What P.C.Buff/other modifier to order, having a hard time deciding...

So I just ordered an Einstein (my pocket says "WTF") and I'm looking at the crap loads of modifiers by Paul C Buff as well as other companies and yeah, I'm not sure what to order or even look at more intently.

Things I know that bother me about modifiers currently are the spill factor of umbrellas. I don't have much experience with other modifiers but I do know that umbrellas in general have a lot of spill that don't seem to work with what I'm trying to do in general. With the fact that umbrellas are intended to have a lot of spill I find that counter intuitive for my purposes. I generally end up setting up in smaller confined spaces that don't allow for light to just fall off. Most of the spaces I'm shooting in are low ceiling and not much room in general either for width. So excessive spill causes a lot of problems with color cast from surrounding walls and excess bounce from the ceilings. So I'm trying to find a modifier that would help reduce that problem. But I also do outdoor shoots as well. So I would need something that could a little more versatile but directed.

The main debate I have is between a Softbox and an Octa style as they seem like the best choices at this point. I'm mostly thinking along the lines of the large/giant softbox or maybe the 47" Octa, also considering including a grid as well with the order.

For the most part I'm only shooting individuals for general portraits from shoulder/head to full body with the occasional couple.

What's your thoughts on this?

The list of Softbox/Octas by Paul C. Buff:
FSB2436 | Foldable Medium Softbox | (24" x 36") with speedring attached | $119.95
FSB3240 | Foldable Large Softbox | (32" x 40") with speedring attached | $129.95
FSB3060 | Foldable Giant Softbox | (30" x 60") with speedring attached | $159.95

FSB1036 | Foldable Stripbox | (10" x 36") with speedring attached | $119.95

FOB35 | Foldable Medium Octabox | (35") with speedring attached | $149.95
FOB47 | Foldable Large Octabox | (47") with speedring attached | $169.95

EXTRA NOTE:
As a side note: I will be adding a more sturdy stand and boom arm as soon as I can. I currently have several lighter duty stands that will do for a while and I regularly weight them to keep them in place.

I have the Giant 30x60 softbox and the 10x36 stripbox and think they work excellent. It comes with the AB speedring attached, so I don't need to worry about how to mount it to my AB's
They give excellent light, but I haven't used them without the diffuser and front panels yet.
I also have 3 PCB 64" and 2 86" PLM's. I absolutely wouldn't be without them for larger lighting needs. The 86" silver PLM will light large groups like nothing else I've used. It's diffuser is easy to install and remove. You can feather any modifier or just block it off with a gobo. I would rather have the larger light modifiers and close them down, than have one that's to small. The bigger the modifier, the better the coverage and light quality.
The softboxes/stripboxes just pop up like an umbrella for quick and easy setup and breakdown.
I don't about the Octaboxes, but I know a wedding photographer that like em a lot.

These are shot with the softbox and stripbox combination. #1 is a clamshell setup and #2 is just the softbox as a main.

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You ordered one light only?

Marloon wrote in post #11897225
You ordered one light only?

Yes, for now... The one light was enough of a strain on my pocket at this time. I do however have 2 speedlites:
1 - Canon 430ex II
1 - Vivitar 283 (It is slow but it still works regardless)
Cactus V4 set of receivers and trigger.

I may be selling my Sigma 30mm to fund another one, it's a tough call as I like the 30mm, I mean a nice prime is always nice and the 30mm is a great indoor prime on my T2i...

This is pretty much the gear I am running with right now: http://newschoolofphot​ography.com …-thread-9.html#post491112
Though I did recently pick up a Sekonic L-358 which has been a great add to my arsenal.

Also I will have a CyberCommander here tomorrow, they went ahead and shipped that one as it's in stock, along with the Einstein control unit.

I have to wait until the end of March/early April for the Einstein to show up.

typically, you want your modifier(s) to be about the same size as the object you're covering. if you're lighting a full body portrait or a small group, i wouldn't go smaller than a larger softbox (unless you're going for some kind of effect). whether you should get an octa or rectangular softbox, it primarily depends on the types of catchlights/reflection​s you're looking to produce. i think reflective, inanimate objects like metal and plastic look better lit with rectangular sources for product shots, and i like round/octagonal catchlights in people's eyes for portraits. if i had to choose one, i'd get a traditional square-ish softbox first. YMMV.

I have the 47" octa and that is a great general purpose modifier. Outside is tough with large modifiers because of wind, etc. Don't know how you are going to handle that. I like to use my beauty dish outside because it is more stable in the wind and it also is very efficient so you can compete with the sun more easily. Just because you have 640ws on your light doesn't mean you want to shoot at that power all the time. Faster recycle and more pops from your battery power if you don't shoot at full power. The Paul Buff 22in BD is nice and not that expensive. Stick the diffusion sock over it and you essentially have a soft box. Give that one some thought.

Thank you guys, you are giving me some great information, I truly appreciate it, keep it coming please.

I too have recently ventured into PCB and the lighting they offer. I'm waiting on my Einstein and VB mini as well and hopefully that will be here shortly. They shipped my HOBD and Large Octa ahead of time since they were in stock. I'm really surprised at the build quality of these products. They feel very sturdy and just really great. The large Octa is MASSIVE!! I plan on adding a Large PLM for big family group shots in a few months though.

MD Steelerfan wrote in post #11898423
I have the 47" octa and that is a great general purpose modifier. Outside is tough with large modifiers because of wind, etc. Don't know how you are going to handle that. I like to use my beauty dish outside because it is more stable in the wind and it also is very efficient so you can compete with the sun more easily. Just because you have 640ws on your light doesn't mean you want to shoot at that power all the time. Faster recycle and more pops from your battery power if you don't shoot at full power. The Paul Buff 22in BD is nice and not that expensive. Stick the diffusion sock over it and you essentially have a soft box. Give that one some thought.

Great points in this response...

Also, Just wanted to show OP a difference between the PCB large Octabox, and their beauty dish.

PCB Large Octabox

drdiesel1 wrote in post #11897112
These are shot with the softbox and stripbox combination. #1 is a clamshell setup and #2 is just the softbox as a main.

I rather like the setup of your images but I'm going to be working primarily with just the main light and my couple of speedlites as accents until I can get enough work to pay for another one or even more modifiers. But the clamshell reference that you made I don't know much about... I'm looking that one up right now.

MD Steelerfan wrote in post #11898423
I have the 47" octa and that is a great general purpose modifier. Outside is tough with large modifiers because of wind, etc. Don't know how you are going to handle that. I like to use my beauty dish outside because it is more stable in the wind and it also is very efficient so you can compete with the sun more easily. Just because you have 640ws on your light doesn't mean you want to shoot at that power all the time. Faster recycle and more pops from your battery power if you don't shoot at full power. The Paul Buff 22in BD is nice and not that expensive. Stick the diffusion sock over it and you essentially have a soft box. Give that one some thought.

I think I will be definitely considering the beauty dish. It has been catching my eye as I look through the reflector section each time I go in there. lol. Though it will make for a hard to transport item seeing as it is 22" of metal and will essentially need it's own spot to sit in my car or wherever... but it does seem like an invaluable tool for outdoors like you have mentioned already.

vegasboy wrote in post #11900182
Great points in this response...

Also, Just wanted to show OP a difference between the PCB large Octabox, and their beauty dish.

PCB Large Octabox
http://i45.photobucket​.com …202011/nickyfli​ps3fba.jpg
PCB 22" beauty dish (white)
http://i45.photobucket​.com …202011/nickyfli​ps4fba.jpg

I think its a good example to show its differences.

The Octa definitely seems to be a more more focused light while the beauty dish is kind of scattering the light more, as the rest of the scene is light much more with the beauty dish vs the Octa. It seems you have the light virtually in the same position for both shots. Too bad the subject isn't exactly the same in both as it would give a much better representation of the differences if he still had the jacket and glasses on in the second image.

Both are extremely appealing...

On a side note... I so want a house with higher ceilings... lol.

I have the 47" octo and the large softbox and I love them both. I didn't go for the strip because I made a custom "shade" for half of the softbox to make it a strip.

BoneJj wrote in post #11900763
The Octa definitely seems to be a more more focused light while the beauty dish is kind of scattering the light more

I think the two images posted above are lit differently and one with white shirt vs. dark suit throws off the comparison, so it is not a good comparison of the two modifiers.
Look at the reflection of the lights in the bottle, the BD looks like it is straight on, whereas the the octs looks slightly to the right... the shadows on the faces are completely different.

An Octa will be softer and more spread out (it is larger than a beauty dish)

A BD is used for a more contrasty look, especially on the face. Harder shadows.

As for me, I use photoflex boxes because (a) I'm generally pleased with the material of their products, and (b) it's the most upgrade proof path that I can take. I do plan on going over to a higher end brand once I get more accustomed to lighting.

I use the photoflex boxes along with the bowen quickrings for fast setup times. At the moment, I have stopped buying glass to invest in lighting - which is the better idea. I'm thinking of selling one of my primes to buy myself more light modifiers as my photo partner and I only share 2 einsteins, 1 Style RX 300, 2 VMLs, 2 medium litedomes + grids, 1 5' octodome, two 22' JK BDs + grids, 1 86' V2 Silver PLM + Diffusor fabric, 1 64' V2 Silver PLM + Diffusor. We want to invest in 2 X-Large litedomes, 2 Large Litedomes + grids, 2 Medium Halfdomes + grids, 2 more VMLs, 2 more einsteins, and 1 7' octodome + grid, and 1 grid for the 5' octodome. (Yeah, we know what we want. LOL. - just don't think that I can only live with just 1 24-70L.)

I like the build quality of the photoflex boxes but I can't compare them to the PCB boxes because I've never had a PCB box. I do however, like the material used in the PLM v2. It's somewhat heavy duty.

Marloon wrote in post #11900830
I like the build quality of the photoflex boxes but I can't compare them to the PCB boxes

I have both PhotoFlex and PCB boxes... I like the light from the PhotoFlex slightly better.

The real difference in the PCB are quick setup fold out, whereas the PhotoFlex takes time to setup. The PCB just fold out in two seconds, the PhotoFlex take 15 minutes to build out.

KurtGoss wrote in post #11900863
I have both PhotoFlex and PCB boxes... I like the light from the PhotoFlex slightly better.

The real difference in the PCB are quick setup fold out, whereas the PhotoFlex takes time to setup. The PCB just fold out in two seconds, the PhotoFlex take 15 minutes to build out.

Well here is my question in relation to this, is that "slightly better" really worth the setup time involved for the PhotoFlex units. Also looking at their pricing for similar sized units it definitely seems to increase the cost by going with the PhotoFlex models plus the fact that their units don't seem to come with speedrings so you end up having to purchase the $38.00 speedring to be able to attach it to the Einstein unit. It seems that right off the bat you can expect roughly an additional $80.00 cost with their units versus the PCB line.

But the main issue is the light all that much better than the PCB units? Granted the sizes/aspect rations of the boxes are different than the PCBs so it may be hard to do a direct comparison.