Five-In-One Portable Reflectors, any good?

Haven't tried that exact one, but I have a couple of Photoflex 5-in-1's. Basically they're okay for indoors, and fairly useless outdoors if there's the slightest hint of wind.
 
Barry_Green said:
Haven't tried that exact one, but I have a couple of Photoflex 5-in-1's. Basically they're okay for indoors, and fairly useless outdoors if there's the slightest hint of wind.
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What's wrong with outdoors? Do you mean if they are setup on stands? They work fine if someones holding them though, right?

Also, whats the reflection distance on something like this?

Thanks Barry!
 
Outdoors these things are like sails, they pick up the slightest bit of wind and wobble and flop. We used a couple of 'em during zombie hunter and it was extraordinarily difficult to get even light with 'em, the wind'd wobble them and then the light would wobble on the subject and basically the minute we got out of there, that was the last I've used of the collapsibles.

Indoors, with no wind, they're okay. Outdoors, they can ruin your shot.

If you wanted to use 'em on stands, you'd need to clamp 'em between two stands to have a hope of keeping it flat and stable, and -- well, there are better solutions. For example, these are pretty cheap ($150-ish) and extraordinarily superior for outdoors work:
http://msegrip.com/mse.php?show=product&cat=&products_ID=25784

If you want cheap cheap cheap, a piece of beadboard insulation (silver one side, white the other) clamped between two stands would be far superior to a collapsible floppy reflector in outdoors conditions if the wind blows a little. Of course, if the wind blows a lot, you're hosed either way.
 
I like them for indoor use, but outside trying to get a person to hold them...the person gets tired or slips or breathes....Think cheap, cstands, foam core, paint or aluminum foil, sand bags, guy ropes and stakes if needed.
 
Agree with everything said above, but if you are going to buy one, the Photoflex discs (or comparable quality brand) are superior: I purchased an off-brand 5-in-1 from someone on ebay, and the silver and gold foil flecks off the reflector whenever I use it. The Photoflex has lasted for years on indoor docu shoots with no deterioration.

It was funny watching someone get blown away while holding one of these while I was doing an interview on the steppes in Mongolia -- it acted like a giant handheld kite. That was the last time I used one outdoors...
 
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