Ordered octoboxes on Saturday evening and they arrived on Tuesday before noon. Great is the way I describe that availability and delivery.
Unpacked both octoboxes and took inventory. everything was there. Super start. Tried to assemble the adapter ring in the cast speed ring. Poor fit - the adapter was slightly larger than the space on the speed ring. Thankfully I had another set from a different company which fit perfectly. I blame the quality control section or whoever was responsible for making sure the castings are of the best quality and dimension, likewise for the insert. A bit of work with a file could remedy the situation but why should anyone have to modify an item they just bought to get it to work as advertised? My biggest complaint about the speedring was how filthy it was. I get it, the ring is cast and might be slightly dirty from the process. That wasn't the case, though. They were so dirty I coldn't even touch them without my hands being covered in a dark grey dust - definitely not something I want every time I go to use the octobox or put on the white diffuser material. I had to scrub the speedrings with a nail brush and Dawn dishwashing soap to get the dirt off.
Assembly was pretty straight forward for anyone who has ever assembled a softbox of any shape or size. I was very impressed with the quality of the material, the stitching of the rod pockets and the care that was taken in assembling the pieces. The rods were all straight and have the small and large rod ends that assist in not tearing through the rod pockets and getting the rods into the speedring. The one change I would make to the packaging of the items is to stop using the extra strength two inch packing tape to hold the rods to the packaging. After all, everything comes in a nice storage bag. The tape leaves a sticky residue on the rods that required me to use a chemical - Goo Be Gone - to remove. It took just a few minutes but I wasn't looking to scrub things that should have been clean when they arrived. I did review the provided instructions afterward assembling my octoboxes - another place the company can save money as they are horrible and are not even close to being specific to the product purchased. The hand drawn graphics made me laugh, so I guess they're good for something.
Overall, I am impressed with the products now but only time will tell. The price for both the 48" and 60" octoboxes, including shipping, was $108. The quality of materials used and the fantastic customer service so far made these a great buy. After the terrific experience so far, I hope they last and retain the opinion already formed.
FOLLOW UP TO PREVIOUS REVIEW: I used the boxes for the first time this weekend. Please note, I hadn't installed the diffuser to avoid touching it unnecessarily before I had to to avoid discoloration. The quality of the boxes themselves still wonderful. The quality of the the diffuser material was likewise great, but the quality of the diffuser construction left something to be desired. The outer diffuser panel is held in place with velcro which is attached to the box very well. The problem is with the shape and sewing of the panel itself. Its not truly octagonal and doesn't fit the box as well as one would believe is appropriate when compared to how well the box itself is made. I was able to make it do what I needed but it required the front lip/edge of the box to become distorted to do so. Not very aesthetically pleasing and definitely doesn't bring in a sense of professionalism for the photographer. Had it been one box or the other, I'd write it off as a fluke but the problem was with both the 48" and the 60". I may try to remake this part myself with some new diffuser material and some velcro but a new set from the company would go a long way towards good relations.
Overall, the price is still very good, the box itself is well made and I'm sure will last for a while. While I loathe having to work on something I just bought to make it work, the overall value is still there in these boxes. We'll have to see if the manufacturer's customer service is as good as the boxes.
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Reviewed in the United States on August 28, 2018
Reviewed in the United States on February 27, 2014
As usual, after buying a new piece of equipment or accessory, I recorded a video review of the product so other potential buyers can benefit from it. I had to split my videos into two parts due to length. You can find both of them in my youtube channel. I posted part 2 here in Amazon because it includes the review section.
Let's start with the materials. The main part of the softbox is made of heavy duty leather-ish heat resistant material; while the rods and speedring are made of durable metal. For the price, I was very happy to see that all the pieces were made of good and durable quality materials.
However, as soon as I started installing the softbox, my mood started changing. The fact is that the installation process was extremely difficult. Once you have the thin edge of the rods in the velcro pockets, a lot of strength and effort was required to insert the other edge into the speedring holes. It also angered me that the people at Fotodiox neglected to include a simple instruction sheet or some tips to help with the assembly. Finally, the uninstallation of the softbox was a painful process too. Again the problem was taking the rods out of the speedring. I think this softbox was designed to be more of a permanent accessory instead of a portable one.
I have used the softbox in only one shoot so far, but I think that gave me a good idea on how to review this product. In this video I show you a closer look at the assembled softbox, I test it and compare it with two different types of umbrellas. Finally I provide a review and recommendation.
Performance of the softbox for a portrait photoshoot was very good. It produces a very soft and diffused light over the subject and the background shadows are almost non-existent.
Here is my traditional list of pros and cons:
Pros:
* Affordable ($50 in Amazon at the time of writing this).
* Size. The 48" softbox is huge. It covers a large area and wraps light very nicely over the subject.
* The two diffusers create a nice diffused and very soft light. Perfect for portraits.
* All the pieces are made of good quality materials.
* The edges covered with velcro have plenty of space to put additional modifiers.
* Fits well on the Alien Bee strobe.
* The speedring allows you to rotate the softbox.
Cons:
* Installation is extremely difficult! I must clarify that understanding how to install it is not the big issue. The problem is the act of installing the softbox. It requires a lot of time and effort to curve the rods and fit them in the speedring the right way.
* Comes with no instructions or tips on how to install and take care of the softbox.
* Weight. It's a good thing that the softbox is big, but you must consider that it is also heavy. You must use a heavy duty light stand and maybe also a couple of sandbags.
* Uninstalling the softbox is also very difficult.
In summary, this is a great softbox that will help you improve your portrait photography. However, the difficulty of assembly might force you to use the softbox as a permanent lighting feature. For the price, I cannot complain. I am very happy with the purchase and look forward to use it in my future shoots.
Great big softbox. Hard set up. Good results.
Reviewed in the United States on February 27, 2014
Recently, I've been trying to find ways to improve my photography at my home studio. In the past, I used my new Alien Bee 800 with either a shoot-through or a reflective umbrella. The results were not too good using a white wall as a background. Hard shadows affected the composition of the portrait and faces always ended up a bit shiny. So I decided to invest in a good but affordable softbox. I went to Amazon and decided on the Fotodiox Pro 48" Octagon Softbox based on good reviews and price (only $50).Reviewed in the United States on February 27, 2014
As usual, after buying a new piece of equipment or accessory, I recorded a video review of the product so other potential buyers can benefit from it. I had to split my videos into two parts due to length. You can find both of them in my youtube channel. I posted part 2 here in Amazon because it includes the review section.
Let's start with the materials. The main part of the softbox is made of heavy duty leather-ish heat resistant material; while the rods and speedring are made of durable metal. For the price, I was very happy to see that all the pieces were made of good and durable quality materials.
However, as soon as I started installing the softbox, my mood started changing. The fact is that the installation process was extremely difficult. Once you have the thin edge of the rods in the velcro pockets, a lot of strength and effort was required to insert the other edge into the speedring holes. It also angered me that the people at Fotodiox neglected to include a simple instruction sheet or some tips to help with the assembly. Finally, the uninstallation of the softbox was a painful process too. Again the problem was taking the rods out of the speedring. I think this softbox was designed to be more of a permanent accessory instead of a portable one.
I have used the softbox in only one shoot so far, but I think that gave me a good idea on how to review this product. In this video I show you a closer look at the assembled softbox, I test it and compare it with two different types of umbrellas. Finally I provide a review and recommendation.
Performance of the softbox for a portrait photoshoot was very good. It produces a very soft and diffused light over the subject and the background shadows are almost non-existent.
Here is my traditional list of pros and cons:
Pros:
* Affordable ($50 in Amazon at the time of writing this).
* Size. The 48" softbox is huge. It covers a large area and wraps light very nicely over the subject.
* The two diffusers create a nice diffused and very soft light. Perfect for portraits.
* All the pieces are made of good quality materials.
* The edges covered with velcro have plenty of space to put additional modifiers.
* Fits well on the Alien Bee strobe.
* The speedring allows you to rotate the softbox.
Cons:
* Installation is extremely difficult! I must clarify that understanding how to install it is not the big issue. The problem is the act of installing the softbox. It requires a lot of time and effort to curve the rods and fit them in the speedring the right way.
* Comes with no instructions or tips on how to install and take care of the softbox.
* Weight. It's a good thing that the softbox is big, but you must consider that it is also heavy. You must use a heavy duty light stand and maybe also a couple of sandbags.
* Uninstalling the softbox is also very difficult.
In summary, this is a great softbox that will help you improve your portrait photography. However, the difficulty of assembly might force you to use the softbox as a permanent lighting feature. For the price, I cannot complain. I am very happy with the purchase and look forward to use it in my future shoots.
Images in this review
Reviewed in the United States on March 30, 2016
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Roy
... this put together but once it is it makes nice light. Better for a large space where you ...
Reviewed in Canada on June 24, 2018
