Beginner's lighting. What do you want to know?

Why did you buy an Olympus TTL flash for a Canon, or is that just a linking error?

1. If it's fully TTL compatible, than yes, it will.

2. It doesn't have to be, but you will get a greater effect if it is. Darker/coloured surfaces can also impart their colour into the image (Eg if you bounce off of a red ceiling, the image may take on a slightly rosey hue).

3. You may notice greater light fall off around the edges if you shoot with a lens longer than the flash's zoom ability.
 
Thanks Tirediron!

I did purchase the flash for the Canon, just linked to the wrong one.

My name is Gary, and I am not smarter than a fifth grader!!!
 
Thanks Tirediron!

I did purchase the flash for the Canon, just linked to the wrong one.

My name is Gary, and I am not smarter than a fifth grader!!!

For number 3, it really depends on how far away the subject is If you're shooting with an 80mm lens and the subject is 6' away for a face shot, you won't necessarily need the flash zoomed that much. If you're using an 80mm lens and shooting some one 18' away for a full body shot, then the zoom may be needed.
 
Disclaimer: I am as GREEN as noobs come, so please excuse my ignorance!

I am taking some pics of my friends newborns on Sunday, not for any reason other then they are CUTE and I want to play with my camera, but I would still like to get some cool shots!

I've been googling 'newborn photography' images and am wondering how I can get some great effects without using my flash too much! Are there DIY lighting solutions, like a strategically placed desk lamp, or other cheap lighting options that won't startle the little ones?
 
Disclaimer: I am as GREEN as noobs come, so please excuse my ignorance!

I am taking some pics of my friends newborns on Sunday, not for any reason other then they are CUTE and I want to play with my camera, but I would still like to get some cool shots!

I've been googling 'newborn photography' images and am wondering how I can get some great effects without using my flash too much! Are there DIY lighting solutions, like a strategically placed desk lamp, or other cheap lighting options that won't startle the little ones?

Windows lighting! Use the sun from a window and try that out.
 
Disclaimer: I am as GREEN as noobs come, so please excuse my ignorance!

I am taking some pics of my friends newborns on Sunday, not for any reason other then they are CUTE and I want to play with my camera, but I would still like to get some cool shots!

I've been googling 'newborn photography' images and am wondering how I can get some great effects without using my flash too much! Are there DIY lighting solutions, like a strategically placed desk lamp, or other cheap lighting options that won't startle the little ones?

Windows lighting! Use the sun from a window and try that out.

There lies the problem :meh: She lives in an old farmhouse which is pretty dark, and its cold and overcast here (oh how I miss the sun!) so don't want to take the bubs outside for better light. I have been playing around with makeshift diffusers on my flash, but no luck so far! I will cross my fingers for Sun on Sunday! Thanks! :D
 
Disclaimer: I am as GREEN as noobs come, so please excuse my ignorance!

I am taking some pics of my friends newborns on Sunday, not for any reason other then they are CUTE and I want to play with my camera, but I would still like to get some cool shots!

I've been googling 'newborn photography' images and am wondering how I can get some great effects without using my flash too much! Are there DIY lighting solutions, like a strategically placed desk lamp, or other cheap lighting options that won't startle the little ones?

Windows lighting! Use the sun from a window and try that out.

There lies the problem :meh: She lives in an old farmhouse which is pretty dark, and its cold and overcast here (oh how I miss the sun!) so don't want to take the bubs outside for better light. I have been playing around with makeshift diffusers on my flash, but no luck so far! I will cross my fingers for Sun on Sunday! Thanks! :D

Is it the pop up flash or a speed light type of flash?
 
can a DIY home depot jerry rigged lighting set up work just as well as other systems like Cowboy Studio?

I have no idea what kind of lighting I need to get to do product photography. Where do I start with a basic set up?

What kind of lighting will I need for shooting something like a wedding with oober low lights? I will be shooting my SIL's wedding at a planetarium.
 
Windows lighting! Use the sun from a window and try that out.

There lies the problem :meh: She lives in an old farmhouse which is pretty dark, and its cold and overcast here (oh how I miss the sun!) so don't want to take the bubs outside for better light. I have been playing around with makeshift diffusers on my flash, but no luck so far! I will cross my fingers for Sun on Sunday! Thanks! :D

Is it the pop up flash or a speed light type of flash?

Just the pop up.

I am not opposed to buying another flash (more money then sense sometimes!) but I am trying to avoid any more uninformed impulse buys that I will not use!
 
There lies the problem :meh: She lives in an old farmhouse which is pretty dark, and its cold and overcast here (oh how I miss the sun!) so don't want to take the bubs outside for better light. I have been playing around with makeshift diffusers on my flash, but no luck so far! I will cross my fingers for Sun on Sunday! Thanks! :D

Is it the pop up flash or a speed light type of flash?

Just the pop up.

I am not opposed to buying another flash (more money then sense sometimes!) but I am trying to avoid any more uninformed impulse buys that I will not use!

What camera do you own? A ttl enabled first party flash can really help you out by bouncing it off the ceiling to get a nice even exposure. I can post some photos and such tomorrow. Typing the from the iPad right now, so it's kind of a pain to do really long explanations.
 
can a DIY home depot jerry rigged lighting set up work just as well as other systems like Cowboy Studio?

I have no idea what kind of lighting I need to get to do product photography. Where do I start with a basic set up?

What kind of lighting will I need for shooting something like a wedding with oober low lights? I will be shooting my SIL's wedding at a planetarium.

It can, but you'll have to worry about color balance and heat. Usually you can used a bounced flash on the camera for decent results at an event. Wedding photographers generally seem to depend on cameras with good high iso performance and fast lenses.

What type of product photography are you planning. Shooting small items will be different than say, shooting much larger items.
 
Is it the pop up flash or a speed light type of flash?

Just the pop up.

I am not opposed to buying another flash (more money then sense sometimes!) but I am trying to avoid any more uninformed impulse buys that I will not use!

What camera do you own? A ttl enabled first party flash can really help you out by bouncing it off the ceiling to get a nice even exposure. I can post some photos and such tomorrow. Typing the from the iPad right now, so it's kind of a pain to do really long explanations.

A Nikon D3000. That would be great! Thanks heaps!
 
Just the pop up.

I am not opposed to buying another flash (more money then sense sometimes!) but I am trying to avoid any more uninformed impulse buys that I will not use!

What camera do you own? A ttl enabled first party flash can really help you out by bouncing it off the ceiling to get a nice even exposure. I can post some photos and such tomorrow. Typing the from the iPad right now, so it's kind of a pain to do really long explanations.

A Nikon D3000. That would be great! Thanks heaps!

This is as good of an example you're going to get from me. This was one flash bounced off the ceiling, but with a remote trigger, so it's not on camera.

You can tell it was placed to the right of where I'm shooting as the faint shadows move to the left.

Bouncing a flash from the ceiling make the ceiling the light source and the larger the light source, the softer the light. A flash on camer will reduce shadows and the ones that show will be soft. The down side, is that the shadows will be pointing down, so if you're shooting straight on, a person may have slight shadows under their eyes. This can be countered by a reflector of by bouncing the flash from another light source, like a wall.


 
Village Idiot, Big Mike ...

I just want to say .... You Guys ROCKS!!
:hail::hail:

+1,000,000. These guy's are doing a great service here to the beginners of photography. Especially in light of all the "anti-beginner" threads and posts that I've been reading recently. Thanks again guy's. We can't thank you enough for taking the time and being willing to share your immense knowledge with us. You've both probably forgotten more about photography than I'll ever personally know. But I do appreciate you taking the time to share with us and help us progress.

Any plans or would you be willing to do a similar thread for different style of photography? Or different photography topics in general?

Shane


Agreed, nice to be able to ask questions w/o a holier than thou answer...

Good job guys! :thumbup:
 
I'm trying to figure out if it is worth buying a flash... maybe you guys can help me!

I'm moving [back] to the Middle East. I don't like looking like a photographer, I think it makes people slightly uneasy (photographing people is a no-no in conservative Muslim societies). I am worried that adding a flash to my T1i will hurt my cause a little bit.

I do most of my photography while traveling/wandering around. I don't really go out for the sole purpose of getting great pictures. I would say that 90% of the pictures I take are city/market scenes, with some landscape and very little macro (if any). A lot of it is done very discretely/quickly. Another thing to note is that I won't have a tripod 90% of the time, if that makes any difference.

Would a flash make a significant difference in my pictures?

If so, do you have any recommendations? Keep in mind that I'm a poor recent graduate who will be working for peanuts!
 

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