Tips for using On camera flash · Select a flash synchronization mode after selecting the shooting...

TipsforusingOncameraflashPOWER

Thelimitationonhowfaryourflashwillilluminatemayormaynotbeanissue.Ifyouwantstronglightmovecloser.

Ifyouwantmorediffusedlightmoveback.

BACKGROUNDIfyoursubjectsareclosetoabackgroundtherewillbeadeepshadowfromthe

flash.Pullyoursubjectsawayfromdistractingbackgrounds.

DIFFUSETHELIGHTYoucanusesomethingtotonedowntheintensityofthelight.Whitepaper,

yourhand,waxpaper.

USEASAFILLEvenifyoursubjectisinfulllightcheckwhereshadowsarefalling,addingthe

oncameraflashcanhelpeliminateunwantedshadows.

Typesofflashes

Dedicatedcameraflash

Macroringflash

• Everyflashphotographistwoexposuresinone– anambientlightexposureandaflashexposure.

• Thisisacriticalfacttoremember.Theshutteropens,theflashfires,theshuttercloses.Duringthistime,bothambientlightandflashwillcontributetotherecordedimage.

• Flashphotographyrequiresmanagingbothexposures.

(E)TTLflash

• ThroughTheLens.• Thecameraregisterstheamountoflightreturningthroughthelensandthenworksouttherightamountoflighttopumpoutforthemainflashexposure.

• ThecamerawillcontroltheflashexposureinTTLmodenomatterwhatapertureorISOorshutterspeed.

• Withautomaticflashmetering,theflashilluminationismeasuredaftertheshutterbuttonispressed,andtheflashoutputisadjustedaccordingly.

• Therearetechnicaldifferencesbetweenthevarioustypesofflashmetering,butallofthemoperateindependentlyfromthecamera’smeteringofambientlight,andallofthemworkbyadjustingtheoutputoftheflash,notbychangingthecamera’sexposuresettings.

• Flashexposureisnotaffectedbyshutterspeed.• Theentireburstoflightfromtheflashbeginsandendswhiletheshutterisopen,sokeepingtheshutteropenlongerwon’thelpwithflashillumination.

• TheflashexposureandtheeffectiverangeofyourflashunitwillbeaffectedbyapertureandISOsettings,butnottheshutter.

• Ofcourse,theambientlightcomponentinaflashphotographisaffectedbyshutterspeed.Sochangingtheshutterspeedisonewaytomanagetheamountofambientlightthatcontributestoaflashphotograph.

• Flashilluminationisdramaticallyaffectedbydistance.

UsingFlashandshootingmode-useinP,Amodes

• Program(auto)willallowthecameraandflashcanworktogether(butlimitedcontrol).OverridebyusingFlashExposurecompensation(outputofflash),oruseExposurecompensationtolowerorraisetheambientlightexposure.

• Aperture(Av/A)willallowyoutochooseaperturesettingandETTLwithconnectwithcorrectshuttercontrol.

• LowISOsetting• Nikon- AutoFPsynch(Menupencil- bracketing/flash)• Canon- HighSpeedsynch(FlashETTLhighspeedsynch)

ExposureCompensation

• Allowsyoutoadjusttheexposureoftheambientlight.

FlashExposureCompensation

• Allowsyoutoadjusttheoutputfromtheflash.

FlashPhotographySpeedlite 430EXII

Step1:TurnOnthePowerAfterMountingtheFlashOntheCamera

Inserttheexternalflashintothehotshoeontopofthecamera.Oncefullyinserted,slidethemountingfootlocklevertolockitintoplace.Switchonthepowersupplyofthecamera,followedbythatoftheflash.

Thepoweroftheflashshouldbeturnedoffbeforeattachingittoordetachingitfromthehotshoe.

Tip:Donotuseamixofbatteries

Whenreplacingthebatteries,ensurethatallofthemarenewandofthesamebrand.Donotuseamixtureofnewandoldbatteries,differentbrands,oralkalineandlithiumbatteries.Notonlywillthatshortenthelifeofthebatteries,itmayalsoresultinproblemssuchasbatteryleak.

Step2:ResettheFlashSettings

Forcameraswith“Flashcontrol”menu,theflashfunctionsandCustomFunctionsoftheexternalSpeedlite canbereseteasily.

Toavoiderrorssuchasthesettingsleftfromtheprevioususe,itissafertoresetatthestart.

ResettheflashCustomFunctionssettings

Step3:SelectaFlashMode

ChooseeitherE-TTLorManualflashmodefortheflashunit.Flashsettingscanbeadjustedonthecameraortheflashunit.SelectE-TTLflashwhenyouwanttotakeaquickpicturewiththeentirephotoinstandardexposure.

Andmanualflashforprofessional-levelflashphotographysuchasbymakinguseofmultipleflashunitstocreateshadoweffects.

Tosettheflashusingthecamera,select“Flashmode”from“Externalflashfunctionsettings”.Forautoadjustmentoftheflashoutput,select“E-TTL.”

PushtheMODEbutton,andselect“ETTL”or“M.”

Step4:SelectaShootingModeSelecttheshootingmodesuitedfortheintentandcontentsofthephotoyouwishtotake.Flashphotographycanbeusedinanyshootingmode.

TurntheModeDialandselectthedesiredshootingmode.SelectShutter-priorityAEwhenyouwishtocapturemovingsubjectswithoutblurring,ormakeuseofblurringtoexpressmovement.

SelectAperture-priorityAEifyouwishtocontrolthedepthoffield.Makeachoicebasedonyourintent.

IftheflashmodeselectedisE-TTL,flashphotographycanbecarriedoutinanyshootingmodeintheBasicZoneandCreativeZoneofthecamera.However,flashcompensationisnotpossibleintheFullAutoandscenemodes.Thus,ProgramAE,Aperture-priorityAEandShutter-priorityAEareeasiertouseifyouwanttoconveyyourintentinaphoto.Ontheotherhand,themanualexposureshootingmodeisrecommendedwhenmanualflashischosen.Determinesettingssuchasaperture,shutterspeedandISOspeedinaccordancewiththeintentoftheshot,andyoucanadjusttheflashoutputmanuallybasedontheseconditions.

Step5:SelectaShutterSynchronizationMode

Selectaflashsynchronizationmodeafterselectingtheshootingmode.UseHigh-speedsyncwhenthedesiredshutterspeedishigherthanthemaximumspeedtheflashisabletosynchronize.

Considerusingfirstcurtainsyncorsecondcurtainsyncforlong-exposureshots.Toperformsettingusingthecameramenu,choosethedesiredmodefrom[Shuttersynchronization]inthe[Externalflashfunctionsettings].Tosetusingtheflashunit,pressthe“High-speedsync(FPflash)/Shutter-curtainsynchronization”button.Pressingthisbuttoneachtimeallowsswitchingbetweenhigh-speedsyncandshutter-curtainsync.

Settingscreenofthecamera

Toperformsettingusingthecamera,select[Shuttersync.]from[Externalflashfunc.setting]andchoosetheitem.

WhatisHighSpeedSyncFlash?• High-speedsyncflashisyourDSLR'sabilitytouseaflashatshutterspeedsfasterthanthecamera’snativesync.Mostcamerashaveanativesyncof1/250thofasecond,andanythingfasterthanthatisbeyondthecamera'sabilitytosynctheshutterwiththeflash.Butifyouhappentobeinasituationthatrequiresfastershutterspeedstoeffectivelycapturetheaction,orforotheraestheticreasons(likeawideaperture),thenyou'llover-exposureyourimage.However,high-speedsyncflash/cameracombinationsallowyoutousetheflashathighershutterspeeds.

HowHighSpeedSyncWorks

• Thehigh-speedsyncgivesyoumoreartisticcontroloveryourphotos,particularlyinaperture-prioritymode.Whenyoumasterthisuseoftheflash,you’llbeabletotakephotosthatwillgrabpeople’sattentionandhavethemwonderinghowitwasdone.

• High-speedsyncovercomesthelimitationsofthecamera’snativeflashsync.That’sabonustothosephotographerswhoalwayswishedforjustoneortwomorespeedsontheshutter.

SettoHigh-speedSync

Settingscreenoftheflashunit

Setto2ndCurtainSync

WhatisRearandFrontCurtainSync?

RearCurtainSync• RearCurtainSync – thistellsyourcameratofiretheflashattheendof

theexposure.ie whenyoupresstheshutteryourlensopensupandstartscollectinglightandjustbeforeitclosestheflashwillfiretolightupandfreezeyourmainsubject(seethecardshottotheleftforanexamplewhereyou’llseethecardtrailendinginanicecrispshotofthecard).

FrontCurtainSync• FrontCurtainSync – thistellsyourcameratofiretheflashatthestartof

theexposure.ie whenyoupresstheshutter,theflashwillfireimmediatelyandtheshutterwillremainopenafterwardscapturingambientlight.

• Youmightnotthinkthere’smuchdifferencebetweenthesemodesbutwhenyou’rephotographingamovingsubjectitcanhavearealimpact.You’llfindmanyaction/sportsphotographerswilluseRearCurtainSyncwhenshootingwithapanningtechnique.

SlowSyncflash

Step6:AdjusttheISOSpeedISOspeedadjustmentsdirectlyaffecttheexposureandfinishingofaphoto.ISOspeedcanbeadjustedwhenthephototurnsoutdarkerthanexpected,orwhenthechosenshutterspeedisslowerthanintended.ToadjusttheISOsettings,pressthe“ISO”buttononthecamera,andselectanISOspeedsuchasbyusingtheMainDial.

Tip:PhotoimagechangesdramaticallywithdifferentISOspeedsinflashphotography

ShotusingISO100 ShotusingISO1600

Inflashphotography,theoverallbrightnessofapicturecanbeadjustedbychangingtheISOspeed.WithahighISOspeed,theimagesensor’ssensitivitytolightisincreasedandweakdiffuselightfromtheflashthatcouldnotbedetectedatalowISOspeedcanbecapturedandreflectedinthephoto,thusresultinginabrighteroverallphotoimage.However,asitisdifficulttogaugethechangesinexposurewhentheISOspeedischanged,itisadvisabletotaketestshotsalongwiththeISOspeedchanges.AhigherISOspeedisalsoeffectiveagainstcamerashakeormovementofthesubjectinbothnormalandflashphotography.

Step7:DeterminetheBackgroundBrightnessUsingExposureCompensationOften,inflashphotography,lightfromtheflashdoesnotreachthebackground.Insuchasituation,Exposurecompensationcanbeappliedtoadjustthebrightnessofthebackground.Exposurecompensationcanbereliedonforbrightnessadjustmentsbeyondtherangethatcanbebrightlyilluminatedbylightfromtheflash.Inmid- andhigh-specmodels,theamountofcompensationcanbesetbyturningtheQuickControlDialwhilehalf-pressingtheshutterbutton.ForcameramodelswithouttheQuickControlDial,exposurecompensationcanbeadjustedbyoperatingtheMainDialwhiledepressingandholdingdowntheExposurecompensationbutton.

ExposurecompensationbuttonandMainDial

SettheamountofcompensationbyturningtheMainDialwhilepressingandholdingdowntheExposurecompensationbutton.Turningthedialtotherightincreasesbrightness,whileturningtotheleftmakesitdarker.

Step8:DeterminetheBrightnessoftheSubjectUsingtheFlashOutput

Toadjustthebrightnessofasubjectwithintherangeoftheflash,adjusttheflashoutput.UseflashexposurecompensationifyouareusingtheE-TTLflashmode.Onlytheflashoutputischangedduringflashexposurecompensation.Thus,itispossibletomoderateonlythebrightnessofthesubjectwithintheflashrangewithoutanyimpactonthebackgroundbrightness.Formid- andhigh-specmodels,adjustmentsaremadebypressingtheFlashexposurecompensationbuttonandturningtheMainDial.

Flashexposurecompensationofthecamera

Step9:AdjustingtheAngleoftheFlashHead

Byusinganexternalflashwithanadjustableflashhead,theflashanglecanbeadjustedtoenhancetheresultofaphoto.Itwillalsobepossibletousereflectedlightbybouncingthelightoffawallorceilingforasofterfinish.Thegreatestmeritofflashphotographyusingdigitalcameraswouldbethepossibilityoftakingasmanytestshotsasdesired.Whenashotdoesnotturnoutright,theshortestwaytoimprovementwouldberepeatedpracticebyalteringsettingssuchastheshootingmode,synchronizationmode,andISOspeed.

Theangleoftheflashheadcanbeadjusted.Findtheanglethatmostsuityourphotographicintension.

Tip:Adjustnotonlytheangleoftheflashhead,buttheflashangleaswell

Agenuineexternalflashallowsadjustmentofnotonlytheangleoftheflashhead,butalsotheflashangle(widthoflightcoverage).Controllingtheflashanglehelpstowidenyourscopeofphotographicexpression.Toperformsettingonthecamera,select[Zoom]inthe[Externalflashfunctionsettings]menu,andchooseafocallength(angleofview).Tosetusingtheflashunit,pressthe“Zoom”buttonandselectthefocallengthusingthe“+/-“button,followedbyconfirmingtheselectionusingthe“SEL/SET”button.OptimalflashcoveragewillbeautomaticallyselectedtomatchthelensinusewhenAutoisselectedonthecamera(theMofMZoomwillnotappearontheflash).ForSpeedlite 320EXandSpeedlite 270EXII,adjustmentsaremadeintwophasesbymanuallypullingouttheflashhead.

Setwiththecamera Setwiththeflashunit

WhichFlashisrightforyou?• Whatisyour budget?Budgetiscertainlythebiggestfactorwhenchoosing

aflash.Withflashunits,youalmostalwaysgetwhatyoupayfor.Ifyoucannotspendmorethan$100onaflash,expecttobuyathirdpartyunitfromcompanieslikeVivitar,Bower,NissinandSunpak thatallhaveexternalflashesforunder$100.Ifyoudonothavebudgetlimitations,thenthebestflashesaregoingtobethemostexpensiveonesfromNikonandCanon.

• TTL orManual?IhighlyrecommendgettingaflashunitthatcanuseTTL(ThroughTheLens)system.ThinkofTTLasan“Auto”modeforflashthatletsyoushootpictureswithoutworryingaboutunderexposingoroverexposingyourimages– agreatwaytogetstarted.

• Doyouwanttouseyourflash off-camera?Ipersonallywouldnotbuyaflashthatdoesnotletmeshootoff-camera.Unlessyouareabsolutelypositivethatyouwouldalwaysshootflashontopofyourcamera,youshouldtrytogetonethatatleastallowsyoutouseitasaslave.

Flashkeywordstoknow• GuideNumber- Theguidenumberforaflashisindicativeofthesizeoftheflash.Iftheflashis

meanttobemostlyusedforcloseportraits,thenthephotographerdoesn’tneedalargeguidenumber.Ifthesubjectofphotoswillbemoreofinteriorarchitectureoranyothersituationwherelargespacesneedtobeilluminated,theguidenumbershouldbelargertoensurethattheflashwillbepowerfulenoughforthephotographer’spurposes.

• FlashSync- Theflashsyncspeedisacamerafunction,butveryimportanttotheexternalflash.Itcanalsoletthephotographerknowhowmuchflashtobuy.Ifthecameraismoreofabudgetcamera,andhasalowflashsyncspeed,theflashwilllimittheshutterspeedofthecamera.Thebetterthecamera,thehigherthesyncspeed,andthebetterflashthecameracanhandle.

• RecycleRate- Therecyclerateisveryimportanttothoseshootingactionscenes.Thisrateissimplynotinghowquicklytheflashcanrechargeitselftofireagain.Ifthephotographerisgoingtobesettinghisorhersubjects,pausingafterthephotograph,andthenresettingthesubject,therecyclerateisnotveryimportant.However,ifthephotographerwillbedoingalotofphotographyofmovingsubjects,thentherecyclerateisveryimportant.Thephotographerwillnotwanttobelimitedbyhisorherflashwhenitcomestotakingplentyofrapidphotographs.

BeginnerFlashSuggestionsCanonThereareseveralentry-levelflashaccessorieswhicharecompatiblewithCanonDSLRsandcostunder$150.(fromTechReviewBlog2013)

NeewerTT560 - TheNeewer TT560isoneofthebestbangforyourbuckflashesforaCanonDSLRthatiscurrentlyonthemarket.Currentlypricedunder$40,theTT560providesasolidbuildqualityandexcellentperformancefortheprice.However,itisnotanE-TTLsoyou’llneedtomanuallyadjusttheflashsettings(notdifficulttogetthehangof)inordertogettheproperlighting.

Canon270EXII - The270EXIIistheonlyCanon-brandedflashtomakethislist,primarilybecauseCanonflashesarenotcheapbynature.Itisthesmallestandmostlightweightflashinthispricerangewhichwillappealtosomeuserswhowantextremeportability.Personally,I’dchooseanaftermarketbrandtosavesomemoney,butyoucan’tgowrongwiththe270EXII.

YongnuoYN-560II - TheYoungnuo YN-560IIisaqualityflashthatmirrorshigherpricedname-brandcompetitorswithoutbreakingthebank.Withareasonablerecycle-timeof3secondsandaminimumflashdurationof1/20,000ofasecond,you’llbeabletocapturehigh-speedshotswithease.Forunder$60,thebuildqualityanddesignissolidandtheflashcanbemanuallyadjustedorsimplyusedasintheopticalslavemodewhichtriggersviaanotherflash.

PrecisionDesignDSLR300 - Alesser-knownflash,thePrecisionDesignDSLR300isasolidcontenderthatfitsallCanonDSLRsthatbearahotshoe mount.Itfeaturesahighlyadjustableheadwhichcanbeswiveledtocapturethatperfectangletobouncetheflashandspreadevenlightthroughoutyourphotos.Pricedunder$60,thisflashisanexcellententry-levelaccessorythatwillhelpyoutakebetterphotos.

NEEWERNW680/TT680 - TheTT680istheupdatedE-TTLversionoftheTT-560listedearlierinthisarticle.Featuringmulti-flashcapabilities,afastflashrecycling,andalargerearLCDwithbacklightcapabilities,theTT680isatoughflashtobeatespeciallyforthe lowunder$60pricetag.Additionally,youhavetheoptiontoturnoffthe“auto”modeandmanuallyprogramtheflashifyouareanadvanceduser.

BeginnerFlashSuggestionsNikonIfcostisthebiggestdilemmaforyou,thenherearesomethirdpartyflashesthatfullysupportiTTL under$100:• BowerSFD728N – thecheapestexternalflashunder$50,withaflexibleheadtobouncelight.Don’texpectmuchoutofthisunit,sinceyougetwhat

youpayfor.Itdoesnotcomewithadiffuserdomeandcannotbeusedasaslave.• BowerSFD35N – abetterversionthantheaboveSFD728N,comeswithanAutoFocusassistfunction,whichwillhelpyoufocusbetterinlow-light

environments.Cannotbeusedasaslave.• VivitarDF350Z – similartoBowerSFD35N,theVivitar DF350Zisagoodoverallflashwithaflexiblehead.AlsocomeswithAFassistforfocusingin

low-lightandcannotbeusedasaslave.• VivitarDF400MZ – at$99,itisaverycapableflashthatcomeswithabuilt-inflip-outdiffuser.ThenicethingabouttheDF400MZ,isthatit canbe

usedasaslave.• BowerSFD926N – justafewdollarsmorethantheVivitar DF400MZ,theBowerSFD926Nisaniceflashwithplentyoffeaturessuchasflashzoom

basedoncamerafocallength.Italsocomeswithabuilt-indiffuserandalsosupportsslavemodeforoff-camerasetup.• Thereareplentyofotherflashesatsimilarpricerangefromvariouscompanies.Ifyoucanspendmorethan$100onaflash,butwanttostayataround$200pricerange,thenhereiswhatIrecommend:• NikonSB-600 – ifyoudonotcareaboutusingflashasamaster,theNikonSB-600isyourbestbuy.Itcomespackedwithallkindsofgreatfeatures

suchasAutoFocusassist,high-speedsync,fulli-TTLsupportanditworksgreatwithallNikonDSLRs.Itcanonlybeusedasaslave.• WhyamIrecommendingjustoneflash?Becauseatthispricerange,IbelieveyouwouldbebetteroffwithaNikonspeedlight.Whileotherflashes

mightsoundlikeagooddeal,Nikon’sflashesfullysupportallCLSfeaturesandaredesignedtoworkbestonNikonDSLRs.On topofthat,ifyoupurchaseanotherflashunitfromNikoninthefuture,theSB-600wouldbefullycompatiblewithit.Ifyouarenotscaredtobuy usedequipment,thenyoucangetanolderNikonSB-600forlessthan$200.IfyouarenotafraidtoshootinmanualmodewithoutTTL,theolderNikon speedlights suchasSB-26andSB-28arealsoofgreatvalueandyoucansnatchthoseusedforlessthan$100.

• Ifbudgetisnotabigissueforyouandyoujustwanttogetagoodflash,thelistofflashestorecommendisbasedonfeaturestheyoffer:• NikonSB-600 – onceagain,agreatvalueforthemoneyforthosewhoneedasingleflashtogooncameraortobeusedinanoff-camerasetup.Ifyou

donotcareabouttriggeringotherflashes(mastermode),thentheSB-600isyourbestbet.• NikonSB-700 – thenewlyreleasedSB-700isaround$100morethantheSB-600,buthasabunchofnewfeaturestheSB-600doesnothave.Itcan

workasamasterandaslave,hasanewlydesigneduserinterfacethatisveryintuitivewhencomparedtotheSB-600,comeswith averyusefuldiffusiondomeplustwofilters/gelsforindoorsshotsandmuchmore.Itwillcertainlybeaverypopularflashamongphotoenthusiasts.

• NikonSB-910 – theMercedes-BenzofNikonspeedlights,theSB-910isahigh-endspeedlight designedforenthusiastsandprofessionalsthatneedthemostfeaturesfordemandingapplications.Pricedat$550,theSB-910canbeusedbothasamasterandaslave,hasasimilar intuitiveuserinterfaceastheSB-700,comeswithplentyofaccessoriessuchasdiffuserdome,filtersetandflashstand,hasanautomaticflashzoomheadthatcanzoominandoutbasedonthefocallengthyouareusingandmore.ThebiggesttwoadvantagesoftheNikonSB-910overSB-700isthatithasaPC/synccordforconnectingexternalflashunitssuchasPocketWizard andabilitytousepowerfulbatterypacks.

• QuantumQflashTRIOQF8N – anexpensivetop-of-the-lineflashthathasanultra-fastrecycletimeandlotsofpower.UnlikeNikonspeedlights,ithasalargereflectoronthefrontwhichdiffusesthelightcomingoutoftheflashforbetterqualityimagesandsoftershadows. It canworkasamasteroraslavewithadditionalmodules.