Toronto Photography Meetup Group

Hi

I'm putting together a simple strobist kit and I'm looking at two brands of umbrellas which I want to use as both bounce and shoot through umbrellas. Since I hate wasting money I want to buy the right umbrella the first time.

My question is does anyone used these umbrellas and how do they compare? My goal is to do some indoor photography but still be able to take one umbrella with the stand to shoot away from home.

(On a side note I did read the amazon reviews)

Eclipse 45" Umbrella White with Removable Black Cover
http://www.mpex.com/browse.cfm/4,5809.html

OR

Westcott 43" Collapsible Umbrella with Removable Cover 15" FOLDED
http://www.mpex.com/browse.cfm/4,4635.html

*Forgot to mention that I am open to looking at other brands/models of umbrellas

I've heard good things about the Wescott, but i dont have anything to say about the other one.

I think since they are pretty similar and the price difference is minimal and the cost if only, like, $25 each, you wont go wrong either way i am betting.

I have the Westcott umbrella and it's worked well with SB800. I also got it from Mpex along with some other strobist stuff. It works well and haven't had any problems with it ripping or anything. I don't think you can really go wrong with either of them to be honest.

Thanks for the advice guys. I've kind of thinking in the same direction of both of you.

Dimitris I was wondering what shipping option you choose when you shipped from MPEX. The two options they sent me were was priority and express. I heard there were some super saver us postal options where there is a flat fee for the brokerage services. Unfortunately the information I have found is all sketchy. Any input you could give would be most appreciated.

Westcott 43" Collapsible Umbrella with Removable Cover 15" FOLDED

I've got two of them, absolutely great if taken care of, I chose USPS option, you can e-mail them to ask for options and estimates, they are usually quick on response

Thanks for letting me know. Looks like I will just go with the priority service.

I would go with the Westcott. Being collapsible to 15inches is a great feature to have when travelling or on location.

I came across a promotion code for MPEX. You can use the code "light" and get 10 percent off your order.

Just in case anyone else is going to order from MPEX this is how my order turned out.

10 days to get order
Shipping costs for USPS was $34.50 US

Items ordered
1 light stand
2 45" umbrellas
2 Flash heads

With shipping the total order was $150 us

The custom costs were just the taxes on the item which was $20.23 CDN

Thanks kagetora,
I've been thinking about ordering and have always wondered about the shipping costs. i wish they would have an online quote.

Hi Jim

You can send an e-mail to shipping@mpex.com with the list of items and an address and they will provide a quote. For some reason the shipping costs can change with in a week but MPEX did honor their original quote for me.

More info here:
http://www.mpex.com/shipping.htm

i'd be interested in a Wescott as well. Maybe if there's a few of us, we can do a bulk order and save on shipping, at the very least?

Hi Guys

This is a good idea. I would start a new thread to see if there are others who are interested.

I'm in for another Westcott shoot through umbrella.