Professor Kobre's Lightscoop Standard Version Bounce Flash Device - Universal Model

by Professor Kobre

• A bounce device for the pop-up flash on most 35mm DSLRs with interchangable lenses, slips over your camera's pop-up flash.
• Allows you to bounce the flash like professionals bounce an expensive external flash.
• The Standard version has a normal mirror and is used in most situations.
• It slips into your camera's hot shoe, fits right over the pop up flash, and redirects the camera's flash to a ceiling or wall

Product Details

• Item Weight: 4 ounces
• Shipping Weight: 6.1 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• ASIN: B0017LNHY2
• Item model number: Lightscoop, Standard
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (122 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank:
  • #33 in Camera & Photo > Accessories > Flash Accessories
• Date first available at Amazon.com: June 17, 2003

Product Description

Professor Kobre's Lightscoop, a bounce device for the pop-up flash on most 35mm DSLRs with interchangable lenses, slips over your camera's pop-up flash and allows you to bounce the flash like professionals bounce an expensive external flash. The Lightscoop is the inexpensive answer to natural-looking bounce flash and digital photography lighting. (Even professionals like it for casual shooting!) No more harsh shadows, bleached faces, red-eye, or cave effect from direct pop-up flash! Reviewers tell the story: "Bounce pop-up flash by snapping a Lightscoop over it, a little piece of plastic genius," Popular Photography, March 2008 "...just as if you had used one of those reflector umbrellas that the pros use," David Pogue, New York Times, "Circuits." -- "It slips into your camera's hot shoe, fits right over the pop up flash, and redirects the camera's flash to a ceiling or wall. That's bounce, baby, bounce... as essential as a lens cap," DingbatMag, the monthly review of Cool Tools "Your pop-up flash doesn't have to suck... I was stunned by the difference," Terry White's Tech Blog The Standard version has a normal mirror and is used in most situations. Compatible cameras Canon 5D, 7D, 10D, 20D, 30D, 40D, 50D, 60D, Rebel XTi OR 400, Rebel XT OR 350, Rebel XSI or 450, Rebel XS or 1000D, Rebel T1i, Rebel T2i Fuji FinePix Pro S Series Nikon D40, D40x, D50, D60, D70, D70s, D80, D90, D100, D200, D30

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

55 of 56 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Stunning results April 29, 2008

By Thinking Person

Professor Kobre's Lightscoop, Standard Version Flash Diffuser, Universal Model, fits over the Pop-up Flash of most SLR Cameras.

First, this is NOT a diffuser, but a device that bounces the light from the pop-up flash to a ceiling or wall. A diffuser softens the direct light coming from the flash but can't evenly light foreground and background subjects. Bouncing the flash is how professionals get great lighting effects with their expensive flashes. You've probably seen them at work at weddings or events, when they tilt the flash head to point up to the ceiling or sideways to a wall. So the Lightscoop instantly, easily, and inexpensively adds this kind of versatility to SLR cameras that have pop-up flashes -- without spending big bucks on another piece of equipment. I bought a new lens, for example. Maybe later I'll buy a fancy flash, but right now I have enough to learn. Check out the Lightscoop Users Group on Flickr to see what other ordinary people are doing with this amazing and easy-to-use piece of equipment.

92 of 101 people found the following review helpful

2.0 out of 5 stars Works but limited in usefulness, fragile, overpriced December 28, 2008

By Bindlestiff

Amazon Verified Purchase

Randy Benters 1-star review really isn't that far off, but I will try to be kinder. Used at ISO 800 as Prof Kobre specifies (why aren't these provisos in the PRODUCT DESCRIPTION?), with light colored ceilings no more than 10-12 feet high (I think that might be stretching it, personally) and keeping the distances quite short, the Light Scoop can give good results with your on-board flash. You -must- keep these limitations in mind when using the device, and again they should be in the product description! I question Prof Kobres contention that "Modern cameras work fine at ISO 800", and wonder what he means by "modern cameras". My Pentax k200 is modern enough I would hope, and I can certainly tell the difference between images taken at ISO 100 and 800, and I think that applies to most of us who are using "prosumer" grade DSLR's in the sub-$1000 price range. It doesn't mean everything is crap at 800, but blithely claiming "it's all good" is equally misleading.

So why the 2-star review? The Light Scoop is very fragile, does not fold down in any way and comes only with a soft bag. A few pounds of pressure in the wrong direction and you are out $30. This product needs some redesign - a version II could fold and a better design could be more sturdy. Thus, minus 1 star.

This product is over-priced. It's a mirror mounted on a fragile plastic form with a tab that slides into your hotshoe mount. It should probably sell for no more than half it's current price point, and if I had realized just how fragile it is I wouldn't have paid it. I foolishly assumed that with the $30 price came a sturdy product that might travel well. This is not the case. Minus another star.

Does it work? Yes, within its limits, and very well. But Randys point is also well taken: at $30 + shipping for something this fragile and cumbersome, you may want to consider putting the money towards a real flash until some sanity is applied to the price of the product or a redesign is accomplished, or better yet, both!

26 of 27 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Works as advertised - vastly improves flash photos May 2, 2008

By Peter

I use it on my Canon Digital Rebel XT. It came with detailed instructions on how to set manual flash settings - after setting once the camera remembers them, so any time I want to use the Lightscoop, I just switch the top dial to M, pop open the flash and slide the Lightscoop onto the flash shoe. As long as you have a light-colored ceiling or wall to bounce the flash off of, it works great.

Note if your lens is wider than 17mm or so (a pretty wide lens), some of the direct flash can "leak" over the top, causing a bright strip on the top edge of the photo. I either adjust the zoom to be not quite so wide (I have a Canon 10-22mm EF-S), hold my hand up in front of the top edge of the Lightscoop, or crop the bright strip out afterwards.