Double Diffused

I was reading an article in a photography magazine about lighting with hot-shoe flashes by one of the best in the biz, Joe McNally. He was diffusing his Nikon SB-900s through more than one layer - a shoot through umbrella and a translucent reflector. I've done stuff like this with powerful studio strobes but never thought to soften my flashes in this manner - I was afraid I would lose too much power. Being that my Canon 580exII is about as powerful as Joe's SB-900 I decided to try and make some extra soft light myself. I used a homemade softbox and then a shoot through umbrella(coming at me from left and up) - I used a second flash to light the background and a bit of my right side. I was happy with the quality of the light and still had enough power for a decent aperture. This little experiment was great because I'll now feel more creative in the diffusers I'll be willing to use on my small strobes.

Later that evening my friend Wes stopped by for a bit and I still had my new set-up on the light stand. I had him and my girlfriend strike a few quick poses in front of my lights.