Soft light and happy eyes: The LightScoop. [Review]

Taking low light and no light pictures with a flash often ruins pictures with a harsh flash, demon-esque red eyes, and other unfavorable effects because of the direct light. To remedy such a situation, you can cover the flash with some object or fiddle with your camera until the undesired effect is reduced. Such things however are a pain and take away from you spending time on what matters — taking a picture. The LightScoop by Professor Kobre is a neat little attachment for your digital DSLR that fits nicely in the attachment shoe on top of your camera. So does it actually work?

Lightscoop aims to make low light shots more natural.

When taking pictures in low light conditions, using a flash often casts an unnatural, harsh directional light on the subjects or focal point in the picture. Professional photographers often make use of umbrella like attachments that help diffuse light and give it a more natural glow. But we’re not all photographers with countless attachment bags or the associated deep pockets that it takes to buy such equipment. Thankfully nifty and affordable attachment called the “Lightscoop” may just have you taking professional looking low light shots for a fraction of the price.

There really isn’t anything hi-tech behind the Lightscoop. All you do is attach it to your camera’s hot shoe and enjoy. The ‘Scoop redirects light upwards, bouncing it off the tops of walls and ceilings which ends up giving the immediate surroundings more of a glow instead of spotlight appearance. I don’t have one to try, but the concept seems plausible. If you’re having doubts about the effectiveness, a simple test can be done with a flashlight. Go into a dark room and point the flashlight around at a horizontal angle. Next, shine it at the ceiling and see how the room grows brighter.

Heck, at $35, you might as well give it a try. It’s by far one of the cheapest photography accessories you’ll ever find.

• Purchase the Lightscoop from Amazon

Specialized Lightscoop instructions for a few popular camera brands inside..