Elinchrom Softlite 27" beauty dish...

...Maxisoft, whatever you want to call it. I just brought one home! Haven't had time to shoot with it yet, but thought I would write down some of my impressions:

It's big. REALLY BIG! It doesn't come in a special box or anything, so if I'm going to take it on location, I will have to throw it on top of everything else, maybe wrap it is a blanket or something. The search for a suitable bag to transport this thing starts now...

To give you an idea of how large it is, check this out:

Good news is, if I decide that I don't like it but can't sell it, I can always turn it into a large bird bath!

Very cool. Is this a beauty dish? Where did you buy it?

I bought it from the local Elinchrom distributor, Kayell in Sydney. This is the larger version of Elinchrom's beauty dish (white), part number 26169, B&H have it here: http://www.bhphotovide​o.com …e_Maxisoft_Refl​ector.html

Congratulations, Rudi. I picked up one of these on FleaBay a few weeks ago and I'm really enjoying it.

Just a word of caution to others who might be reading this:
I found out the hard way that this item is an exception to the general compatibility of elinchrom light modifiers and genesis strobes.
While the dish's mount fits as it should, the silver and gold reflectors rely on elinchrom's center-located umbrella hole - a detail not present in the genesis line. I got mine up and running with some judicious cutting and bending of a wire hanger, but this is less than ideal. When I have some time, I need to improve this mod.

Be sure to let us know what you think of shooting with it - I'm sure you'll be pleased with the light but having to put the deflector in and center it every time you mount the dish is a hassle, as is removing the deflector when it's hot.

It does have a lip though so hopefully one day Elinchrom will make a honeycomb for it (or perhaps J Kacey will make a compatable grid). If there was a grid available I'd probably buy a 27" softlite and fit a permanent deflector.

tagvestibule wrote in post #7351509
Congratulations, Rudi. I picked up one of these on FleaBay a few weeks ago and I'm really enjoying it.

Just a word of caution to others who might be reading this:
I found out the hard way that this item is an exception to the general compatibility of elinchrom light modifiers and genesis strobes.
While the dish's mount fits as it should, the silver and gold reflectors rely on elinchrom's center-located umbrella hole - a detail not present in the genesis line. I got mine up and running with some judicious cutting and bending of a wire hanger, but this is less than ideal. When I have some time, I need to improve this mod.

That's a good point and absolutely something for Genesis owners to consider. There is great power and flexibility in those Elinchrom deflectors. I use them all the time and love them. I use them in the Elinchrom 9.5" 135 degree wide angle reflector, the 22" Speedotron beauty dish, in strip lights to even out the spread across the long edge and in side other softboxes as well as the 53" Octa.

tagvestibule wrote in post #7351509
Congratulations, Rudi. I picked up one of these on FleaBay a few weeks ago and I'm really enjoying it.

Thanks! Luckily I'm using Elinchrom strobes, so no modifications were necessary.

Hermes wrote in post #7351800
Be sure to let us know what you think of shooting with it - I'm sure you'll be pleased with the light but having to put the deflector in and center it every time you mount the dish is a hassle, as is removing the deflector when it's hot.

It does have a lip though so hopefully one day Elinchrom will make a honeycomb for it (or perhaps J Kacey will make a compatable grid). If there was a grid available I'd probably buy a 27" softlite and fit a permanent deflector.

I'll see how annoying that gets in real use, I haven't had time to use the thing in anger yet, too many other things to do at the moment. The pleasures of running your own business and all that...

TMR Design wrote in post #7351832
That's a good point and absolutely something for Genesis owners to consider. There is great power and flexibility in those Elinchrom deflectors. I use them all the time and love them. I use them in the Elinchrom 9.5" 135 degree wide angle reflector, the 22" Speedotron beauty dish, in strip lights to even out the spread across the long edge and in side other softboxes as well as the 53" Octa.

Yep, they are handy! The large deflectors are huge though, I'm wondering if I should get the smaller set (or more likely make my own. Since I already have the rods, all I need to make is a smaller silver deflector to start off with ).

Hi Rudi,

I own 2 sets of the smaller (mini) deflectors and had a set of the larger (maxi) that I returned. I didn't care for them or find them as useful. I'm sure it's a personal thing but I'm finding the smaller deflector to be versatile and do the job in every application.

The larger deflectors are listed on the Elinchrom website as 14 cm (I'm assuming in diameter ), but actually measure around 16 cm. I wonder - what size are the smaller deflectors? They are listed as 11.2 cm, but now I'm wondering...

While on the topic of deflectors, can somebody tell me if the deflectors are supposed to be screwed on to the rod with the pebbled surface of the deflector pointed towards the flash or away. WIthout giving consideration to the purpose of a pebbled surface, it would seem logical to mount it with the pebbled side facing away from the flash (to allow the light to bounce off and spread out). But obviously, that can't be right since I would think that the pebbled surface should be facing the flash. But with the pebbled side of the deflector facing the flash, it doesn't sit exactly parallel to the front of the strobe (it kind of leans in at the top). Is that how it's supposed to be by design? Can anybody comment on this, please? Thanks.

Hi Leo,

The pebbled surface should face the flash tube. If the deflector is leaning then you need to slightly bend it to sit at the correct angle. The deflectors and mounting rods are not exactly the most high tech design and not the best QC in production. I had to bend one of mine and I also use a lockwasher to keep it locked tightly to the rod.

TMR Design wrote in post #7358547
Hi Leo,

The pebbled surface should face the flash tube. If the deflector is leaning then you need to slightly bend it to sit at the correct angle. The deflectors and mounting rods are not exactly the most high tech design and not the best QC in production. I had to bend one of mine and I also use a lockwasher to keep it locked tightly to the rod.

Thanks, Robert. I didn't want to mess with the deflector until I got comfirmation from others about it. I just figured that it was designed that way for a purpose, being that it's an Elinchrom product and all, although, I have to admit, I could not think of any specific reason for that type of design. Far be it for me to mess up a meticulously spec'd out and finely tuned Elinchrom component by me just crudely bending it just so it looks nice and straight a la Mr. Monk.

Yeah, you gotta bend them sometimes to make them sit straight. They're thin and easy to bend, which works in your favour when you're trying to straighten them out, but against you when you accidentally bump into them.

A good friend of mine that's been using the deflectors for years told me when I first got them that they bend easily and you'll find yourself bending them back into shape frequently if you use them a lot and don't 'baby' them.

The large one is even worse