On-camera flash..Weddings!!

My Kal

My Kal

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Michael.
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Although there's an enormous amount of imformation out there on using flash off camera, does anybody know of good links to using speedlights on camera?

I'm going to be shooting my friends wedding soon, and although I'm comfortable with studio lighting and using my speedlights with stands/unbrellas etc, I've no experience of using on camera flsh.

The wedding itself will be very casual. The bride and groom are surfer types and the wedding will be in Cornwall, in a hotel next to the sea.
There are only 40 people/guests and a lot of the shots will be ouside, bride paddling in the sea/ VW campervans...that kind of thing.

I've seen photos of the room the ceremony will be held in, and it is very light and airey, with big windows/french doors etc. and white or whitish walls.
I'll also have to shoot the bride getting ready in her room....so on to the flash part!

I'm thinking.... camera in Manual, ttl, flash tilted for bouncing and the bounce card, (probably a larger bounce card/postcard?).Everytime I see a photographer (on the tv, say) they always have the plastic dome/diffuser fitted to the flash...is this the best option?
Oh, and should that (wide?), diffuser panel be up or down?

I would love to know how you use/set up, your speedlights!

Thanks.

Oh, and~
Yes, this is my first wedding.
No, I don't intend becoming a wedding photographer.
I have two of everything!
 
On camera flash is fine, so long as you bounce it off a wall/reflector, or are just using it for a spot of fill

All the "poncy diffusers" do is make a small light source slightly bigger. The thing about off camera flash (or bouncing it off a wall) is that the light source is either bigger, or aligned not to cast a nasty shadow

Do you shoot Nikon?
 
short summary of Neil's approach.

Slightly underexpose for ambient and bounce flash to deliver a touch of fill onto subjects face. Bouncing light slightly off center (or being more creative) will help deliver a more flattering result. Flash exposure compensation plays a fairly big part (I tend to flick between -1 and +1). Black foam 'thingie' will prevent the light from hitting your subjects directly and causing harsh shadows.
 
I have Neil's on camera flash book as well which is a really good read but in all honesty it's probably a book friendly summary of what's on the website.

BTW you can get neoprene beer can coolers which fit flash heads perfectly, just make sure they have a black interior :)
 
black foamie thing is also useful for preventing light annoying guests too. :)
 
My Kal said:
Yes Nikon.
Can I ask how you use your flash, set up wise?
Click to expand...

You can ask but it varies from shot to shot

- bounce off walls
- bounce of ceiling
- bounce off reflector
- use remote off camera

If you use Nikon, learn how to use the CLS system, and then how to set the flash up for remote/manual. Once you do that, you can let an assistant point the flash where ever you want

I also use on camera flash as a fill (and trigger) when I additionally use studio flashes. That particularly works well if you have 2 flash heads up at the front with the band's lighting (lets you shoot towards the band) The trick is balancing it all, and that comes with practice

I use gels, black card and bands (to limit spread) and the supplied diffuser (when needed)

----

Essentially weddings are fast paced, so you need to be fluid and think on your feet. You have a range of tools available to you - reflectors, flashguns, diffusers, torches, video lights etc.. I just look at the shot, and if it needs extra lighting, I figure out the easiest and quickest way of adding it. Often that's just a reflector

The strobist website is a good place for wedding photographers to start learning the techniques. You then just apply the techniques to suit your shot in-front of you

Hint: A lot of the time my camera is in manual, if not aperture priority, and I kept an old D70 because it sync's at 1/500th second!
 
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Richard King said:
You can ask but it varies from shot to shot

- bounce off walls
- bounce of ceiling
- bounce off reflector
- use remote off camera

If you use Nikon, learn how to use the CLS system, and then how to set the flash up for remote/manual. Once you do that, you can let an assistant point the flash where ever you want

I also use on camera flash as a fill (and trigger) when I additionally use studio flashes. That particularly works well if you have 2 flash heads up at the front with the band's lighting (lets you shoot towards the band) The trick is balancing it all, and that comes with practice

I use gels, black card and bands (to limit spread) and the supplied diffuser (when needed)

----

Essentially weddings are fast paced, so you need to be fluid and think on your feet. You have a range of tools available to you - reflectors, flashguns, diffusers, torches, video lights etc.. I just look at the shot, and if it needs extra lighting, I figure out the easiest and quickest way of adding it. Often that's just a reflector

The strobist website is a good place for wedding photographers to start learning the techniques. You then just apply the techniques to suit your shot in-front of you

Hint: A lot of the time my camera is in manual, if not aperture priority, and I kept an old D70 because it sync's at 1/500th second!
Click to expand...

Thanks for that..great advice.

I'm used to firing with CLS with off camera flash, for set up shots, but I don't really see it as an option for me, on a first wedding...time wise.
I'm looking to use the flash as fill basically, for the ceremony/speeches etc. I don't think I'll have to light up anything that's too dark, although I'm starting to panic a bit now!
 
My Kal said:
Thanks for that..great advice.

I'm used to firing with CLS with off camera flash, for set up shots, but I don't really see it as an option for me, on a first wedding...time wise.
I'm looking to use the flash as fill basically, for the ceremony/speeches etc. I don't think I'll have to light up anything that's too dark, although I'm starting to panic a bit now!
Click to expand...

You certainly do

practice getting your flashgun from TTL to Remote and back, it takes about 5 seconds. All you then need to do is make sure you have your camera and flashgun set to the right channels (do this in advance)

To then use CLS, just pop up your on-board flash, everything else works a per normal (except your batteries die quicker)

You can then hold your flash in one hand and your camera in another, or if you have an assistant, get them to just point it where you want
 
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Richard King said:
You certainly do

practice getting your flashgun from TTL to Remote and back, it takes about 5 seconds. All you then need to do is make sure you have your camera and flashgun set to the right channels (do this in advance)

To then use CLS, just pop up your on-board flash, everything else works a per normal (except your batteries die quicker)

You can then hold your flash in one hand and your camera in another, or if you have an assistant, get them to just point it where you want
Click to expand...

The more I think about this, the more I like the sound of it!
I've got my FNC button set to take me directly to the CLS remote settings.. I think I could change the power pretty quickly....or get my assistant(wife!), to hold the flash and move about a bit!
 
I've made velcro attachments of my black foam deflectors, works really well and easy to use all day long. I'll try and get an image up so that others can see
 
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