Flash Photography

[Photofarmer]

Playing around with a speedlite 430EXii on R5 got given it by son in law to fiddly to operate with your fingers he said.

Yup hes right but I digress it was a gimme so im using it for first time playing around.

Set camera to auto seem to do everything its meant to.

But go to manual settings boy lots of white blown out images real trick to this flash photography gig enjoying mucking about though.

And angle of the flash makes huge difference direct off to left or right or straight up all different outcomes.

Cheers lads and lasses any tips welcome.

Reson im playing with it I have to take some Australia Day celebration award pictures at our local council in well lit room but been suggested I should take a flash just in case so practicing.

 

[Bryan Conner]

If your room is small enough and with a white ceiling which isn't too high, then aim the flash up at the ceiling, bounce the light. The white ceiling, or a white/near white wall will become a much larger reflected light source and soften the shadows. If you have a wall very close behind you, you can rotate the flash head to the left 180° and bounce the light of the wall behind you. Just be aware of the fact that if the wall/ceiling is not white or a neutral color, then the bounced (reflected) light will take on the color of the wall. Red wall....red light.

If you have it connected to your R5, you should be able to control every setting of the flash via the camera menu. No need to touch the flash except to turn it on. If the room is relatively well lit, you may only need to use the flash as a fill flash, to fill in any shadows on the faces of the people, and to put a bit of light in the eyes. In this case, use your flash exposure compensatin and set it to -1 stop or maybe -1.5 stops. You can play with that setting. If you do this, using the flash direct and not bounced can look ok. In my opinion, the worst is full on blasted on camera flash.

And then there is off camera flash, with multiple flashes.... I won't shed any light on that now as it probably doesn't interest you in this case. And yes....pun intended....

 

[Only RF]

Flash photography is two exposures in one. Flash is for subject expose and the camera (meter) is for ambient exposure. Controlling both is the key to a balanced exposure. Syl Arena said in one of his books that controlling shadows is more important than highlights.

This is all you need to become a master flash photographer. Start in the blue column on the right. Flash Photography Techniques.

Tangents - photography tutorials, reviews & workshops

photography tutorials, reviews & workshops

neilvn.com

 

[AntonLargiader]

The 430EXii is a really great flash. Super durable, good power. Years ago I made a tutorial on how to alter the swivel angle so that it made more sense when shooting portrait. It was on POTN but if you're interested I can find it.

 

[jcass]

Be careful of jumping into flash photography, it is a bottomless pit, but very rewarding. Here is a site (no longer active) that I enjoyed in days gone by when I did more flash photography, https://strobist.blogspot.com. The Strobist focuses on speedlights/flashes, and encourages you to get the flash off-camera and to explore modifiers. I hope it is still a good resource for you.

As you've already discovered, direct, on-camera flash flattens the subject. This can be a cool effect sometimes, but usually we're looking for a way to soften and angle the incidence of the light to create a more classically pleasing effect. Even on-camera, the Strobist has good articles and advice. As Bryan already noted, bouncing your flash of the ceiling or a wall is a great way to soften your light, but you may need to increase your flash power. I you can stand with a neutral color wall behind you, try turning your flash to point backwards.

Another common theme is to balance light color... matching your flash to the ambient light color to enhance the subject without obvious environment differences. Or using different colored flashes to create dramatic images... Painting with Light. There are "gels" you can add to your 430EX to compensate for different light souces: daylight, sunset, incandescent lamps, etc.

 

[Photofarmer]

The 430EXii is a really great flash. Super durable, good power. Years ago I made a tutorial on how to alter the swivel angle so that it made more sense when shooting portrait. It was on POTN but if you're interested I can find it.

yes please

 

[Only RF]

Bouncing is the boss. When I shot events and went to ones where I knew people they would wonder why I kept looking at the ceiling. When taking group shot I figured a lot of people went to jail or were in line ups ask they tend to head to a wall. Put you back to the wall and bounce of it. The event OOF atmosphere around them adds life to it. Balance between subject bad ambient light. The key to flash photography is to make it look like you didn't use one unless you are going for a specific look.

My guru Neil van Niekerk could bounce off a wall and make it look like the subject was sitting beside a window.

I got this idea from a site many years ago which I call the reverse ceiling bounce. Less shadows under the nose, etc.

I did some flash workshops many years ago. Getting people to understand hard and soft light sources was a major component. Also light photons travel in strait lines. Bouncing light is like playing pool with light. The sun is many times larger than the earth but because of its distance it looks like the size of a basketball thus a small light source that produces hard light. Like direct flash. On a cloudy day the light is diffused so the light source is much larger. You can see the difference in the shadows under cars on sunny and cloudy days. Bouncing the flash or using an umbrella creates a much larger light source.

 

[Only RF]

Sorry for the bump. About 15 years ago a younger fellow I worked with who was also into photography and sued Canon. He asked me multiple times to shoot his wedding and I refused. Finally I broke down and spent 6 months preparing to learn about flash photography. I could use flash with OK results but images were flat and I was mostly concerned about repeatability. I wanted to control it, not the other way around it. I was actually afraid of flash photography because I didn't understand it. It was an amazing journey for me. We wound up shooting events together for about 5 years to make some extra cash.

A few things I learned. 6 months of prep and I still didn't feel ready by his wedding. I gained a whole new respect for professional photographers. Someone may prefer natural light but as a pro you have to be able to enter any situation and use all available tools to get the job done. I seen some examples of natural light photographers who were not prepared and shot indoor receptions. This was before our modern NR reduction tools. Weddings and events are hard work. Not only do you need to know your gear in and out in case something goes wrong (because it will) you need backup gear. You need to be good at posing people for the money shots and I found that the hardest part.