Abstract:
A photographic light diffuser for mounting to a camera with a hot shoe and an internal flash including a light diffuser and a diffuser mount removably attachable to the light diffuser. The diffuser mount is adapted to attach to the hot shoe while permitting operation of the internal flash.

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION 
     This application claims priority to and the benefit of U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 61/014,392, filed on Dec. 17, 2007 and entitled PHOTOGRAPHIC DIFFUSER, the entire content of which is hereby expressly incorporated by reference. 
    
    
     FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention relates to photographic light diffusers, and more particularly, to a portable light diffuser that mounts on a camera. 
     BACKGROUND 
     Some cameras may be fitted with external flashes that attach to the camera via a hot shoe. A hot shoe  1 , shown in  FIG. 1 , is a mounting point on the top of the camera that allows an external flash with a matching adapter to be physically secured and electrically coupled to the camera so that operation of the external flash may be synchronized with operation of the camera. 
     Some cameras have an internal flash. The operation of the internal flash is synchronized with the operation of the camera to provide additional lighting for the subject of a photograph. However, lighting provided by the internal flash may not always produce the effect desired in the photograph. The concentrated light from the internal flash may result in harsh reflections and shadows appearing on the subject in the photograph. Therefore, a user may have a need to modify the light produced by the internal flash. 
     Some cameras include both a hot shoe  1  and an internal flash. For such cameras, insertion of an external flash into the hot shoe  1  may disable the internal flash from being operated, so that light can be better controlled. More specifically, the external flash is positioned using rails  2  of the hot shoe  1 . When the external flash is positioned using the rails  9 , one or more springs are compressed to disable the internal flash. Further, the hot shoe  1  provides an electrical connection point  6  between the camera and the external flash to synchronize the operation of the camera and the external flash. 
     Photographic light diffusers are commonly used to provide soft lighting effects in photographs. To achieve a diffuse lighting effect, light from a flash can be passed through a semi-transparent material, or it may be reflected off a material which may cause the light to scatter to some extent. Typically, such photographic light diffusers are provided by stationary screens, umbrellas, soft boxes, and the like. Such devices provide excellent lighting effects in fixed studio settings where there is no need to transport the lighting equipment from place to place. 
     However, it can be inconvenient, if not impossible, to use such lighting accessories outside of a photography studio. For photography outside of a studio, an adjustable, portable diffuser, which attaches directly to the camera, may be desirable. Such a diffuser may be placed directly over the flash to provide a semi-transparent material to diffuse the light of the flash. 
     However, in some situations, it may be desirable to diffuse light from the internal flash and not an external flash. Therefore, there is a need for a photographic light diffuser that may be utilized with an internal flash and is easily mountable on the camera. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     An embodiment of the present invention provides a photographic light diffuser for mounting to a camera with a hot shoe and a flash, which includes a diffuser panel and a diffuser mount. The diffuser mount is adapted to attach to the hot shoe while permitting operation of the flash. 
     The diffuser panel may include an arc-shaped panel formed of a semi-transparent material. 
     The diffuser mount may include a base and at least one leg. 
     The diffuser panel may include diffuser mount receptacles for receiving at least one leg to attach the diffuser panel to the diffuser mount in a removeable manner by an interference fit. 
     The base may include at least one flange and at least one ridge. The at least one ridge may extend from beneath the at least one flange and may be located between a midline of the base and a lateral edge of the at least one flange. 
     The at least one flange and the at least one ridge may position the base in the hot shoe so that the base does not disable the flash. 
     The diffuser mount may include a pair of legs. 
     A slit may extend from a front of the base towards a rear of the base. 
     The slit may be of a keyhole shape. 
     Another embodiment of the present invention provides a photographic light diffuser for mounting to a camera with a hot shoe and an internal flash, the hot shoe of the type including a pair of rails and a spring operated flash disabler, which includes a diffuser panel and a diffuser mount adapted to attach to the hot shoe while permitting operation of the pop-up internal flash. The diffuser mount includes at least one leg and a base. 
     The base may be adapted to mate with the rails of the hot shoe without engaging the flash disabler and may include at least one flange adapted to fit between the rails of the hot shoe and at least one ridge, wherein the ridge extends from beneath the flange and is located between a midline of the base and a lateral edge of the flange. 
     Another embodiment of the present invention provides a photographic light diffuser for mounting to a camera with a hot shoe and an internal flash, the hot shoe of the type including a pair of rails and a spring operated flash disabler, including a diffuser panel, wherein the diffuser panel includes an arc-shaped panel formed of a semi-transparent material, and a diffuser mount adapted to attach to the hot shoe while permitting operation of the pop-up internal flash. The diffuser mount includes a pair of legs and a base adapted to mate with the rails of the hot shoe without engaging the flash disabler. The base includes at least one flange adapted to fit between the rails of the hot shoe and at least one ridge, wherein the ridge extends from beneath the flange and is located between a midline of the base and a lateral edge of the flange. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         FIG. 1  is a perspective view of an exemplary hot shoe located on a camera. 
         FIG. 2  is a perspective view of an exemplary embodiment of a photographic light diffuser of the present invention. 
         FIG. 3  is a bottom plan view of the photographic light diffuser of  FIG. 2 . 
         FIG. 4A  is a schematic front view of the photographic light diffuser of  FIG. 3  mounted on a hot shoe. 
         FIG. 4B  is a schematic view of a cross-section through line  4 B of the photographic light diffuser mounted on a hot shoe of  FIG. 4A . 
         FIG. 5  is a rear view of the photographic light diffuser of  FIG. 2 . 
         FIG. 6  is a side plan view of a disassembled photographic light diffuser of  FIG. 2 . 
         FIG. 7  is a side view of the photographic light diffuser of  FIG. 2 . 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     As shown in  FIGS. 2 and 3 , an exemplary embodiment of the present invention provides a photographic light diffuser  9  for use with cameras having an internal flash and a hot shoe  1 . The photographic light diffuser  9  includes a diffuser panel  10  and a diffuser mount  12 , which includes a base  30  and legs  13 . 
     According to this embodiment, the diffuser mount  12  is formed of a suitable synthetic polymeric material that has some flexibility, such as plastic. Further, the diffuser mount  12  positions the diffuser panel  10  on a camera in a desired position between the subject of a photograph and the internal flash of the camera, for this embodiment, in front of the internal flash. More specifically, the base  30  of the diffuser mount  12  is adapted to be inserted into the hot shoe  1  without disabling the internal flash. 
     The base  30  has laterally extending flanges  34 . Ridges  32  protrude beneath each flange  34 , extending from the front of the base  30  towards the rear of the base in a region between a midline of the base and a lateral edge of the flanges  34 . In one exemplary embodiment, the ridges  32  are generally symmetric. The ridges  32  may also protrude from each flange  34  across a front portion of the base  30 . A slit  35  may extend from the front of the base  30  towards the rear  38  of the base and may be keyhole-shaped. 
     As shown in  FIG. 4A , to mount the photographic light diffuser  9  to a camera  40 , the base  30  is inserted into the hot shoe  1 . More specifically, the base  30  is slid into the hot shoe  1  such that a peripheral surface  37  of the flange  34  substantially abuts an interior of the rail  2 . The slit  35  allows the flanges  34  to be medially compressed during insertion and allows the flanges to press against the camera  40  to provide an interference fit between the flanges and the rails  2  of the hot shoe  1 . The optimal keyhole-shaped slit  35  provides additional flexibility to the base  30  to help hold it in place between the rails  2  of the hot shoe  1 , while still permitting easy removal. As such, the photographic light diffuser  9  can be firmly attached to, yet easily removed from, the camera  40 . The ridges  32  of the base  30  locate the flanges  34  so that the flanges do not compress springs  44  that disable the internal flash of the camera  40  when compressed. Therefore, the internal flash of the camera  40  is not disabled and will operate when the base  30  is inserted into the hot shoe  1 . One of ordinary skill in the art will appreciate that various configurations of a ridge may be used without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention. 
     As shown in  FIG. 4B , the springs  44  generally extend upward from a bottom surface  45  of the hot shoe  1 , and, when compressed to be substantially parallel to the bottom surface, disable the internal flash. At least one stop  36  locates the base  30  toward the rear of the hot shoe  1  so that the base does not compress the spring  44 . Specifically, the stop  36  engages an end  39  of the hot shoe  1 , which prevents further forward movement of the base  30 . As will be appreciated by one of ordinary skill in the art, other types of stops may be utilized to prevent the base  30  from engaging the springs  44 . 
     As shown in  FIGS. 5-7 , the diffuser mount  12  also includes legs  13  that extend from the base  30  and taper to terminate in diffuser mount adapters  20 . The legs  13  are of a length and shape that will allow the diffuser panel  10  to be located in front of the internal flash. In an exemplary embodiment, the diffuser mount adapters  20  are cylindrical. 
     The diffuser panel  10  is composed of a suitable synthetic polymeric material that is semi-transparent, such as plastic. In one exemplary embodiment, the diffuser panel  10  may be arc-shaped with a number of bump-like protrusions  14  (or rounded protrusions or lens-like projections) on an exterior surface and a smooth interior surface. However, one of ordinary skill in the art will appreciate that the diffuser panel  10  may have a number of suitable shapes consistent with the scope of the invention. 
     In an exemplary embodiment of the present invention, a plurality of diffuser mount receptacles  18  are located on the interior surface of the diffuser panel  10 , with the diffuser mount receptacles being adapted to receive the diffuser mount adaptors  20  of the diffuser mount  12 . In one exemplary embodiment, eight substantially cylindrical diffuser mount receptacles  18  are located in a column on each side of the diffuser panel  10 , as shown in  FIG. 5 , to allow the diffuser panel  10  to be mounted at different heights to provide different lighting effects, or to allow the photographic light diffuser to be used with different camera designs. 
     The diffuser panel  10  can be firmly attached to, yet easily removed from, the diffuser mount  12 , as shown in  FIG. 7 , by inserting the diffuser mount adapters  20  into the diffuser mount receptacles  18  by an interference fit. The position of the diffuser panel  10  in relation to the camera may be adjusted by inserting the diffuser mount adapters  20  into any of the diffuser mount receptacles  18  on either side of the diffuser panel. 
     Light incident on the diffuser panel  10  from the internal flash is diffused (or scattered) by the semi-transparent material and bump-like protrusions  14 . Light that passes through the diffuser panel  10  may illuminate the subject of the photograph more evenly than light directly from the internal flash without the diffuser panel, because the scattered light may reflect from numerous surfaces, filling in shadows and softening reflections. The effect produced by the diffuser panel  10  may be the reduction of harsh shadows and reflections that could result from the concentrated light source of the internal flash. Accordingly, use of the diffuser panel  10  in front of the internal flash will result in a photograph that may appear to have more natural lighting conditions. 
     The photographic light diffuser  9  is compatible with cameras having a hot shoe  1 , as generally described herein. However, the photographic light diffuser  9  may also be mounted on cameras which use an electrical connection, rather than a mechanical one, to disable the internal flash. 
     While the present invention has been described in connection with certain exemplary embodiments, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited to the disclosed embodiments, but, rather, is intended to cover various modifications and equivalent arrangements included within the spirit and scope of the appended claims, and equivalents thereof. For example, other materials may be used to form the diffuser panel, such as rubber. Also, the diffuser panel may be formed in other shapes, such as a flat surface or a surface with multiple angles. Further, other materials may be used to form the diffuser mount, such as metal or rubber. Also, the diffuser mount may be formed in other shapes, such as having only a single leg or three or more legs.