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Throw Your Strobe To Great Lengths Using a Poor Man’s Better Beamer

Mar 22, 2011 by Udi Tirosh 2 Comments

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poor man's better beamerIt is not really possible to defy the inverse square law. I know I tried and failed miserably. But you can stretch it.

A better beamer is a device that does just that, it extend the distance the light from your strobe travels. So while the inverse square law is still in effect, it stretches over a greater distance.

Physics bla-bla aside, it means that light coming from your strobe will go further. Some strobes, like the SB900 has an impressive zoom functions that does just that.

Flickr used lonelyhome contrapted a poorman’s better beamer using a cheapo Fresnel lens (around $1) and some plastic (I assume cardboard will do too).

The picture is really self explanatory.

Poor man's better beamer

and the test shows that it actually works improving exposure by 1 stop over distance

Using poor man's better beamer

If you are out there planning to shoot far away birds, this may be just the stop that is missing

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Filed Under: DIY Tagged With: Travel

Udi Tirosh: from diyphotography.net

About Udi Tirosh

Udi Tirosh is an entrepreneur, photography inventor, journalist, educator, and writer based in Israel. With over 25 years of experience in the photo-video industry, Udi has built and sold several photography-related brands. Udi has a double degree in mass media communications and computer science.

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Udi Tirosh: from diyphotography.netUdi Tirosh is an entrepreneur, photography inventor, journalist, educator, and writer based in Israel. With over 25 years of experience in the photo-video industry, Udi has built and sold several photography-related brands. Udi has a double degree in mass media communications and computer science.

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David Williams: from diyphotography.netDave Williams is an accomplished travel photographer, writer, and best-selling author from the UK. He is also a photography educator and published Aurora expert. Dave has traveled extensively in recent years, capturing stunning images from around the world in a modified van. His work has been featured in various publications and he has worked with notable brands such as Skoda, EE, Boeing, Huawei, Microsoft, BMW, Conde Nast, Electronic Arts, Discovery, BBC, The Guardian, ESPN, NBC, and many others.

John Aldred: from diyphotography.netJohn Aldred is a photographer with over 20 years of experience in the portrait and commercial worlds. He is based in Scotland and has been an early adopter - and occasional beta tester - of almost every digital imaging technology in that time. As well as his creative visual work, John uses 3D printing, electronics and programming to create his own photography and filmmaking tools and consults for a number of brands across the industry.

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