Flash photography tip: Prevent unwanted light on your background with grids

Saturday 22 July 2023, 15:51 by Elja Trum | 3,687 views | 2 comments

This article was translated from Dutch with the help of AI. Read the original.

One way to prevent shadows on your background is to put a grid on your light modifier. This directs the light better than not using a grid, giving you much more control over where light does and does not fall.

Janna, f/4, 1/160s, 100 ISO @ 38mm
Putting a grid on your flash (and letting the light come slightly from the side) prevents unwanted light and unwanted shadows in your photo.

Grids also make it possible to light the background and foreground separately in tight spaces. In the example above, you can see that the model is well lit, while virtually no light falls on the wall behind Janna.

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About the author

Elja Trum is the founder of Photofacts and online photography course website Photofacts Academy. He has been writing about photography since 2006. Elja is also the author of (Dutch) books on composition, black-and-white photography, flash photography and portrait photography.

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2 comments

Karel wrote on Wednesday 26 July 2023 at 12:06 | reply
as a "layperson" I looked up the word grid and got "rooster". What exactly is a grid and what does it look like?
Translated from Dutch.

Elja Trum wrote on Wednesday 26 July 2023 at 14:01 | reply
They come in different shapes and sizes, but it is indeed a kind of grid (or raster) that you place in front of your light.

In this little article you can see a grid on a softbox, for example.

Translated from Dutch.

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