flash at night

[fotoadam]

Ok, so i've been experimenting with my Canon Rebel with built in flash at night. My cousin (who is very photogenic) was my subject for the evening. we went to a park and I took some pics of her on play ground equipment and such. Now, when I use the flash on her, she becomes very white and everything else is so dark that you cant see. That was with a fast shutter speed. I did some pics with slow shutter speeds handheld and they came out so so. So my question is...

Is there a certain technique for getting good flash from the camera without drowning out the backgrounds and surrounding object..?

Adam

 

[KBOC]

umbrella lights would help you.

You could use a big piece of cardboard with tinfoil taped to it and bounce your flash off that. It should disperse the light enough to keep her from getting too washed out. Crumple the tinfoil then flatten it before taping it down for best results.

 

[fotoadam]

umbrella lights would help you.

You could use a big piece of cardboard with tinfoil taped to it and bounce your flash off that. It should disperse the light enough to keep her from getting too washed out. Crumple the tinfoil then flatten it before taping it down for best results.

I've heard of this method. About what size would the cardboard be and where would I place it in relation to the camera flash and direction of the strobe..??

Adam

 

[KBOC]

That depends a lot on your subject. If you're photographing pretty girls, you want to minimize shadows which accentuate wringles and folds.

So you'll probably want to bounce it directly overhead, perhaps slightly offset, not far above you, and onto the subject.

 

[fotoadam]

here is a little ditty I did real quick. Does this look about right..

adam

 

[KBOC]

yes, actually it does.

 

[fotoadam]

yes, actually it does.

thanks a lot bud..

Adam