A few weeks ago my friend Fabrizio Tzinaridis (from Temptation Island, The bachelor,...) contacted me if I was interested to do a photo shoot with his girlfriend Sanne.

We started with some close ups with my favorite background “charchoal grey” and then we switched to polaroid pictures for model agencies.

A few weeks earlier I bought both the Smallrig Parabolic softboxes RA-D55 & RA-D85 twice.

These lightformers are really well build, easy to open and close again and very affordable for your wallet.

For the portrait shots I used 4 of them.

The main light was a double diffused RA-D85 powered by a Godox AD1200 Pro and to brighten the neck shadows I used the smaller RA-D55 with inner diffuse and grid powered by a Godox AD-B2 and 2 Godox AD200’s.

Above the model I used another RA-D85 with only inner diffuse and grid so no light could fall in the background.

Behind the model I used another RA-D55 with inner diffuse and grid to brighten the hair from the back powered by a Godox AD600 Pro attached on the light stand.

To create a vignet I used another AD200 with small reflector.

So, that is 5 different flashes in total.

In my opinion the Smallrig RA-D range are a no brainer. The build quality is perfect, de reflective material is top notch and the light these lightformers produce is excellent.

Another thing to notice is the innerdiffuse is in the middle double diffused to eliminate hot spots.

All lights were measured using a Sekonic L-858D with build in wireless godox module.

For the headshots I used my Sony A1 and my favorite studio portrait lens: The Sony 90mm macro f/2.8.

All photos were done using these settings:

1/400

Aperture f/9 - f/11

ISO 100

Here are some examples using this setup. Only some minor dodge & burn was done in post processing.

Positive:

• Build quality

• Reflective material

• Comes in a nice bag

• Double diffuse cloth and grid are included!

• Opens quick

Negative:

• Does not close as quick as the SMDV softboxes

Conclusion:

Both the RA-D55 & RA-D85 (you also have a bigger model) are excellent lightformers. Smallrig calls them parabolics (and they are) but will never be a true parabolic. You need a movable rod so you can adjust the angle of light by moving the flashbulb closer to the center until it reaches the focus point.

Nevertheless these are fantastic lightformers at very affordable prices.

10/10

Update: Smallrig also now has the LA-D range. These do not come in a quality bag, there is no double cloth on the inner diffuse (for hotspots)n the bowens mount is made of plastic and the metal bars to open the softbox do not have a plastic/rubber material around them. The advantage of these ‘lower quality’ softboxes is the weight.