Any photographer using the Nikon SB-900 speedlight knows that flagship flash has a problem playing well with others. Specifically, Nikon changed the clearance between the flash body and the foot of the flash, such that the flash doesn’t fit into the cold shoes with a fatter design. Here’s a super easy mod I did to make the stock coldshoe of the Lastolite Ezybox softbox fit the SB-900.
In the above photo, you can see all the pieces you’ll need for this modification – namely course and fine-grained sandpaper.
Required Tools:
I think that you could get away with a medium-grit sandpaper only, but these two grits worked perfectly for my needs.
Directions:
I found it easiest to hold the sandpaper in place and then move the shoe back and forth. Overall, this mod takes just about five minutes of dedicated work, since you’re basically shaving off a fraction of a millimeter of material.
Here are photos of the finished “mod” to the cold shoe.
The Lastolite EZYbox Softbox
With this five-minute mod, it’s perhaps worth noting a bit about the Lastolite EZYbox softbox. I have the 15″ x 15″ version and have loved the ease of use for location work.
The softbox is compact, folds for easy transportation, and it throws out a nice light. For location works, these are all excellent selling points. Here are a few examples in which I used the EZYbox as the key light.
End Notes:
While the ideal solution to the Lastlite cold shoe is probably to buy a Stroboframe-style clamping shoe, this is super simple DIY solution that costs next to nothing and lets one use the Nikon SB-900 with the original hardware. This tiny DIY project is much cheaper than Lastolite’s replacement shoe that solves the same problem, too.
Of course, the new Lastolite softboxes come with a modified shoe that readily fits the SB-900, this mod only applies to the older style shoes.
This entry was posted on Thursday, January 14th, 2010 at 3:25 pm and is filed under Photography Gear, Photography Tutorials and tagged with cold shoe, diy, ezybox, lastolite, mod, sb-900, speedlight, strobist. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.
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Just did a 5-minute "mod" on my Lastolite softbox bracket mount so it fits the Nikon SB-900 speedlight. Here's how: http://ow.ly/1n3ow4
RT @toddowyoung Just did a 5-minute "mod" on my Lastolite softbox bracket mount so it fits the Nikon SB-900 speedlight. http://ow.ly/1n3ow4
I recently got one of these for my Canon 580 EXII, haven’t used it yet.
Good on you for sharing your mods
Hey Kylie,
Nice to hear from you here, thanks for the comment. I think you’ll like the Lastolite, I use mine all the time for location portraits.
I think that only the Nikon SB-900 is the odd-flash out, so you won’t have to do any mods to your bracket. Enjoy, though.
RT @toddowyoung Just did a 5-minute "mod" on my Lastolite softbox bracket mount so it fits the Nikon SB-900 speedlight. http://ow.ly/1n3ow4
Hello Todd, thanks for all of your advice and info as usual! Your work and graciousness is inspiring to say the least. When using the Lastolite EZYbox Softbox in these samples, are you shooting above, next to, or below the flash. Or all three? Thanks, Daren.
Hi Daren,
You’re welcome, I hope the info is useful. For the most part, I’m either next to or below the softbox. In general I will have the key light at head-level of my subjects or below, but it does just depend on the situation. Thanks for the question/comment.
Hi Todd,
Thanks for sharing these tips with the rest of us luddites. Always a good read and your work is always inspiring.
Stay well!
Paul
Hey Paul,
Thanks for the comment, I’m happy to share these small tips. This was a very tiny mod – look out for a much bigger and ambitious DIY project coming up very soon. This mod to the speedlight bracket is just a taste.
Great stuff!
I’ve got two Ezybox’es from Lastolite, but dont use cold shoes.
I use hotshoes with a sync cord which goes to my Radiopoppers.
I’m gonna buy a beautydish next month from kaceyindustries (?) made for speedlites, check them out Todd.
Dont have much skills for making my own stuff, so gotta buy them :)
Hey Gregussen,
I’ve seen the Kacey beauty dish and it looks great – very similar to the Mola design that gets so much praise. I like the fact that the Kacey dish is made out of plastic, too, for weight and durability.
I think a lot of the fun of a DIY project is simply the fun of making the thing; I certainly had fun designing and constructing my DIY beauty dish. All that said, I think that I’ll eventually buy a Kacey, Speedotron, or Mola dish.
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hi todd – i’m a new fan that just came across your site. just wondering how you decided on the lastolite 15×15 box versus the 24×24. i’m an aspiring photog and debating on which size to go with. i’m shooting nikon with a sb900. any advice is greatly appreciated!
Hey Chris,
I guess it’s all about portability vs quality of light. I’m always surprised how soft the 15″ can be, but if you want a softer source, go with the 24×24″ box.
I just bought the 36X36″ @ B&H and I swear the cold shoe is not going to fit? Does this work for that large of a softbox? I use SB900s.