Anything wrong with how flash was applied?


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shawntim

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Feb 13, 2002
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I was at the ROM porch yesterday testing out some shots. I tried to use what I tot was fill flash, but results were far from it. Can anyone guide me?

It was around 11am with good ambient light, but when I used flash, the shots become dark and underexposed. Ppl 5 metres away from me were silhoetted and the surroundings were all dark. My hand placed infront of my cam was overexposed.

Flash was set at ISO 160, F8, 35mm with a fresh set of batteries.
 

can see the pics?
most prob ur flash was too harsh. U might wanna bounce ur flash.
 

Very simple. Shutter speed too fast, making flash the main source of light.
 

Originally posted by YSLee
Very simple. Shutter speed too fast, making flash the main source of light.

How can I make use of a fast shutter speed to reduce handshake and other movement in this case? I'm only using 1/80. 1/60 doesn't make much difference in my tests.

I assume the solution has to do with the aperture settings. So do I increase the aperture setting on the Cam or on the Flash to compensate?

Anyone knows the fastest shutter speed allowed for the Metz32-1?
 

Hmm.. what camera are you using? Basically meter for ambient light and use the flash, compensated accordingly.
 

Why not post some shots(blank out faces if necessary) so that we can see what's the problem?

BTW, didn't you test the flash extensively before going to cover the event?
 

Originally posted by shawntim


How can I make use of a fast shutter speed to reduce handshake and other movement in this case? I'm only using 1/80. 1/60 doesn't make much difference in my tests.

I assume the solution has to do with the aperture settings. So do I increase the aperture setting on the Cam or on the Flash to compensate?

Anyone knows the fastest shutter speed allowed for the Metz32-1?

I guessed u set ur aperture at f8 right? Tried varying the fstop from f2.8 to 4 when covering a wide area. U can try using higher ISO too. When u bounce u lose more stops of light so adjust accordingly.
 

If I understand yr question correctly, here is the reason for your problem: you did not compensate your exposure. When subjects are strongly backlit and using full-frame metering, should compensate +1/3~+1 stop, and fill-flash +1~+2. Otherwise your pictures will be underexposed for sure. If u spot meter subject's face, should -1/3~-1 instead with fill-flash as well.
 

I did some tests tonite and found that in my room, camera aperture had to -1 stop to get the right exposure when using ceiling bounce..

I did some notes when I went to test out shots at ROM. Some of the fill flash shots seemed ok. I just didn't note whether it was ceiling or direct flash :rolleyes:. Darn Will be checking out the rest of the notes when I'm more free.

Omnibounce doesn't work at all.. :dunno: all underexposed.
 

Hi, you made me confused. Here is the rule of thumb for indoor small room white ceiling flash shooting. Use M mode, f5.6, 1/60s for your 35mm lens, ISO 100-400, tilting flash head 45~70 degree, +2/3~+1 1/3 flash exposure compensation according to the size of room and your ISO. As long as you point your flash head at the right angle, confirm good exposure for almost EVERY shot. For outdoor strongly backlit, use the setting in my last post, also confirm good exposure in most cases:)
 

Thanks tomshen,

My tests at home were quite conclusive, but I need to test out again under outdoors lighting conditions. Thanks for ur tips.

As for the Omnibounce, I was using straightahead which cut off the flash sensor at the camera (something like that).. I will have to test out at 45 degrees which some sites recommended.

Thanks again for the advice.
 

hi shawntim,

My hand placed infront of my cam was overexposed.
i think the meter was fooled by your hand and the flash cut way before there was sufficient light in the background subjects.

As for the Omnibounce, I was using straightahead which cut off the flash sensor at the camera (something like that).. I will have to test out at 45 degrees which some sites recommended.
yah, pointing straight ahead essentially just makes your flash work harder (u lose 1-2 stops) without diffusing much..

hope this helps!:bsmilie:
 

I think it would help us help you if you tell us what camera and flash you were using, and which exposure mode (eg manual, aperture priority, shutter priority... what?).

For outdoor fill flash you should use aperture priority.

For indoor flash shots you should use manual or shutter priority set at 1/200 or 1/160, preferably at a high(er) ISO like 400 to get more of the ambient lighting.
 

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