Which of those three light panels to get?

[abdul10000]

Which of those three 42" flexible reflector would you recommend:

1. Photoflex 5 in 1 with translucent, gold, silver, white opaque, soft gold and black $100
http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/197000-REG/Photoflex_DL_42MULTI_MultiDisc_Circular_Reflector_ 5.html#features

2. Westcott 6 in 1 with two frames and Full-Stop Diffusion, Two-Stop Diffusion, Silver, Gold, Sunlight and Black, but no white $100
http://www.bhphotovideo.com/bnh/controller/home?O=cart_accessories&A=details&Q=&sku=279427&is=REG

3. Impact 5 in 1 with Gold, Silver, Silver/Gold, White and Translucent $47
http://www.bhphotovideo.com/bnh/controller/home?O=workaround.jsp&A=details&Q=&sku=358608&is=REG

I am leaning towards the Westcott because it offers two frames, hence two reflectors, but no white is offered. The Impact is priced at half and includes white. Should I get two Impacts, is their quality poor?

What do you recommened? Thanks in advance!

[TMR Design]

I use Photoflex LiteDisc reflectors in a lot of my work and as long as I'm in the studio I find them to be very nice, but the reality is that most collapsible reflectors are pretty much the same and I've heard good things about some of the lesser expensive brands as well.

I like Westcott a lot but if you're looking for a simple all in one solution I don't see that as a good solution because there is no white reflector. Sure, you could just use a piece of white foam core but with regard to your question and purchase, I would not get a ?-in-1 solution that didn't have a white reflector.

[abdul10000]

I use Photoflex LiteDisc reflectors in a lot of my work and as long as I'm in the studio I find them to be very nice, but the reality is that most collapsible reflectors are pretty much the same and I've heard good things about some of the lesser expensive brands as well.

I like Westcott a lot but if you're looking for a simple all in one solution I don't see that as a good solution because there is no white reflector. Sure, you could just use a piece of white foam core but with regard to your question and purchase, I would not get a ?-in-1 solution that didn't have a white reflector.

makes sense, I guess I should go with either photoflex or impact, but I am not sure about the quality of Impact.



Anyone has the 5 in 1 Impact reflector? Is the quality good, will it hold up to daily use? Your feedback is much appreciated.

[TMR Design]

Daily use has to be better defined. I use my reflectors daily in the studio and haven't had any problems. Some of my reflectors are several years old. I've seen these collapsible reflectors flake and peel from being stored and transported in hot climates and under the hot sun. I've seen Photoflex reflectors that looked like sh*t from being used in extreme hot and cold.

In the studio, in a temperature and humidity controlled environment I think they would last a very long time but for location work they seem to have issues and I think that would be the case with any of these collapsible reflectors.

I'm sure that is what separates this type of reflector from the Lastolite and California Sunbounce materials, but you certainly pay a premium for those fabrics and the design and construction of the aluminum frames.

[abdul10000]

Just received my 42" Impact 5-1 panel, I have to say it came to be about what I expected. The disc quality is good. The reflective materiel looks cheap and may peel in time. The zipper is diffently going to be giving me problems in the long run. Overall I am satisfied with what I got.

That being said there are few things I wish I could have learned before buying this panel. The 42" disc folds down to 15", which is a bit too large to fit into my camera bag. 42" is awsome as a refelctive/translucent surface size, but I think 30" would have been a more practicel solution because it folds down to 10" only, which is possible to fit inside a bag.

The reflective material is a double sided cover that has on one lining gold and white and the other sunfire and silver. I absolutely hate this arrangement because I have no use for gold or sunfire. Instead of putting silver and white on one lining they switched them around. Normally I would like to try both white and silver to see which to go with. To do that with this disc I have unzip the whole cover and switch it inside out and zip it back. That is absolutely ridicules.

Also the whole ziping and unzipping ordeal isn't a very practical solution as might seem at first. I think buying double (2-1) refelcetive matrail is probabaly a smarter solution.

Live and learn as they say. In light of all of the above any one can suggest a panel that will address all the above issues?

[TMR Design]

Just received my 42" Impact 5-1 panel, I have to say it came to be about what I expected. The disc quality is good. The reflective materiel looks cheap and may peel in time. The zipper is diffently going to be giving me problems in the long run. Overall I am satisfied with what I got.

That being said there are few things I wish I could have learned before buying this panel. The 42" disc folds down to 15", which is a bit too large to fit into my camera bag. 42" is awsome as a refelctive/translucent surface size, but I think 30" would have been a more practicel solution because it folds down to 10" only, which is possible to fit inside a bag.

The reflective material is a double sided cover that has on one lining gold and white and the other sunfire and silver. I absolutely hate this arrangement because I have no use for gold or sunfire. Instead of putting silver and white on one lining they switched them around. Normally I would like to try both white and silver to see which to go with. To do that with this disc I have unzip the whole cover and switch it inside out and zip it back. That is absolutely ridicules.

Also the whole ziping and unzipping ordeal isn't a very practical solution as might seem at first. I think buying double (2-1) refelcetive matrail is probabaly a smarter solution.

Live and learn as they say. In light of all of the above any one can suggest a panel that will address all the above issues?

Don't be so quick to put the sunfire aside. Sunfire is also called soft gold by some manufacturers and it a 50/50 mix of silver and gold. While you may think it has no use I can definitely tell you that I absolutely love using a soft gold reflector on women with dark skin and on location to add a very nice skin tone to women that are tan and dark skinned.

You get the specularity of silver with a slightly warm tone from the gold. Give it a try sometime and you may find you like it.

[abdul10000]

Time for an update.

I used the reflector for some time now. I find two problems that are inherent in the 5 in 1 design. The circular shape makes using them in tight studio shots very difficult. Since the reflector must be centered to obtain best reflection the edges enter the picture frame. Changing the disc angle might move it out of the frame but will also change the angle of reflection relative to the light source, which reduces the light being reflected back. I think this shape is perfect for diffusing sun light, but for studio work I think a more traditional square or rectangular shape is better.

The other thing, its hard to collapse and store the reflector when fitted with the reflective cover. Removing the cover makes folding down the disk much easier and keeps it from bouncing open so easily. That means the reflective materiel must be zipped off the disc and folded separately to be placed in its bag. More steps and hassle for a product that I bought thinking would be very practical.

Doing this over I would go with the Westcott 30" silver/white square reflector.
http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/62743-REG/Westcott_1303_30_Silver_White_Reflector.html

Anyone used this reflector?

Thanks