5-in-1 reflector Why should you have one?

Today I bring you a photographic accessory that will be a before and after in your portrait and product photographs, mainly. This is the 5-in-1 reflector, an accessory that is worth much more than it costs, for all that it is capable of providing you for such an affordable price.

What is a reflector for?

A reflector serves, as its name suggests, to reflect light, which helps you illuminate or fill in shadows, for example. It is used to direct light, but also to shape it.

Here is an image taken with and without a reflector. Notice how the shadows are filled with light.

Left without reflector, right with reflector.

Neewer 5-in-1 Spotlight

Today I am going to talk to you about the one I have at home, which is the Neewer 5-in-1 reflector, but they are all very similar, it fundamentally changes the size, now we will talk about it later.

East 5 in 1 spotlight It includes:

• diffuser
• golden spotlight
• white spotlight
• silver reflector
• black reflector
• sheath

It consists of a flexible ring with translucent fabric that serves as a light diffuser and a cover that is reversible, on the one hand it has a black and a silver side, and on the other, a gold and a white side. All of this is stored in a black zippered case with a handle.

Let’s see what each one is for.

Diffuser

The diffuser is used to diffuse or soften the light. When you have a very harsh light that creates harsh shadows, the diffuser will make this light much softer. Let’s see it with an example (note, all the following comparison photos are as is of the camera):

Left with diffuser, right without diffuser

Let’s look at another example:

Top without diffuser, bottom with diffuser

As you can see, the diffuser makes the light much softer, eliminating the sharp transition between light and shadow. You can see the difference between hard light and diffuse light on the graph, to help you understand both types of light if all this is new to you. The diffuser would act like the clouds in the drawing.

golden searchlight

This reflects the light in a very powerful way and, in addition, provides a warm tone, as if you were photographing with the light of the golden hour.

Left without reflector, right with gold reflector

silver reflector

This silver part reflects the light with the intensity of gold, but without adding any hue. It reflects much more light than white.

white spotlight

It reflects light but in a much softer way than the previous two.

Left with silver reflector, right with white reflector

black reflector

Calling it a reflector is not the most appropriate, because black does not reflect light but absorbs it and that is its function. It is used to create more shadows and avoid reflections, for example by blocking light from a white wall that is reflecting.

Top without reflector, bottom with reflector

It is very useful for dramatic portraits where you want, for example, leaving a part of the face more in shadow and another in light.

It can also serve as a background, if you want a black or neutral one, it is ideal.

black reflector making background

Details

• Measures: 110 cm-open/ 40 approx.-closed (there are more sizes that we will see below).
• Weight: on the page it says that it weighs 680g but my food processor that I had considered quite accurate says that it weighs 744g. Here I would insert the emoji of the girl with her arms wide open I do not knowwhat I know is that it seems to weigh less because 680g seemed like a lot to me and that’s why I wanted to check it out.
• Form: round (there are also rectangular).
• Price: the 110cm €34.49

Advantage

it is an accessory portable and foldable. Although extended it measures 110cm, once folded it only measures about 40cm. It folds in a figure eight, because the ring is flexible and you can fold it on itself.

By the way, as some of us find it a bit difficult at first to dub it, especially if it’s the first time, I’ll leave you with this video in which Dan explains it phenomenally.

Another advantage is that it is multifunctional, with a single accessory you have different options to shape the light.

Is really economic for everything it offers, the large size costs €34.49 and the smallest, 30 cm, only €10.49

Regarding the materials of this product, the truth is that they seem quite resistant, I don’t feel like they’re going to break anytime soon, of course.

drawbacks

The only drawback I see is that you need someone to hold the spotlight for you 😉 Sometimes it can be the same person you are portraying, although it is not ideal. Or you can support it somewhere with some ingenuity, but it is not usually a good solution either because the best thing is to be able to move it at the same time as your model moves.

What is the ideal size?

The size will depend on the needs. If, for example, you are going to use it for photography of small products, it makes no sense to buy this big one. With a smaller one you will manage much better.

Ideally, you should think about what you are going to use it for and decide what the size is. that best suits your needs. Here you have several options, but on Amazon you will find many more, also more models from other brands. I bought this because I think this brand offers excellent value for money. As you can see the opinions are really positive (and very numerous).

30cm

50cm

80cm

110cm

Conclusions

As you have seen, it is a great tool that does not take up much space, is not heavy to transport and is very affordable in price. A must As far as accessories are concerned, yes, if your thing is street photography, for example, it won’t help you much 😉

Like everything, it has its application and this tool is useful for those who usually take portraits, social photography (for example at weddings) or product photography. Serves both indoors and outdoors. It will help you get more light and exactly where and how you want it, you can use it with natural light and also with studio light.

Now that Christmas is approaching, maybe it’s a good detail to include in the letter, don’t you think?

Have you tried it? Do you leave us your opinion below? We would like to know your experience to have other opinions, surely the other interested people will thank you. And I also. And if you share it on your favorite social network, double thanks 😉 .