2nd Curtain Flash

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Shutter

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Kris
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Ok, so I have just figured that I can do a whole load of new stuff using 2nd curtain flash! Itching to get out now and try a few things!!

I should probably look at getting an external flash too for a little more control!! Are the speedlites a good place to start?


Thanks
 
Just be aware that off-camera second curtain sync is not straightforward!

And also it may be less effective creatively than you think. The real trick is slow-sync flash technique - 'dragging the shutter'. Some folks seem to believe second/rear curtain is a magic bullet for all kinds of stuff but actually it's only relevant when a) you have a longish exposure, b) there is movement, and c) the direction of the ambient light blur is important.

Most of the time (c) doesn't often apply and it makes no difference whether the ambient light blur goes one way or the other as the movement is random anyway (people dancing, waving light wands etc) and actually using first curtain sync gives you more control over the timing of the flash.

First curtain sync is also much easier to do remotely :)
 
Cheers Richard.
Infact I was thinking of using A and B but not C! :)

Thanks for the advice! Much appreciated! :)
 
Shutter said:
Cheers Richard.
Infact I was thinking of using A and B but not C! :)

Thanks for the advice! Much appreciated! :)
Click to expand...

You're welcome bud.

The advantage of using first curtain sync in mobile and fluid social situations is if you have a shutter speed of maybe half a second, it's impossible to predict what the subject will be doing when the flash fires, in terms of movement and expression. It's hard enough with first curtain.

And also, because the pre-flash will go off well ahead of the main flash, sometimes people think the picture has already been taken and move out of position before it actually has.
 
Yeah, how many times do your subjects move when they see the first flash thinking the picture has been taken!!! :lol::lol:

I am hoping I can explore street photography at night and I think im correct in thinking that using a second curtain would help achieve similar effects (link below) where the scene is exposed and lit correctly but has light trails in too! Does that make sense?!

http://www.thethirstyboy.com/bloggin/wp-content/uploads/2009/06/2003707435842393860_rs.jpg


cheers

edit: I know that increasing my aperture can do this too, but with some experimenting I think both can work! :)
 
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Shutter said:
Yeah, how many times do your subjects move when they see the first flash thinking the picture has been taken!!! :lol::lol:

I am hoping I can explore street photography at night and I think im correct in thinking that using a second curtain would help achieve similar effects (link below) where the scene is exposed and lit correctly but has light trails in too! Does that make sense?!

http://www.thethirstyboy.com/bloggin/wp-content/uploads/2009/06/2003707435842393860_rs.jpg


cheers

edit: I know that increasing my aperture can do this too, but with some experimenting I think both can work! :)
Click to expand...

I'm not sure you're understanding things quite right.

In the pic you linked, that is just a long ambient exposure during which the light trails have been painted, plus the flash. Since there is no movement of the main subject, it makes no difference whether it's first or second curtain sync.

What makes the light trails stand out is because they have been painted over a dark area of the image.

Not sure what you mean by increasing the aperture, I guess you mean increasing the f/number (which is reducing the aperture). That is only relevant in terms of making the shutter speed longer, to give you enough time to paint the light trails.

The difference between first and second curtain sync. If you have a moving subject going left to right, with first curtain sync the flash image will be on the left at the start of the movement (with the ambient blur going to the right). With second curtain sync the blur will be exactly the same, but the flash image will be on the right, at the end of the movement. Comparison pics here http://blog.davidfenwick.co.uk/2008/07/first-and-second-curtain-sync.html
 
Lol. Your totally correct and although what I wrote above was wrong, I do understand but got confused when thinking about light trails with cars and capturing the image at the end of the exposure!!

I confused talking about 'graffiti' with thinking about car trails! hopefully the weather will pick up tonight so I can go out and get examples!

Thanks for sharing that link, it demonstrates the technique well!
 
middlearthimages said:
Nicely explaind Happy with a very good link too.

Thanks for sharing.
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Hope it helps :)

I think there is some confusing terminology around this, and the term second curtain sync is being used generally to describe slow-sync flash (dragging the shutter in strobist speak) whereas it is just as aspect of it - you can of course do that with first or second curtain. And for the reasons given above, it is often a bad idea to use second curtain.

The other thing which seems to have crept into strobist folklore is that with second curtain sync, because the flash is fired last, it somehow overlays the ambient exposure and stamps itself over the image more prominently. It doesn't, photography doesn't work like that - first or last makes no difference. What makes the flash image stand out is when it is against a dark area of the background.
 
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