Embed Size (px)
Citation preview
Photographic: The Wonders of Flash
file:///L|/Magazines/web_articles/Photographic%20articles/The%20Wonders%20of%20Flash%20%20Page%201.htm[4/16/2011 4:28:06 PM]
Recent Additions
AccessoriesBuyer's GuidesDigital CamerasDigital PeripheralsFilmFilm CamerasLensesMonthly ContestPhoto TechniquesPoint and ShootTravel Photography
Photo Links Vote Previous Votes Previous News Classifieds Photo Store
2003Jan Feb MarApr May JuneJuly Aug SeptOct Nov Dec
2002Jan Feb MarApr May JuneJuly Aug SeptOct Nov Dec
Digital PhotoPrinting
Digital PhotoCamera
Digital Imaging
Kodak DC4800
Zoom Camera
Home/News Subscribe Give a Gift Subscriber Services Photo Store
The Wonders of Flash
The Editors, August, 2002
Electronic flash is portable light that youcan take anywhere, letting you get niceshots when there isn't enough light to shoototherwise. Photo by Jack and Sue Drafahl
Underwater, flash restores colors that arelost to the water's filtering effect inavailable-light photos. Photo by Jack andSue Drafahl
Electronic Flash : More than just sparelight
What is an electronic flash unit? Forone thing, it's spare light, convenientlypackaged in a "little black box"—acompact, portable light source thatenables you to take photos of manysubjects when there isn't enough lightto do so otherwise.
Electronic flash units come in a varietyof shapes and sizes, but all do thesame thing: provide handy lightanywhere you need it. The flash unitsbuilt into cameras are the smallest andleast-powerful, but have the advantageof always being there when you needthem. Accessory flash units that mounton the camera's hot-shoe providemore power and features—andgenerally the ability to move the flashoff-camera when desired. Both built-inand shoe-mount flash units canprovide the speed and ease ofcompletely automatic operation.
Handle-mount flash units attach to thecamera by means of a mountingbracket. Some require a sync cord toconnect to the camera's PC terminal,rather than employing the camera'shot-shoe. These "potato-masher" flashunits are generally larger and morepowerful than shoe-mount units.
Portable two-piece flash units offer stillmore power. After-market batteries,like the Quantum units, turn small,portable shoe-mount flash units intotwo-piece units (flash and battery) withmore flashes per charge and shorterrecycle times (more on this soon).
For the studio and on-locationphotographer, there are more-powerfulstudio flash systems. Studio flash unitsincorporate a modeling lamp in each
Magazine
Page 1 Page 2Page 3Page 4Page 5Page 6Page 7
Digital Camera HQ: Seeprices and reviews of
digital cameras.
Photographic: The Wonders of Flash
file:///L|/Magazines/web_articles/Photographic%20articles/The%20Wonders%20of%20Flash%20%20Page%201.htm[4/16/2011 4:28:06 PM]
In the studio, electronic flash can produceprofessional-looking portraits and productshots—in fact, that's how most pros doportraits and product shots. Photo by LynneEodice
Fill-flash pleasantly softens harsh shadowsin outdoor portraits. Photo by Ron Leach
Electronic flash is ideal for close-upphotography. At close range, its intensityallows you to stop the lens down toincrease depth of field, while its briefduration minimizes the effects of subjectand camera movement. Photo by Jack andSue Drafahl
head, which lets you see what thelighting effect will look like—since flashtubes emit only brief bursts of light, it'simpossible to observe their effectwithout continuous-operating modelinglamps (a few shoe-mount flash unitsnow incorporate a modeling-lightfeature, generally by means of a seriesof flash bursts). Some of the less-expensive studio flash units are one-piece affairs known as monolights.These combine flash head and powerpack into a single unit, and eveninclude a built-in slave that fires theunit cordlessly when it "sees" the flashfrom a camera-connected unit.
Most studio flash systems consist of apower supply, which plugs into a walloutlet for AC current, plus several flashheads that plug into the power supply.Such systems provide a lot morepower than camera-mount units (handywhen reflecting the light from anumbrella reflector—more on umbrellaslater), and permit multiple-light setups.The power pack permits you to set allflash heads to equal power or to varythe power setting among the heads tocontrol the lighting ratios. There arealso battery-powered portable studioflash systems.
Photographic: The Wonders of Flash
file:///L|/Magazines/web_articles/Photographic%20articles/The%20Wonders%20of%20Flash%20%20Page%201.htm[4/16/2011 4:28:06 PM]
Electronic flash lets you get sharp, well-exposed shots of reasonably near subjectsno matter what the ambient light level.Photo by Ron Leach
Go To Page 2
Become a Photographer
Turn your passion into a career, Free info - Photography DegreesPhotographySchools.com
Pro Photography Training
Browse Online & Campus Photography Schools. Request Free Info Today!MyEduSeek.com/Photography
Speedlite Portrait Course
Great portraits with your flash. Online video course. Watch now!www.SteeleTraining.com
Lighting Kit from $33.99
Continuous, Strobe, Video, Cool Flo LED, Photography Studio Accessorieswww.CowboyStudio.com
The Art Institute Online
Pursue Your Creative Passion - Take Photography Classes Online Anytime.AIonline.edu
18¢ Digital Photo Prints
High Quality, AGFA Prestige Paper Money-back Guarantee. Try us Today.www.ToGoPhoto.com
Pro Digital Photo Lab
24 hour service - Free 2 Day UPS 8x10: $2 16x20: $11.25www.whcc.com
underwater photo
Underwater digital photos 5 mega-pixel quality printswww.proactenv.com/uw_photos.htm
Photographic: The Wonders of Flash
file:///L|/Magazines/web_articles/Photographic%20articles/The%20Wonders%20of%20Flash%20%20Page%202.htm[4/16/2011 4:28:32 PM]
Recent Additions
AccessoriesBuyer's GuidesDigital CamerasDigital PeripheralsFilmFilm CamerasLensesMonthly ContestPhoto TechniquesPoint and ShootTravel Photography
Photo Links Vote Previous Votes Previous News Classifieds Photo Store
2003Jan Feb MarApr May JuneJuly Aug SeptOct Nov Dec
2002Jan Feb MarApr May JuneJuly Aug SeptOct Nov Dec
Digital PhotoPrinting
Digital PhotoCamera
Digital Imaging
Kodak DC4800
Zoom Camera
Home/News Subscribe Give a Gift Subscriber Services Photo Store
Built-in flash units are always there whenyou need them, but aren't very powerful or"artistic." Most consumer-oriented AF 35mmSLRs and pocket cameras have built-inflash units.
Shoe-mount flash units provide more powerthan built-in units, and can be removedfrom the camera via an extension sync cordor even wirelessly with some systems.
Getting ReadyIn order to shoot with electronic flash,there are a few things you must do inpreparation.
First, read the instruction book thatcomes with the flash unit (as well asthe flash section of your cameramanual).
Next, install the batteries, as per theinstructions. Be sure to use the righttype of batteries and to install themproperly. It's all in the book.
Switch the flash unit on and fire it withthe test button to make sure you'veinstalled the batteries properly. Switchthe unit off, and attach it to thecamera, as per the instructions. Hot-shoe-mount units automaticallyconnect to the camera's flash-synccircuitry; other units require you to linkflash and camera with a cord. (Andsome shoe-mount units can be movedoff-camera via a dedicated sync cord,or even wirelessly—more on this later).
Today's flash photographers have iteasy—besides TTL automaticexposure control (more on this in amoment), today's camerasautomatically set the proper flash-syncshutter speed when a dedicated shoe-mount (or built-in) flash is turned on.
Focal-plane shutters (found in all oftoday's 35mm SLR cameras) in effectmove a slit across the film to expose itwhen set to faster shutter speeds(generally, 1/125 or 1/250 and fasterwith today's cameras), so only theportion of the film that is uncoveredwhen the flash fires will be exposed. Ifyou've ever got back flash photos thatare half black, they were shot at toofast a shutter speed. You can alwaysshoot at a slower shutter speed thanthe camera's flash-sync speed, butnever a faster one.
Note: With lens-shutter cameras
Magazine
Page 1Page 2 Page 3Page 4Page 5Page 6Page 7
Digital Camera HQ: Seeprices and reviews of
digital cameras.
Photographic: The Wonders of Flash
file:///L|/Magazines/web_articles/Photographic%20articles/The%20Wonders%20of%20Flash%20%20Page%202.htm[4/16/2011 4:28:32 PM]
Many also offer on-camera bouncecapability (via tilt/swivel heads) and otherfeatures.
Handle-mount flash units such as this Metz50MZ-5 from Bogen generally offer morepower than shoe-mount units.
Two-piece portable flash units generallyprovide more flashes per battery charge.This Quantum battery can power bothcamera and flash unit.
Ringlights surround the lens with light,producing even, shadowless lighting that'sideal for close-up subjects.
(compact point-and-shoots, manymedium-format models and viewcameras), the shutter uncovers theentire film frame at one time at allshutter speeds, so any shutter speedcan be used for flash photography.
Go To Page 3
Photographic: The Wonders of Flash
file:///L|/Magazines/web_articles/Photographic%20articles/The%20Wonders%20of%20Flash%20%20Page%203.htm[4/16/2011 4:28:02 PM]
Recent Additions
AccessoriesBuyer's GuidesDigital CamerasDigital PeripheralsFilmFilm CamerasLensesMonthly ContestPhoto TechniquesPoint and ShootTravel Photography
Photo Links Vote Previous Votes Previous News Classifieds Photo Store
2003Jan Feb MarApr May JuneJuly Aug SeptOct Nov Dec
2002Jan Feb MarApr May JuneJuly Aug SeptOct Nov Dec
Digital PhotoPrinting
Digital PhotoCamera
Digital Imaging
Kodak DC4800
Zoom Camera
Home/News Subscribe Give a Gift Subscriber Services Photo Store
The exposure calculator on manual flashunits (and on auto units when used inmanual mode) tells you what aperture touse when shooting at a given flash-to-subject distance, once you've set the ISOspeed of the film you're using. Note that thefarther away you are, the larger theaperture required. At great shootingdistances, the flash can't produce enoughlight to provide proper exposure even withthe lens wide open.
The guide number formula: Just divide theguide number by the flash-to-subjectdistance, and the result is the f-stop to usefor the shot.
A flash meter, such as this Sekonic L-608
Flash Exposure Virtually all modern electronic-flashunits feature automatic exposurecontrol. But before going into that,we're going to cover manual flash, soyou'll understand the principlesinvolved.
When shooting with electronic flash,the very brief duration of the flash burst(1/1000 second or shorter with mostunits) serves as your "shutter speed"—it controls the duration of the exposure.All you have to do is set the lens to theright f-stop. The simplest way to to thisis by using the exposure calculator onthe flash unit. First, tell the calculatorhow much light the film you're usingneeds, by setting the calculator's film-speed index to the ISO speed of yourfilm. Next, focus on your subject andread the focused-upon distance(which, for on-camera flash, is theflash-to-subject distance) on the lensbarrel. Using the exposure calculatoron the back of the flash unit, locate theflash-to-subject distance. Opposite ityou will find the correct f-stop to usefor the picture.
You'll notice that the farther away youget from the subject, the larger thelens aperture you must use. When thesubject is a long way off, you won't beable to open the lens enough toprovide proper exposure. That's whyit's silly to shoot flash pictures from thestands at a football game or otherevent where you're a long way fromyour subjects—the flash will have littleeffect.
Another way to determine the correct f-stop is by using the flash unit's guidenumber. This is a (sometimesoptimistic) rating of the flash unit'silluminating power, provided by themanufacturer. Just divide the flash-to-subject distance into the guide number,and the result is the f-stop to use. Ifthe guide number is 80 for the film
Magazine
Page 1Page 2Page 3 Page 4Page 5Page 6Page 7
Digital Camera HQ: Seeprices and reviews of
digital cameras.
Photographic: The Wonders of Flash
file:///L|/Magazines/web_articles/Photographic%20articles/The%20Wonders%20of%20Flash%20%20Page%203.htm[4/16/2011 4:28:02 PM]
from Mamiya, will give you good exposureswith any flash unit, or any number of flashunits, whether they're used direct orbounced. If you shoot with a studio flashsystem, you need a flash meter. (Like mostflash meters, this one will also read ambientlight.)
Automatic flash units will expose for theclosest object within range, but evenmanual units can only expose subjects atone distance properly. Closer objects will beoverexposed; farther ones will beunderexposed. It's best to eliminate objectscloser than your main subject from flashshots, either by physically removing them,or by recomposing the shot with them out offrame. Photo by Mike Stensvold
Autoflash units used at close range, ormanual units at low power, have very briefdurations—1/20,000 or faster. This makesthem ideal for freezing quick actions. Photoby Jack and Sue Drafahl
Built-in flash units aren't very powerful, butthey can still enhance an outdoor shot atclose range. Note the light falloff at the
speed you're using, and the flash unitis 10 feet from the subject, 80 dividedby 10 equals f/8.
Since the manufacturer's guide numbermight not be accurate for yourparticular shooting circumstances, it'swise to shoot a guide-number test.Have a friend sit on a chair 10 feetfrom your camera/flash unit, holding aseries of cards marked with your lens'f-stops. Shoot a series of flash shots(being sure to give the flash unit plentyof time to recycle between exposures—10 seconds after the ready light comeson should be sufficient), one at each f-stop, with your friend holding theappropriate card for each shot.
After the film has been processed,examine it, and pick the bestexposure. Multiply the f-number on thecard in that frame by 10 (the flash-to-subject distance), and you've got yourguide number for that flash unit andfilm.
Notes: If you find yourself shooting in alarger or darker-walled room than theone in which you shot your guide-number test, or outdoors at night, you'llhave to give more exposure thanindicated by the guide number.Conversely, if you shoot in a smallerroom with more-reflective walls, you'llhave to give less exposure than thetest indicated. Guide numbers areguide, not ironclad laws. For manyyears, manufacturers' guide numberswere given for ASA (ISO) 25 film.Today, they are given for ISO 100 film—a flash unit's guide number for ISO100 film will be twice it's guide numberfor ISO 25 film (and a flash unit's guidenumber for ISO 400 film will be twiceits guide number for ISO 100 film).Along the same lines, guide numbersgiven in feet will be 3.28X higher thanguide numbers given in meters.
Photographic: The Wonders of Flash
file:///L|/Magazines/web_articles/Photographic%20articles/The%20Wonders%20of%20Flash%20%20Page%203.htm[4/16/2011 4:28:02 PM]
edges of the picture. Photo by MikeStensvold
Normal front-curtain sync fires the flash atthe beginning of the exposure, then recordsambient-light speed streaks; thus thestreaks appear in front of a forward-movingsubject (top). Rear-curtain sync fires theflash at the end of the exposure, after theambient-light streaks have been recorded;thus the ghost-image streaks follow ratherthan precede the moving subjec t (bottom).Photo by Mike Stensvold
Go To Page 4
Become a Photographer
Turn your passion into a career, Free info - Photography DegreesPhotographySchools.com
Ambient Plus Photo Studio
Urban Industrial, Full Daylight, 10K Sq Ft, Huge Cyc Wall, Hardwoodswww.ambientplusstudio.com
Looking For A Photo Gift
Snapfish Has Over 90 Photo Gifts. Create A Photo Gift This Year.www.snapfish.com
Passion for Photography?
Turn Your Passion into a Profession at The Art Institutes Online.AIonline.edu
Pro Photography Training
Browse Online & Campus Photography Schools. Request Free Info Today!MyEduSeek.com/Photography
PhotoCheap photo print
Provide 100MB free album and low price photograph printing servicewww.photocheap.biz
Underwater Photography
Visit Digital Oceans for underwater photography images and discussion
Photographic: The Wonders of Flash
file:///L|/Magazines/web_articles/Photographic%20articles/The%20Wonders%20of%20Flash%20%20Page%204.htm[4/16/2011 4:28:56 PM]
Recent Additions
AccessoriesBuyer's GuidesDigital CamerasDigital PeripheralsFilmFilm CamerasLensesMonthly ContestPhoto TechniquesPoint and ShootTravel Photography
Photo Links Vote Previous Votes Previous News Classifieds Photo Store
2003Jan Feb MarApr May JuneJuly Aug SeptOct Nov Dec
2002Jan Feb MarApr May JuneJuly Aug SeptOct Nov Dec
Digital PhotoPrinting
Digital PhotoCamera
Digital Imaging
Kodak DC4800
Zoom Camera
Home/News Subscribe Give a Gift Subscriber Services Photo Store
Most color film is balanced for daylight, andthus renders colors unnatural under otherlight sources (here, overhead fluorescentroom lights). Photo by Mike Stensvold
On-camera flash corrects the color problem,and also the blurring effects of hand-heldcamera movement at the slow shutterspeed required by dim available light. Buton-camera flash produces a flat look, andcasts shadows on the wall behind thesubject. You could get rid of the shadow bymoving the subject farther from the wall, butthat wouldn't fix the flat lighting effect. Photoby Mike Stensvold
Moving the flash unit off-camera (via async extension cord, or wirelessly if yourcamera and flash permit) gives the lightingsome direction and the face some modeling,but the light is still pretty harsh, so theshadow is still annoying. Photo by MikeStensvold
Autoflash Automatic flash units contain sensorsthat read the light reflected from thesubject. There are two main types fortoday's cameras. TTL (through-the-lens), and flashmatic. TTL auto units,which include those built into andoffered as shoe-mount accessories formost AF 35mm SLR cameras,measure the light through the lens, andadjust the flash duration to provideproper exposure. Thus you can shootat many f-stops (limited by the distanceto the subject). Flashmatic units, foundin most compact point-and-shootcameras, maintain a constant flashduration, and provide correct exposureby adjusting the camera's f-stop basedon the flash-to-subject distance asmeasured by the camera'sautofocusing system—they justautomate the guide-number method ofexposure control.
Early automatic flash units were neitherTTL nor flashmatic, and this type is stillavailable (some TTL units have this asan added feature today). With this typeof autoflash unit, you set the apertureyou wish to use (each apertureprovides a specific shooting-distancerange) as per the flash unit'sinstructions. A sensor on the flash unitreads the light reflected back from thesubject and adjusts the flash durationto provide proper exposure for subjectswithin that flash-to-subject distancerange.
Bear in mind that, like automatic-exposure cameras, autoexposureelectronic flash units compute theirexposures for "average" conditions. Ifyou're shooting particularly light or darksubjects, in a small highly reflectiveenvironment or in a large dark one,you'll have to make some adjustmentto compensate. Some cameras andflash units have flash exposurecompensation, which allows you toadjust the flash-to-ambient-light ratio.
Magazine
Page 1Page 2Page 3Page 4 Page 5Page 6Page 7
Digital Camera HQ: Seeprices and reviews of
digital cameras.
Photographic: The Wonders of Flash
file:///L|/Magazines/web_articles/Photographic%20articles/The%20Wonders%20of%20Flash%20%20Page%204.htm[4/16/2011 4:28:56 PM]
Bouncing the light from a photographicumbrella reflector softens it, reducing theharsh effect. Photo by Mike Stensvold
Another way to deal with the harshness isto use both off- and on-camera flash units.Several camera manufacturers offer thiscapability in their AF 35mm SLRs. Here, theoff-camera unit (above and to the left of thecamera, as in the previous photos)produced two units of light while the on-camera unit (in this case, the camera'sbuilt-in flash unit) produced one. Thus, westill get the directional effect of the off-camera flash, but the harsh shadows aresoftened by the on-camera flash. Theweaker light in such a setup is known asthe fill light; the effect is known as fill-flash.Photo by Mike Stensvold
You can also soften the effect of the flash(and give it direction) by bouncing it off anearby wall (top) or ceiling (bottom). Thewall generally works better for people-pictures, because the direction is morepleasant—ceiling bounce comes from toohigh an angle to be attractive. Many shoe-mount flash units have tilting/rotating headsthat allow you to direct their beams at a
One more thing to look out for whenusing automatic flash is the infamousforeground subject. If there is an objectin your scene that is closer to the flashthan the main subject, the flash willprobably expose the near subjectproperly and underexpose the moredistant main subject. In such situations,set the flash for manual exposurecontrol, and calculate exposure basedon the flash-to-subject distance.
It's best to avoid situations like thisaltogether, because a flash unit can'tproperly light subjects at differentdistances—nearby subjects will bemore brightly lit than distant ones. Sothe best solution is to recompose sothe foreground object is no longer inthe picture.
If you have two main subjects, makesure both are the same distance fromthe flash unit. You can do this bymoving the subjects so that they arethe same distance from the flash, or bymoving the flash off-camera so that itis the same distance from all of thesubjects.
Photographic: The Wonders of Flash
file:///L|/Magazines/web_articles/Photographic%20articles/The%20Wonders%20of%20Flash%20%20Page%204.htm[4/16/2011 4:28:56 PM]
wall or ceiling while retaining the benefits ofautomatic TTL flash exposure control.Photo by Mike Stensvold
Go To Page 5
Become a Photographer
Free info on local Photography Degree Programs near you!PhotographySchools.com
Ambient Plus Photo Studio
Urban Industrial, Full Daylight, 10K Sq Ft, Huge Cyc Wall, Hardwoodswww.ambientplusstudio.com
Looking For A Photo Gift
Snapfish Has Over 90 Photo Gifts. Create A Photo Gift This Year.www.snapfish.com
Photography Training
Earn Your Photography Degree Online or on Campus. Get Free Info Today!MyEduSeek.com/Photography
Photography Degree Online
Earn Your Photography Degree Online at The Art Institutes. Learn More!AIonline.edu
PhotoCheap photo print
Provide 100MB free album and low price photograph printing servicewww.photocheap.biz
Digital Images Printed
Film Quality Prints of All Sizes. Convenient Sharing - Volume Pricingwww.shutterfly.com
Photo Techniques Guides
Photography techniques at a glance. Handy reminders - Essential Info.www.FotoSharp.com
Save on Digital Photos
Save 40% on Kodak digital photo and picture prints! Fast ship. Affil.www.ofoto.com
PhotoCheap photo print
Provide 100MB free album and low price photograph printing servicewww.photocheap.biz
Digital Images Printed
Film Quality Prints of All Sizes. Convenient Sharing - Volume Pricingwww.shutterfly.com
Photo Techniques Guides
Photography techniques at a glance. Handy reminders - Essential Info.www.FotoSharp.com
Photographic: The Wonders of Flash
file:///L|/Magazines/web_articles/Photographic%20articles/The%20Wonders%20of%20Flash%20%20Page%205.htm[4/16/2011 4:28:12 PM]
Recent Additions
AccessoriesBuyer's GuidesDigital CamerasDigital PeripheralsFilmFilm CamerasLensesMonthly ContestPhoto TechniquesPoint and ShootTravel Photography
Photo Links Vote Previous Votes Previous News Classifieds Photo Store
2003Jan Feb MarApr May JuneJuly Aug SeptOct Nov Dec
2002Jan Feb MarApr May JuneJuly Aug SeptOct Nov Dec
Digital PhotoPrinting
Digital PhotoCamera
Digital Imaging
Kodak DC4800
Zoom Camera
Home/News Subscribe Give a Gift Subscriber Services Photo Store
Normally, fill flash should be weaker thanthe main light source, so it just lightens theshadows. If the "fill-flash" is too strong, itwill eliminate the shadows and produce anunnatural look. Photo by Ron Leach
With backlighting, the fill-flash shouldbalance the background exposure, thuskeeping the subject from appearing insilhouette. The flash also adds keylights tothe subject's eyes, giving them "life." Somecamera/flash systems allow you to set thefill ratio. And some will automaticallybalance foreground and backgroundexposures. Photo by Ron Leach
Flash Characteristics Electronic flash units produce light witha color temperature of 6000 K orthereabouts, well suited for use withdaylight-balanced color films. (Thesefilms are actually balanced for 5500 Klight, but that's close enough for mostuses.) If your flash photos take on aslight blue cast, shooting with anamber No. 81A filter over the cameralens should solve the problem.
The short duration of the electronicflash burst (from 1/1000 for mostmanual units at full power and for autounits used at the far end of theirdistance range, to 1/30,000 or shorterfor variable-power manual units set atlow power and auto units used at veryclose range) makes electronic flashgreat for freezing moving subjects andfor reducing the effects of subject andcamera movement in close-up work.However, very short flash durations cancause reciprocity failure—a loss of filmspeed and, with color films, a colorshift. With black-and-white and color-print films, this can be corrected whenthe negatives are printed, but withcolor-slide films, it might be wise toshoot a test roll to see what (if any)exposure and filtration corrections areneeded. Film manufacturers generallypublish reciprocity data for their films,which provide good starting points.
When autoflash units are used at closerange or manual units are used at lowpower, there is excess, unused energy.Thyristor circuitry returns this unusedenergy to the capacitor to be usedagain, thereby extending battery lifeand producing very short recycle times.(Automatic flash units used at minimumshooting distances recycle almostinstantaneously.)
Recycling time is how long it takes aflash unit to get ready to fire againafter it has been discharged. How doyou know when the flash unit has
Magazine
Page 1Page 2Page 3Page 4Page 5 Page 6Page 7
Digital Camera HQ: Seeprices and reviews of
digital cameras.
Photographic: The Wonders of Flash
file:///L|/Magazines/web_articles/Photographic%20articles/The%20Wonders%20of%20Flash%20%20Page%205.htm[4/16/2011 4:28:12 PM]
If you're shooting against a sky background,you can use "key-flash": Set the flash tooverpower the ambient light by a stop, andexpose for the flash. Thus, the flash-litsubject will be properly exposed, while theambient-lit background is slightlyunderexposed, giving a darker, moredramatic sky. Again, some camera/flashsystems let you select the fill ratio (set theflash for +1). You can also do it manually,by placing the flash at a distance that callsfor one stop less exposure than the ambientlight, and setting the camera for the flash-exposure aperture. This will underexposethe ambient light by one stop. Photo by RonLeach
A bounce umbrella is an easily positionedsource of soft light. Aim your flash unit atthe umbrella, and the reflected light outputis enlarged and thus softened as it isreflected (bounced) from the umbrella ontothe subject. The umbrella's inner surfacecan be coated with white, silver or goldfabric. White produces soft light, silverproduces harsher but still soft light, andgold produces warm soft light that's greatfor portraits.
A shoot-through umbrella is covered withtranslucent fabric. The flash unit is againaimed into the umbrella, but the umbrella isaimed at the subject—you're using lighttransmitted by the fabric, rather than lightreflected from it. Shoot-throughs are handy
recycled and is ready to fire again?The ready light on the unit (or in thecamera viewfinder) will glow. However,with many small flash units, the readylight comes on before the unit hasreached full charge. If you shootanother flash picture as soon as theready light comes on, your photographmay be underexposed. So it's best towait a few seconds after the readylight comes on before shooting thenext shot.
Light from a flash unit is directedforward by the built-in flash reflector.The beam is brightest in the center,weakening the farther to the sides yougo. A flash unit's stated angle ofcoverage is useful information—it willlet you know how wide a lens you canuse with the flash unit. But bear inmind that objects at the edges of thephoto won't be as brightly lit as objectsin the center of the photo. Also, beaware that very long and very-large-diameter lenses can block a portion ofthe beam from a built-in or shoe-mount flash unit.
Photographic: The Wonders of Flash
file:///L|/Magazines/web_articles/Photographic%20articles/The%20Wonders%20of%20Flash%20%20Page%205.htm[4/16/2011 4:28:12 PM]
when you need to position the light sourcevery close to the subject, or are working ina room/studio with a low ceiling.
A box light (also known as a softbox) isessentially a square shoot-throughumbrella. Its main advantage is that itproduces square rather than umbrella-shaped catchlights in subjects' eyes.
Professional people photographersgenerally use two or more flash units toproduce pro-looking studio portraits—amain (also called key) light, whichestablishes the lighting direction; a fill light,which softens the shadows; a backgroundlight, which illuminates the backdrop; andpossibly a hair light coming from high andbehind the subject, to add a highlight to thehair.
Generally, portraits look best if the mainlight is above and to one side of thecamera. How far above and how far to oneside (and to which side) depend on thesubject and your preferences—experimentwith different main-light positions and seewhat looks best with your subject. And whileexpert portrait photographers can dowonders with harsh light, it's a lot easier towork with soft light. Harsh light is producedby sources that are small relative to thesubject, such as the flashtubes in shoe-mount flash units. Soft light is produced bysources that are large relative to thesubject, such as flash reflected from a wallor a photographic umbrella reflector.Whatever the light source, the closer it is tothe subject, the softer the light; the farther itis, the harsher the light. Here, the main lightsource was a fairly small umbrella reflectoraround 12 feet from the subjects. Theresulting light is intermediate between reallyharsh and really soft. Photo by LynneEodice
Photographic: The Wonders of Flash
file:///L|/Magazines/web_articles/Photographic%20articles/The%20Wonders%20of%20Flash%20%20Page%206.htm[4/16/2011 4:28:44 PM]
Recent Additions
AccessoriesBuyer's GuidesDigital CamerasDigital PeripheralsFilmFilm CamerasLensesMonthly ContestPhoto TechniquesPoint and ShootTravel Photography
Photo Links Vote Previous Votes Previous News Classifieds Photo Store
2003Jan Feb MarApr May JuneJuly Aug SeptOct Nov Dec
2002Jan Feb MarApr May JuneJuly Aug SeptOct Nov Dec
Digital PhotoPrinting
Digital PhotoCamera
Digital Imaging
Kodak DC4800
Zoom Camera
Home/News Subscribe Give a Gift Subscriber Services Photo Store
This is a photographic umbrella reflector.This one is attached to a studio flash head,but there's hardware available to hook oneup to an off-camera shoe-mount flash unit,too.
Another simple and effective portrait setupis the side-by-side: Position one umbrella-mounted flash just to one side of thecamera, and another less-powerful one justto the other side of the camera. Photo byMike Stensvold
Slow-Sync & Rear-Sync Slow-sync flash is a useful featureprovided by most camera/flashsystems. With slow-sync flash, thecamera utilizes a slow shutter speed toproperly expose a dark nightbackground, while also properlyexposing a nearby flashlit subject.
With most cameras, the flash fires atthe start of a long exposure. This isknown as "front-curtain" sync. If youmake a long exposure of a subject thatis moving across the frame, the flashwill fire at the start of the exposure,then the ambient light will record aghost image of the subject as it movesacross the frame. In the resultingphotograph, the ghost-image "speedstreaks" will appear in front of thesubject—not a natural effect.
Some cameras also offer "rear-curtain"sync, in which the flash is fired at theend of the exposure, just before theshutter closes. With rear-curtain sync,the ghost-image speed streaks will berecorded by ambient light as thesubject moves across the frame, thenthe flash will fire to sharply record thesubject at the end of the exposure. Inthe resulting photo, the speed streakswill appear behind the subject—a morenatural effect.
Fill-Flash Fill-flash used to be one of the most-dreaded problems in photography. Butmany of today's AF SLR camerasautomatically balance flash andambient-light exposures for perfectportraits day or night. Some even allowyou to adjust the fill ratio—you can setthe flash to overpower the ambientlight or as a fill light to lighten theshadows.
So that you'll understand the principlesinvolved, though, here's how to do fill-flash the old-fashioned way—manually.
First, determine the exposure for the
Magazine
Page 1Page 2Page 3Page 4Page 5Page 6 Page 7
Digital Camera HQ: Seeprices and reviews of
digital cameras.
Photographic: The Wonders of Flash
file:///L|/Magazines/web_articles/Photographic%20articles/The%20Wonders%20of%20Flash%20%20Page%206.htm[4/16/2011 4:28:44 PM]
One simple and effective "glamour" studiosetup is the over/under: Position anumbrella-mounted flash (or a flash in asoftbox) just above the camera lens, andhave the subject hold a white reflector (alarge sheet of white poster board will donicely) below her/his face just out of frame.Photo by Mike Stensvold
For a more moody effect, try one umbrella(or softbox) mounted flash unit off to oneside of the subject, with a large white cardon the opposite side as a fill source. Photoby Lynne Eodice
Here, one light was used: a flash headmounted in a small umbrella, positionedabout 12 feet from the subject next to thecamera. Lighting doesn't have to becomplex to be effective. Photo by LynneEodice
scene in the usual manner (using thecamera's built-in meter or a handheldmeter, whatever you normally use) andset the camera according to theexisting light—let's say you get areading of 1/125 at f/8.
Next, use the flash unit's exposurecalculator to determine the flash-to-subject distance that calls for one stopmore exposure—in this case, thedistance that calls for an aperture off/5.6. If you put the flash unit at thatdistance from the subject and shoot atf/8, the flash image will be one stopunderexposed—a fill level that workswell for a fill light.
You can set the flash so that itmatches the sun's effect by putting theflash unit at the distance that calls forthe same aperture as the sunlightexposure (f/8 in our example.)
You can also use the flash as yourmain light, by putting it at a distancethat calls for less exposure than theambient-light exposure (f/11, for ourexample) and setting the lens to theflash-indicated aperture (f/11). This willresult in a properly exposed flashlitsubject against an underexposed (dark)background. This can be an effectiveway to play down a distractingbackground or to make the subjectstand out from the background.
As noted earlier, many 35mm SLRcameras require shutter speeds of1/125 or slower when used withelectronic flash. If you're using fast filmoutside, you might not be able to usesuch a shutter speed (ISO 400 filmrequires a shutter speed of 1/400 atf/16 in bright sunlight; how do youshoot at 1/125 if your lens stops downonly to f/16?). Solutions: Use a slowerfilm or a neutral-density filter to permituse of the required slower shutterspeed. Or use the camera/flashsystem's high-speed sync capability, ifit offers this feature.
The required flash-to-subject distancemight be different from the desiredcamera-to-subject distance when usingfill-flash. Solutions: (1) Using a PCextension cord, move the flash unit off-camera to the desired distance; (2)move the camera and flash to theproper distance and use a zoom lens
Photographic: The Wonders of Flash
file:///L|/Magazines/web_articles/Photographic%20articles/The%20Wonders%20of%20Flash%20%20Page%206.htm[4/16/2011 4:28:44 PM]
You can use harsher, more directionallighting with male subjects. A single flashunit with a small umbrella reflector well tocamera left provided a "masculine" lightinghere. Photo by Lynne Eodice
Soft frontal lighting is ideal for female profileshots. Photo by Lynne Eodice
Red-eye (in humans—with animals it couldbe yellow- or green-eye) occurs becausethe flash unit is too close to the lens axis.The only way to eliminate it is to move theflash unit away from the camera. Red-eyereduction features do reduce it, but also do
to compose the image as desired (thiswill change the perspective, however);or (3) use the flash-unit's variablepower settings (if it has them) to adjustthe flash output to an appropriate levelfor the camera-to-subject distance.
Photographic: The Wonders of Flash
file:///L|/Magazines/web_articles/Photographic%20articles/The%20Wonders%20of%20Flash%20%20Page%206.htm[4/16/2011 4:28:44 PM]
away with spontaneity due to the delaybetween shutter-button-pushing andexposure. Photo by Jack and Sue Drafahl
Go To Page 7
Become a Photographer
Turn your passion into a career, Free info - Photography DegreesPhotographySchools.com
Ambient Plus Photo Studio
Urban Industrial, Full Daylight, 10K Sq Ft, Huge Cyc Wall, Hardwoodswww.ambientplusstudio.com
Looking For A Photo Gift
Snapfish Has Over 90 Photo Gifts. Create A Photo Gift This Year.www.snapfish.com
Photography Training
Earn Your Photography Degree Online or on Campus. Get Free Info Today!MyEduSeek.com/Photography
Speedlite Portrait Course
Great portraits with your flash. Online video course. Watch now!www.SteeleTraining.com
18¢ Digital Photo Prints
High Quality, AGFA Prestige Paper Money-back Guarantee. Try us Today.www.ToGoPhoto.com
View Digital Photos on TV
Zoom, Print, Email from your TV Advanced Wireless Technologywww.x10.com
PhotoCheap photo print
Provide 100MB free album and low price photograph printing servicewww.photocheap.biz
Pro Digital Photo Lab
24 hour service - Free 2 Day UPS 8x10: $2 16x20: $11.25www.whcc.com
Digital Images Printed
Film Quality Prints of All Sizes. Convenient Sharing - Volume Pricingwww.shutterfly.com
18¢ Digital Photo Prints
High Quality, AGFA Prestige Paper Money-back Guarantee. Try us Today.www.ToGoPhoto.com
View Digital Photos on TV
Zoom, Print, Email from your TV Advanced Wireless Technologywww.x10.com
Photographic: The Wonders of Flash
file:///L|/Magazines/web_articles/Photographic%20articles/The%20Wonders%20of%20Flash%20%20Page%207.htm[4/16/2011 4:28:39 PM]
Recent Additions
AccessoriesBuyer's GuidesDigital CamerasDigital PeripheralsFilmFilm CamerasLensesMonthly ContestPhoto TechniquesPoint and ShootTravel Photography
Photo Links Vote Previous Votes Previous News Classifieds Photo Store
2003Jan Feb MarApr May JuneJuly Aug SeptOct Nov Dec
2002Jan Feb MarApr May JuneJuly Aug SeptOct Nov Dec
Digital PhotoPrinting
Digital PhotoCamera
Digital Imaging
Kodak DC4800
Zoom Camera
Home/News Subscribe Give a Gift Subscriber Services Photo Store
One neat flash technique is to combine itwith a slow shutter speed outdoors, panningthe camera to follow an action subject. Theslow shutter speed blurs the ambient lightexposure, while the brief flash durationfreezes the nearby moving subject—adifferent effect than a straight available-lightslow-shutter pan. Photo by Bryan Nylander
Many higher-end shoe-mount flash unitshave a repeating or "strobe" feature, inwhich flash can be set to fire several burstsin very rapid succession. This allows you tomake strobe-effect photos. This techniqueworks best in a large room with dark walls,or outdoors on a dark night, to keep thebackground from being overexposed by therepeated flash bursts. If you can move theflash unit off-camera, place it to one side ofthe subject (as done here) so it doesn'tilluminate the background. Photo by MikeStensvold
Off-Camera Flash Direct on-camera flash is not the bestlighting for portraits, because it castsan unattractive shadow on thebackdrop behind the subject, provideslittle modeling of the face, is harsh andproduces red-eye.
You can eliminate the shadow from thebackdrop by moving your subjectfarther from the backdrop (the onlysolution with built-in flash units) or byraising the flash unit up high enoughso that the shadow is cast down out ofthe picture area. Raising the flash unithas the added benefit of eliminatingthe flat, unexciting look of direct frontallighting. Positioning the flash unit 45° toone side of the camera and 45° aboveit is a good starting point for the mainlight in flash portraiture.
Note: When you move the flash off-camera, remember to use the flash-to-subject distance, not the camera-to-subject distance read off the lens'focusing scale, for exposurecalculations. Some of today's SLRcameras offer accessory off-cameraTTL sync cords that let you move theflash off-camera yet still retain full TTLflash automation, and a few offerwireless off-camera TTL flashcapability. These systems automaticallyhandle the exposure for you.
Bounce Flash You can soften the light by bouncing itfrom an umbrella reflector or otherlarge white surface, such as a sheet ofposter board or FomeCor. Umbrellalighting is attractive and forgiving—there are no harsh shadows to shout"bad lighting" at the viewer. If you havejust one flash unit, bounce it and you'llbe pleased with what you can do withthat single unit.
If you don't have an umbrella reflector,you can bounce the flash off a nearbywall or ceiling. A white wall is a good
Magazine
Page 1Page 2Page 3Page 4Page 5Page 6Page 7
Digital Camera HQ: Seeprices and reviews of
digital cameras.
Photographic: The Wonders of Flash
file:///L|/Magazines/web_articles/Photographic%20articles/The%20Wonders%20of%20Flash%20%20Page%207.htm[4/16/2011 4:28:39 PM]
Because the flash burst is effective only fora relatively short distance, you can produceunusual flash effects by placing a coloredfilter over the flash tube to color a nearbysubject, while the rest of the scene remainsnaturally colored. (Here, the highly reflectivelicense plate picked up the flash, but therest of the background appears normal.)Photo by Mike Stensvold
Painting with light is a fun technique. Thislighthouse was lit with a single Nikon AFSpeedlight shoe-mount flash unit. For the"straight" shot, on a dark night the camerawas attached to a sturdy tripod, the shutterheld open on B for 30 seconds with alocking cable release, and the flash wasfired several times near the right side of thebuilding, "painting" it with light. The flashwas then moved to the other side of thebuilding, the shutter opened for another 30seconds, and the flash was fired severalmore times to paint that side. (Note: It helpsto have an assistant when doing light-painting.) For the colorful shot, the sametechnique was used, but a blue filter wasplaced over the flash for the bursts on theright side of the building, and a red filterwas placed over the flash for the bursts atthe left side (where the flash beamsoverlapped, magenta appears). For thecolor-effect shot, a very-high-intensityflashlight was directed at the lighthouse lensfor a third 30-second exposure on B. Photoby Jack and Sue Drahfal
choice, because it reflects side orside/front lighting, depending onwhether you position your subject withthe wall directly to one side or with thewall more in front. Ceiling bounce lightgenerally comes from too high anangle to produce flattering peoplepictures, but is useful for providingoverall illumination while eliminatingthe flat look of on-camera flash. Don'tuse a colored wall for bounce lighting—your subject will take on the wall'scast in the resulting color photograph.
Many shoe-mount flash units haveheads that swivel and tilt for bouncelighting while retaining full TTL flashautomation. If your flash unit/cameracombination doesn't offer thiscapability, you can determine exposurefor bounce flash (whether off a wall oran umbrella reflector) by using a flashmeter, which reads the flash burst andtells you what aperture to use for theshot. If you use multiple-flash-unitlighting setups, the flash meter is aboutthe only way to determine exposures(although some AF SLR camerasprovide TTL flash control with multipleflash units, via special sync cords orwirelessly).
If you have to determine exposure forbounce flash manually, measure thedistance from the flash unit to thereflecting surface and add this to thedistance from the reflecting surface tothe subject. Calculate the f-stop basedon this combined distance, then openthe lens one stop from the resultingexposure. And bracket exposures tocompensate for variations in bouncesurfaces.
Because bounce lighting increases theflash-to-subject distance, and somelight is lost in the reflecting process,you need a fairly powerful flash unit touse bounce lighting.
Red-Eye Red-eye occurs when the flash unit istoo close to the lens. This causes theflash to reflect off the subject's retinas,right back into the lens. Large redspots in the eyes are the result in colorphotos (white spots in black-and-white).Red-eye has ruined many aportrait (be it of people or animals—
Photographic: The Wonders of Flash
file:///L|/Magazines/web_articles/Photographic%20articles/The%20Wonders%20of%20Flash%20%20Page%207.htm[4/16/2011 4:28:39 PM]
If your camera doesn't have multiple-exposure capability, you can still makedouble-exposure "twin" shots using yourflash unit and a darkened room. Just setthe camera up on a sturdy tripod, positionthe subject on one side of the frame,darken the room, open the shutter on B andfire the flash, then have the subject move tothe second position and fire the flash again.The room has to be really dark, and thisworks best with a dark background. Photoby Ron Leach
with animals you sometimes getyellow-eye or green-eye).
The only way to eliminate red-eye is tomove the flash unit away from the lens—above or to one side of the camera.Obviously, built-in flash units can't bemoved off-camera, so most cameramanufacturers incorporate a red-eye-reducing (not eliminating) feature, suchas pre-exposure flash bursts that"stop-down" the subject's eyes tominimize the effect. While fairlyeffective, such pre-exposure bursts doaffect the spontaneity of the image.
Become a Photographer
Turn your passion into a career, Free info - Photography DegreesPhotographySchools.com
Speedlite Portrait Course
Great portraits with your flash. Online video course. Watch now!www.SteeleTraining.com
Video Lighting from $40
Tungsten, Fluorescent, Continuous LED, Cool Flo, with Lowest Pricewww.CowboyStudio.com
Pro Photo Website
Create Amazing Galleries and Sell Photos with your Pro Photo Websitewww.ifp3.com
Photography Training
Get Matched with Photo Schools that Fit Your Needs. Request Free Info!MyEduSeek.com/Photography
Photo Backdrops
Denny Mfg- leading manufacturer of backdrops, props and other supplieswww.dennymfg.com
Wholesale Photo Equipment
studio lighting, muslin & canvas and a buy 2 get 1 free promotionwww.amvona.com
Kenmark Backdrop Rentals
Theatrical backdrop rentals & sales For theatre, dance, special eventswww.kenmark-inc.com
Photo lighting
equipment for less from authorized dealer with full 100% guarantee.www.photography-lighting.com
PhotoCheap photo printProvide 100MB free album and low price photograph printing service
