Lighttools Snapgrid

Overview

A fabric grid (English Fabric Grid or Soft Egg Crate, marketed by DoPchoice under the brand name SNAPGRID®) is a foldable light modifier that is placed in front of the face of a softbox. It consists of a grid of black, light-absorbing fabric baffles and acts as a textile counterpart to a rigid metal honeycomb grid: it narrows the beam angle of the soft light and suppresses lateral spill light (spill), without changing the softness of the light.

Important for clarification: "Lighttools" and "Snapgrid" are two different brands of the same equipment type. Lighttools® (distributed via Chimera, manufactured in North America) is a brand of fabric grid, known there as Soft Egg Crate® or ez[POP]®. SNAPGRID®, on the other hand, is a registered trademark of DoPchoice GmbH (Germany) and belongs to the SNAPBAG® softbox system. The term "Lighttools Snapgrid" as a single product does not exist – it refers to the device class of fabric grids.

Function and Effect

A softbox produces soft, diffuse light, but it scatters this light widely. The fabric grid bundles the light cone by the black baffles absorbing light rays entering at an angle and only allowing light close to the axis to pass through. This results in:

• Narrower Beam Angle: more directed light with consistently soft light quality.
• Spill Control: less light on the background, ceiling, or adjacent areas – cleaner separation of subject and set.
• No Color Shift: the black fabric does not change the color temperature of the light.

Types and Beam Angles

Fabric grids are designated by the maximum transmitted beam angle. A smaller value means a narrower, more directed cone, a larger value means a wider one.

Manufacturers also offer special versions, such as combination grids with 30°/50° (DoPchoice) or a 60° grid (Lighttools).

Use on Set

The grid is attached directly to the front frame of the softbox or SNAPBAG via hook-and-loop fasteners – tool-free, in seconds, even on a hanging fixture. Foldable grids with internal tensioning (e.g., Lighttools ez[POP]®) remain taut without sagging and maintain their shape regardless of the hanging angle. For transport and storage, they can be folded down small and are usually delivered with a carrying bag. Typical applications: interview and beauty lighting, where the soft light needs to be precisely limited to the person, as well as tight sets where spill light on walls or backgrounds must be avoided.