier, is easily removable from the magnetic grip after use to pack away. 

The MagMod sphere nicely distributes the light from the flash when I use it, filling in dark spaces nicely and not over lighting faces. It also does not produce red-eye.

I used the MagMod last week for the first time in probably two years when I took a multi-generation picture of Lee Ann's family who had gathered at her daughter's home for an early Thanksgiving dinner while we were there.  

I hadn't used the MagMod a whole lot in recent years. largely because the volume of my photography in general dropped considerably as a result of the COVID lockdown and aftermath. So turning to it for the family pictures required a brief reacquaintance, but not so much with the modifier which is a snap to get on. The real reacquaintance was with my flash unit, a Canon 580 EX. I put it on TTL and manually set the flash zoom to about 55mm (I was using a Canon EF 24-70mm f/2.8L lens on my Canon 6D).

I used the manual shooting mode, setting my ISO to 400, my shutter to 1/160 and my aperture to f/8 because we had three rows of people, which I felt necessitated a safe depth of field to get everyone in the picture in focus and sharp. The images require minimum adjustment in Photoshop Elements afterward. 

These were not formal portraits -- we just got the people together and tried to shoot quickly, mostly because of the youngster in the front row who was not an easy one to persuade to sit still or coach how to pose and smile. 

Afterward, the girlfriend of one of Lee Ann's grandsons asked us to take the shot of the two of them with her dog (below). Again, we weren't striving for perfection in the pose here, but I did spend some time in Photoshop healing some issues I came across on each of the couple's faces. Hopefully you won't detect any major problems there. I took this photo in vertical orientation, and the MagMod had no trouble following the flash when I cranked it upward from a position perpendicular to the camera. 

I will mention that Lee Ann and I both tried to talk the couple into using a solid-color background, which was actually very handy and nearby. But they wanted the black-and-white wall hanging showing the urban community as their background. I elected not to argue. The photo below was the only one I shot; they were pleased with it.  

To be clear, I present these not to be a study (and certainly not a lesson) on portraiture. Indeed, in retrospect, I do wish we'd taken more time to better pose the ladies on the ends of the middle row of the group photo, for example. 

I present these to show you how the MagMod Sphere performed in very little time or preparation. The importance of the photo was to include Lee Ann's 99-year-old uncle and 97-year-old aunt (seated in front on either side of Lee Ann's youngest grandson in photo leading off the post) in a picture of some kind with extended family. The group includes Lee Ann's mother, sister, oldest daughter, three grandsons and son-in-law. So in the sense that we got everyone in one photo in a rare confluence of family, we considered it a success. 

Senior high school photo shoot: Justin

Lee Ann's grandson Justin is graduating next spring, and he and his mother asked me to shoot his outdoor senior high school shots recently. They pushed the timing of the shoot almost as late into the year as my niece Erin's family did two years ago, but fortunately, we found a day and time on Nov. 3 to squeeze in a late-afternoon session in Garfield Park in Indianapolis.

Unfortunately, Justin, who lives in Fishers, couldn't get to the park until after school that day, a Tuesday, so we started later than I would have liked. Darkness sets in much earlier these days since clocks rolled back for standard time earlier this month, so we tried to work quickly.

We got pictures of Justin and his girlfriend, Rae, in a dozen or so poses while we had good daylight. A few were taken inside the pagoda, others outside the amphitheater to exploit the brick facade, a few along the jagged stone staircase south of the arts center and several leaning against a tree and a light pole. (I did not attempt to get permission from Rae or her parents to use any of the photos with her in them for this post, which is why you don't see any of her here).

When it became too dark to get decent background into the photos, Justin, an artsy guy, asked me to shoot some pictures of him in available light -- without flash. I didn't bring along my tripod, so I boosted the ISO to very high levels (2500 and beyond) so I could continue hand-holding the camera. I figured that if it was an artsy, "different" look he was interested in, he might not mind the noise from high ISO levels. We were near the amphitheater at the time, so all of those photos were near that facility. Justin seemed pleased with those shots, which for the most part were cast against dark backgrounds of minimal natural light and illuminated by the park's tungsten pole lamps. Such lighting brings harsh facial light contrasts that photographers ordinarily wouldn't seek, but Justin wanted that mood, that look.

As it turned out, I took several of those shots using shutter speeds too slow (e.g., 1/25) for hand-holding a camera without a lens equipped with built-in stabilization. Some of those shots had to be discarded, requiring a reshoot with higher ISOs and faster shutter speeds. A few of the picture with slow shutter speeds, however, amazingly, actually turned out OK. A special nod of thanks to Lee Anne, an experienced studio portrait photographer, who gets the credit for posing her grandson.

The photo leading off the post was taken inside the pagoda with camera settings of f/2, 1/180 and ISO 200. Right after that shot, we took another with the same camera settings -- this time with Justin smiling. That shot is the first below.

Photo geek stuff: For the entire shoot, I used my Canon 6D and Sigma 85mm f/1.4 lens, which I've turned to recently for all of my portraiture-related shoots to exploit that fast aperture and bokeh. For the majority of the shoot, I also used an on-camera flash, Canon 580EX II, in manual mode set at 80mm w/light intensities of 1/32 to 1/8, depending on the stage of natural light availability, to highlight the subject. The flash was equipped with a white Graslon Insight (flat) diffuser. I made a point to shoot most of the photos at or around f/2.0 or f/2.4, adjusting my ISO (which usually was in the vicinity of 160) to compensate for any needed light, which wasn't an issue until darkness set in. In the darkness, I boosted ISO levels to in the range of 2500 to 10,000. In post-processing, the subject's facial features were enhanced in Portrait Professional Studio software, version 11. 

SHOTS TAKEN WITH FLASH BEFORE DARKNESS

SHOTS TAKEN WITH AVAILABLE LIGHT

Shakespeare troupe tackles Tempest

With the fall production of the all-volunteer Garfield Shakespeare Company's The Tempest scheduled to open Sept. 27, I spent the past week or so shooting two practice sessions to garner pictures to promote the show online and in as many media that will have it.

The first shoot was an informal practice; most cast members were still rehearsing with the aid of the manuscript. No sooner had I completed the editing of those pictures -- and was preparing to post a couple dozen or so on Facebook -- when GSC artistic director Joe Cook scheduled a practice at which cast members would wear costumes for formal publicity photos.

When we did the publicity photo session for last year's show, A Midsummer Night's Dream, costumes for only a few cast members were ready. The pictures turned out wonderful, but only a few actors were featured. However, the shots were taken early enough in the evening to benefit from good natural lighting. For various reasons, this year's publicity photo session was scheduled later, which probably had a lot to do with why costumes were ready for just about everybody.

Unfortunately, we didn't get into the back area of the amphitheater (where performers could change into costumes) at Garfield Park until well past 7 p.m., and performers weren't ready to take the stage until almost 7:30. We lost valuable time at a point in the year when daylight gets shorter and shorter each day. If we'd started at 6:30 p.m. or thereabouts when practice was supposed begin, I'd have had some very nice ambient light to work with ... and wouldn't have been presented with the lighting dilemma that I ended up having.

My first thought was to use flash, powering down so that the intensity would be enough to provide nice highlight to faces. I slipped a Wescott Micro Apollo light modifier over the flash head to diminish any chance of harshness with the light. At 7:33 p.m., when we were about 10 minutes or so from starting, I tested the intensity settings on the flash (minus 1 1/3) on Mary Dando (right), who is playing Alonsa, queen of Naples. I had the camera set at shutter priority (1/160) and ISO at 200, and the settings rendered me f/2.8 on the Canon 24-70mm f/2.8L lens I was using on my Canon 7D. The shot looked splendid. Note the ambient light -- still a bit left; that would turn out to make a difference between this shot and the ones I'd be getting in only 10 minutes time.

By the time we got the real show on the road, it had turned much darker, and those settings were giving me harsh face lighting -- and even shadows on the black backgrounds. I'd obviously overlooked the fact that the shot of Mary had the stray light going harmlessly into the atmosphere; on stage, that light was giving me shadow fits. I tinkered with the flash intensity several times, and I was getting either shadows and white facial features ... or not enough light at all. I was so irked, I didn't save any of those photos, not thinking they might be something I could use in this post. I chucked the flash and decided to shoot at a high ISO in available light. It was nearly 8 p.m., and I upped the ISO to 320, leaving the other settings alone. I got some good shots for a short while, but I had to keep boosting the ISO periodically ... I finished at 3200. The crew eventually turned on the built-in lights on the stage, but those were relatively weak ... so certainly better than none at all.

Actually, I've shot with available light at this facility before in the dark -- on nights when this troupe has done live performances. But the live shows usually have a bit more lighting, enough so that the 7D can use slightly less ISO -- maybe 2500. The 30D I was use for my backup or secondary camera, however, is in trouble in those situations. I can push it ISO 3200, but the 30D's noise is unacceptable (to me, anyway) at 1600 already, whereas the 7D usually does well through 2500 and, on occasion, even at 3200. I ran all of the photos through Noiseware noise-reduction software in post-processing, including the one leading off today's post, a shot from the wedding of the characters Miranda and Ferdinand, played by Stefanie Maier and Peter Catlin.

GSC is daring to stage the Shakespeare play's opening scene, a violent storm at sea and shipwreck -- something many producers skip over because of the complications of staging such a scenario (rocking boat, huge waves slamming into the boat, etc.). The Act 1, Scene 1 storm scene lead off the photos below.

The Tempest opens at 8 p.m. Sept. 27; there are additional performances at the same time on Sept. 28 and Oct. 4-5, with rain dates set for Oct. 11-12. Admission is free.

Above and next several below: GSC is counting on the audience to help visualize the setup above as the deck of a boat being rocked back and forth in a violent storm at sea. Cast member J.D. Bonitz, in his costume of the spirit Ariel (in white below), will assist audience members with the visualization. For this photograph, he stood at stage right so I could get him into the picture with the other cast members. For the live shows, however, he will be standing in front of the stage -- level with the audience -- and holding this model ship and rocking it back and forth (as well as gyrating himself) as if the ship would sway during a real storm.

The characters of Stephano (above left, played by Jay Brubaker), a drunken butler; Caliban (above right, played by Mike Merrick), a villainous island native and deformed island slave; the mischievous spirit Ariel (first below, played by J.D. Bonitz) who does Prospero's bidding; and jester Trinculo (the woman in orange, played by Heather Bartram) are featured in these next several photos.

Above and below: GSC was happy to welcome Eduardo Torres, who stepped in only last weekend to fill the important role of Prospero, the right duke of Milan, when the performer originally cast for the part had to drop out of the show.

The wedding ceremony (above) for Miranda (Stefanie Maier) and Fernando (Peter Catlin), officiated by the spirit Juno (Monica Verdouw), and an alternate post-ceremony celebration photo, where the three characters above are joined by spirits played by (from left) Sam Brandys, Elizabeth Fasbender and Nicolas Roberts. 

Above: Sebastian (played by Corey Shea), treacherous brother of Queen Alonsa, and Antonio (Sam Fogleman), Prospero's brother.

Adriana (left, played by Jean Long) and Queen Alonsa (Mary Dando).

Above and below: Monochrome and original color versions of a face-to-face encounter between siblings Alonsa, queen of Naples (Mary Dando) and her treacherous brother Sebastian (Corey Shea). I slipped to the back side of the stage and looked out toward the seats for this shot. Lighting was unusually challenging, rendering one of the noisiest images of the shoot.

Above: Ariel (Bonitz) along with flutists Sam Brandys (left) and Monica Verdouw.  

Above:  A depth of field composition, featuring a slumbering Queen Alonsa (Mary Dando) and her lady, Adriana (Jean Long). Mary prolonged the posed to indulge my setup of this one, one of the few times I leaned on the performers to step out of script for the benefit of photographs.  

Above: Two images from a sequence of Bonitz adding a beak, a black top and wings to his spirit costume, a stunning creation of GSC's associated artistic director and longtime costumer Bradley A. Jones. 

Better luck on 2nd try with Graslon

In my last post, I went into great detail to recall the experience I had with my inaugural use of recently purchased Graslon Prodigy on-camera light diffusers. Since then, I had a second chance to shoot the Garfield Shakespeare Company at another rehearsal for its spring production of Thornton Wilder's "The Matchmaker," and I again turned to the Graslon Prodigy -- the flat attachment (Graslon also makes a rounded, dome attachment for the Prodigy) -- for my lighting help.

This time, it was a good-news, good-news experience. Not only was I again pleased with the lighting the Prodigy gave me, but I made a point to be deliberate in the way I attached the diffuser to the flash head, a Canon 580EX II. This time, it attached firmly, and remained so for the duration of the shoot; it was snug, and at no time did I ever feel as if the device would not stay secure.

Curiously, after the second shoot, I received an email from a representative of Graslon, who had seen my previous blog post. It was a very impressive reach-out; the rep expressed disappointment that the modifier didn't attach properly for me, acknowledged that perhaps Graslon should have done a better job explaining how the mounting process should be handled, then explained that proper process to me.

As I told the Graslon rep in my email reply, I'm certain I had tried the "proper" mounting sequence -- albeit by dumb luck on my part -- in my inaugural outing. But I also admitted that in my frustration, it's very likely I slopped through it and moved on to -- and settled upon -- another method. Ironically, on the second shoot (again, before hearing from the Graslon rep), the process I used successfully was different from the one the rep described to me as the proper one.

In any event, I salute Graslon for reaching out, and I do feel better about that aspect of the device. Most importantly, I really do like the light it delivers. My camera settings for the second shoot of play rehearsal were the same as the first -- Canon 7D manual mode, 1/160, f/3.2, ISO-800; and the 580EX II in manual, 24mm zoom and 1/32 intensity.

I neglected to mention in my first post that in addition to the white-colored attachments, Graslon sells amber-tinted domes and flats for photographers to use when they want their light source to match tungsten ambient light.

In the photo leading off the post, "The Matchmaker" cast members Chris Burton (left) and Tony Van Pelt. For a full gallery of images from my shoot of the the play's dress rehearsal, visit my site at SmugMug.com.

Above: Laura Kelley

Above, L-R: Mike Merrick, Monica Verdouw and Katie Schneider

Above, L-R: Laura Madden, Alexis Brown and Gan Baker.

Above: Katie Schneider (left) and Lara Martinez

Above: Laura Madden and Robert Routier

Above: Chris Burton

Above, L-R: Katie Schneider, Tony Van Pelt II and Chris Burton

Above: Monica Verdouw and Katie Schneider

 Above, L-R: Chris Burton, Mike Merrick, Alexis Brown

Above: Jonathan Kratzner

Above, L-R: Alexis Brown, Gan Baker and Chris Burton

Above: Gan Baker