Flash for Dummies

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MarkG

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Up to now I've just had the built-in flash. I only use it when I really have to, and even then I'll probably delete the result - it somehow just doesn't look right. So I decided I'd get a better flash in the hope that when I really have to, I'd have more options. Was going to be a Jessops 360AFD, but I found a s/h 430EX here for £30 more and jumped on it.

So, now I have those options. How do I use them? Bounce? Diffuser? Flash Zoom? I've read a few threads here, but they tend to go straight over my head. I'm no Strobist - and right now I don't think I want to be one. I just want to get a pleasing (i.e. natural-looking) result. Help! :)

Thank you (and thanks for tolerating yet another newbie thread!)

PS - Immediate concern is a possible family photo this weekend. I'd like to do it without flash if I can, but if I have to, then I'd like to know how.
 
That's the one that went straight over my head. Perhaps I was looking at the wrong bit, or something. :)
 
If you're on camera with the flash, you need to soften the light (bounce, bounce+diffuser). The big step is off camera - strobist (as quoted above) is a master of it.... You need to start with his 101 and 102 tutorial.
 
arad85 said:
If you're on camera with the flash, you need to soften the light (bounce, bounce+diffuser).
Click to expand...

This is what I need to understand - how to bounce, why I should use bounce, or diffuser, or both, etc.

The big step is off camera - strobist (as quoted above) is a master of it.... You need to start with his 101 and 102 tutorial.
Click to expand...

And this isn't, but thanks. This is my problem - everything seems to assume I want to go off camera, but I just don't - and that's why Strobist 101 doesn't do anything for me.

Of course, if the button is there, you can bet I'll press it someday. I like pressing buttons!
 
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Mark,

Start of with using the flash in auto and have a play. Find a victim and take these shots.

no diffuser, flash straight at them
diffuser, flash straight at them
no diffuser, flash bounced off ceiling
diffuser, flash bounced off ceiling

Take a look at the results.....

Bouncing the flash off a surface makes the flash less harsh but you don't have to use just the ceiling sometimes a wall might be better.

My favourite flash method at the moment is straight at the victim but using a lambdency diffuser (FITP has them for about £9 at the moment). You can even try bouncing with that on :)

:D
 
You don't have to go off camera to get great results, it just expands your options. And for your family group upcoming, I wouldn't bother - just sort out a nice bit of bounce-fill. There is a lot more to using flash creatively than that, but one thing at a time eh? ;)

Without going into the whys of it all, you need to fit a simple bounce card and get your family group into a room with a normal height white ceiling. If you can do that, you can hardly fail but get a good result.

Point the 430EX straight up to the ceiling. That will send most of the light up there in a big pool that will flood the subject with nice soft light - and you need lots of light up there because by the time it has spread out all over it will be substantially reduced in brightness.

However, because the light is coming from above, there will be shadows under eyes and chins - which is where the bounce card comes in. That will send a small amount of light directly forward to lift those shadows, and put a nice sparkle in the eyes. Jobsagoodun :thumbs:

You only need a small bounce card, smaller than a post card, attached with a rubber band or something. Check it out here www.abetterbouncecard.com Make sure you have a practise session. You can increase the ratio of bounce-light to fill-light by zooming the flash head (longer zoom head will put more light to the ceiling) and increasing the size of the bounce card will deliver more fill-in. Also try tilting the head forward, remembering that light bounces off a surface at the same angle that it strikes it, like a snooker ball off the cushion. That way you can aim it a bit to make sure you get the maximim amount dumped down on to the subject.

Use E-TTL on the flash. Bouncing uses a lot of power so if the gun runs out of puff and you get under exposure, raise the ISO rather than lower the f/number as you'll probably need f/5.6-8 to ensure you have enought depth of field to cover the whole group.
 
MarkG said:
This is what I need to understand - how to bounce, why I should use bounce, or diffuser, or both, etc.
Click to expand...
Some good advice from cowasaki and HoppyUK there. Try a few things out and see the results. If you think of the output of the flash as a cone of light, bouncing around and lighting your subjects, you'll soon get an idea of why certain ways of bouncing produce certain effects.
 
Brill! Thanks for the advice - just the kind of kick in the right direction I needed. A lot of this seems obvious (and probably is), but the visual arts aren't my strong point - I'm a through and through techie.

Think I'd best leave the bounce idea until I've got more time. I'd never even heard of bounce cards (though the science behind them makes perfect sense) and I have neither the time to get one nor the skill to DIY one. :)
 
MarkG said:
Brill! Thanks for the advice - just the kind of kick in the right direction I needed. A lot of this seems obvious (and probably is), but the visual arts aren't my strong point - I'm a through and through techie.

Think I'd best leave the bounce idea until I've got more time. I'd never even heard of bounce cards (though the science behind them makes perfect sense) and I have neither the time to get one nor the skill to DIY one. :)
Click to expand...

A bounce card could not be easier. An old envelope will do, attached with a rubber band. It only needs to be small - some guns have one built in that just slides out of the flash head but for some reason Canon decided not to fit one to the 430EX :shrug:

If you have time to get a Stofen-type diffuser cap (couple of quid off ebay) then that works in pretty much the same way. Angle the flash head upwards 60 degress so it punches most of the light to the ceiling and sideways where it bounces off the ceiling and surroundings to provide lots of soft light and filling in shadows from most directions, plus a dash of light directly from the head to the subject which gives that extra bit of lift and sparkle. They are a fit-and-forget accessory (you'll see press togs with them almost permanently fitted) and in an ordinary room with a normal white ceiling they work really well. Get one from FITP here for £1.25! http://www.talkphotography.co.uk/forums/showthread.php?t=244521

This kind of basic flash photography is not difficult and the camera takes care of the tricky exposure side. In fact, if you have a technical kind of mind then photography should come quite easily to you. It is not hard, just occasionally complicated. Photography is a science applied to art and if you approach it in that way you will always get technically good results which you can build on with the creative stuff. It's working the other way around that folks come unstuck ;)
 
That's me sorted then, thanks. I've got a Stofen diffuser already - flash came with one. I'll take the envelope as a backup. :)

And you're right, but you need to add the word 'confidence' in there. Something I don't have as I have trouble visualising the results (and seeing the results on-camera).
 
I just got my first flash earlier this week (Canon EX430ii). Initial test shots were simply pointing the flash at the ceiling, setting TV at 1/160 and letting ETTL do the rest - very pleasing results of my daughter. Be careful bouncing the flash off any coloured surfaces, as that will mess with the White Balance. Other than that, I'm just using trial and error at the moment, but will probably be forking out for this at some point soon : http://www.amazon.co.uk/Camera-Tech...=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1285850635&sr=8-1

Picked up the recommendation on here, and has excellent reviews within Amazon (unfortunately, it's just gone up £2 since last week!)
 
Kdot said:
I just got my first flash earlier this week (Canon EX430ii). Initial test shots were simply pointing the flash at the ceiling, setting TV at 1/160 and letting ETTL do the rest - very pleasing results of my daughter. Be careful bouncing the flash off any coloured surfaces, as that will mess with the White Balance. Other than that, I'm just using trial and error at the moment, but will probably be forking out for this at some point soon : http://www.amazon.co.uk/Camera-Tech...=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1285850635&sr=8-1

Picked up the recommendation on here, and has excellent reviews within Amazon (unfortunately, it's just gone up £2 since last week!)
Click to expand...

I think most folks agree that Av is the best mode for E-TTL flash. It's certainly best for balancing flash with ambient light automatically as the camera will track the shutter speed down as long as it needs to go. And when the ambient gets too bright for x-sync, just switch the gun to HSS mode. In fact, with some Canon cameras (if not all) you can leave HSS switched on permanently and it will just switch itself on and off whenever the shutter speed requires it. Just point and shoot regardless.

In E-TTL balancing the flash and ambient exposures is a doddle. If you don't like what you get automatically, you can lighten/darken the flash exposure with +/- compensation on the back of the gun (adjusts the power), while the regular +/- compensation on the camera adjusts the ambient exposure (with shutter speed). And remember to use the FEL* button if the subject is off centre - handbook explains. Everything you wanted to know about Canon flash here http://www.amazon.co.uk/Mastering-C...=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1285863720&sr=1-1 Excellent book and bang up to date :thumbs:
 
The info provided in this post has been invaluable to me aswell, very many thanks :thumbs:
 
Thanks for that Keith,

I have just been out and bought the foam card - called 'Funky Foam' sheet from local artist shop. Will make do with strong rubber band until I can get a wide black one, but makes an excellent diffuser.

Malcolm
 
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