Lighting

Lighting equipment divides into 3 main categories; the light sources, the holders and things that control the spread of the light. ,  Most lights, regardless of the brand or model, provide heads that come in the form of a strobe surrounded by a reflector. Most strobe lights allow you to completely remove the reflector and attach different kinds of light modifiers.
The most popular types of light modifiers are umbrellas and softboxes. Reflecting umbrellas produce a diffused and soft lighting. The strobe light faces different way than a model or a subject.
Softboxes come in different shape and sizes. Light coming from a strobe head gets reflected inside the softbox and gets diffused through the translucent front. It creates a soft lighting but it's more focused on the model or a subject. Some other tools that control that control and modify the quality of light are barn doors, snoots and honeycomb grids.