I do not know how to use flash!!!!

[edouble]

I avoid using flash at all costs. The only flash I have is the built in speedlight on my D5000. Even with -3.0 flash compensation my pictures are completely washed out of any detail due to flash brightness. Using LR3 I was not able to restore any detail in areas that have been completely washed out from the flash.

Pleas help me use my built in speedlight to take good pictures!!!!

These are out of the camera pictures processed from RAW to JPEG then uploaded to photobucket.

 

[rusty9]

what's your shutter speed. the flash on that camera can work up to 1/200th. if you are going slower than that, you can speed it up and it will expose it better.

 

[edouble]

Exposure time was 1/60th sec, f/5.6, 55mm, ISO 200

 

[o hey tyler]

Camera: Nikon D5000
Lens: 55 mm (Max aperture f/5.7)
Exposure: Auto exposure, Aperture-priority AE, 1/60 sec, f/5.6, ISO 200
Flash: On, Return not detected

Jack up yo 'sposure bro. 1/150s @f/5.6

 

[rusty9]

well you can do 1/200 with the flash. that will help

 

[edouble]

I was expecting the camera to adjust exposure correctly - I thought wrong.

 

[MrBarney]

Camera: Nikon D5000
Lens: 55 mm (Max aperture f/5.7)
Exposure: Auto exposure, Aperture-priority AE, 1/60 sec, f/5.6, ISO 200
Flash: On, Return not detected

Jack up yo 'sposure bro. 1/150s @f/5.6

If he's in Av, then the camera should be exposing for the background at ambient light (1/60, f5.6 sounds somewhere near) and the flash should be reduced automatically to match. I understood that shutter speed doesn't have a lot to do with flash exposures anyway as it's so brief. You could reduce the aperture, maybe f8 or f11 which would reduce the flash exposure but Av mode would then move to an even slower shutter to expose the background properly.

The item that struck me was "return light not detected". At that distance, that can't be right, surely? It would cause the flash to put out full power though.

I've had a search on google but can't find out how the camera detects the return. Could you perhaps be covering one of the sensors with your finger? It might be worth looking that up in the manual.

 

[pbelarge]

Iso should be lower as well.

Are you sure you may not have put your flash to +3, instead of -3?

 

[Robin Usagani]

I was expecting the camera to adjust exposure correctly - I thought wrong.

Hahhaha.. I just bought a flash too.. I was thinking the same thing! I think we are at the same level when it comes to flash photography right now.

 

[Flash Harry]

due to flash sync being pretty low shutter speeds its best to work manual or aperture priority, if your close to a subject close the lens down f8-f11-f16, if at distance open it up, simples. H

 

[Robin Usagani]

due to flash sync being pretty low shutter speeds its best to work manual or aperture priority, if your close to a subject close the lens down f8-f11-f16, if at distance open it up, simples. H

Did you mean shutter priority?

 

[edouble]

Camera: Nikon D5000
Lens: 55 mm (Max aperture f/5.7)
Exposure: Auto exposure, Aperture-priority AE, 1/60 sec, f/5.6, ISO 200
Flash: On, Return not detected

Jack up yo 'sposure bro. 1/150s @f/5.6

If he's in Av, then the camera should be exposing for the background at ambient light (1/60, f5.6 sounds somewhere near) and the flash should be reduced automatically to match. I understood that shutter speed doesn't have a lot to do with flash exposures anyway as it's so brief. You could reduce the aperture, maybe f8 or f11 which would reduce the flash exposure but Av mode would then move to an even slower shutter to expose the background properly.

The item that struck me was "return light not detected". At that distance, that can't be right, surely? It would cause the flash to put out full power though.

I've had a search on google but can't find out how the camera detects the return. Could you perhaps be covering one of the sensors with your finger? It might be worth looking that up in the manual.

I was using a Nikkor 18-55mm lens. I believe I was too close to the subject and my aperature should have been between f/8-11 as well. I do not know what the minimum flash distance is for this lens but I was on average 1-4 feet away from the dog.

Iso should be lower as well.

Are you sure you may not have put your flash to +3, instead of -3?

ISO 200 is the optimum lowest ISO for the D5000. The D5000 has flash compensation values from +1 to -3.

I was expecting the camera to adjust exposure correctly - I thought wrong.

Hahhaha.. I just bought a flash too.. I was thinking the same thing! I think we are at the same level when it comes to flash photography right now.

Flash photography has shown its ugly head LOL

due to flash sync being pretty low shutter speeds its best to work manual or aperture priority, if your close to a subject close the lens down f8-f11-f16, if at distance open it up, simples. H

I was shooting in aperature priority. My camera was set to matrix metering which activates the camera i-ttl function which should adjust flash output considering ambient light and subject exposure. I think slow sync or rear curtain flash would have helped with a poorly lit shiny dog that I was trying to photograph. Whatcha think?

 

[MrBarney]

The item that struck me was "return light not detected". At that distance, that can't be right, surely? It would cause the flash to put out full power though.

I was shooting in aperature priority. My camera was set to matrix metering which activates the camera i-ttl function which should adjust flash output considering ambient light and subject exposure. I think slow sync or rear curtain flash would have helped with a poorly lit shiny dog that I was trying to photograph. Whatcha think?

I agree with you, it should. The "return not detected" is still bugging me. I gave up and downloaded the manual from Nikon. You need to check a few things:

Manual p73 has a nice table of which apertures you need for the subject distance when using the built-in flash.

Manual p162 mentions a custom setting where the built-in flash is set to manual power. Check this is set to TTL.

 

[Lipoly]

I have a D5000 and have never had that happen in anything other than full manual unless I had exposure or flash compensation jacked up.

 

[edouble]

The item that struck me was "return light not detected". At that distance, that can't be right, surely? It would cause the flash to put out full power though.

I was shooting in aperature priority. My camera was set to matrix metering which activates the camera i-ttl function which should adjust flash output considering ambient light and subject exposure. I think slow sync or rear curtain flash would have helped with a poorly lit shiny dog that I was trying to photograph. Whatcha think?

I agree with you, it should. The "return not detected" is still bugging me. I gave up and downloaded the manual from Nikon. You need to check a few things:

Manual p73 has a nice table of which apertures you need for the subject distance when using the built-in flash.

Manual p162 mentions a custom setting where the built-in flash is set to manual power. Check this is set to TTL.

I don't remember ever changing this option since I rarely use flash.

Problem Solved - my settings were at manual flash full power. :???: