le sigh. First time using external flash

[elizpage]

Hi all,

Recently shot a "Disco party" for a fitness club. Unfortunately, the photos didn't turn out the way I wanted them and aren't up to my normal standards..




They are pretty atrocious. How do I get rid of that awful yellowish tint? The 3rd one is the worst :/


Thanks ya'll.

 

[elizpage]

Also there's a pretty intense motion-blur on the ones of people dancing. It was a tight space, there was fluorescent lighting where it wasn't completely dark, and I just... had a total flop =( Anyone know how to photoshop out some of the issues?

 

[Overread20]

Ok before we go any further first a few more details please:

1) What settings did you use for these shots - check your EXIF data if you can't recall.

2) How did you use the flash itself - what type of flash, position, settings etc...


I'll say now that in almost all cases you can't fix motion blur (if you're a really good digital artist you might be able to rebuild the areas, but you're looking at a lot of work to get it to look right)

If you shot in RAW you can adjust the white balance which might help you with the yellow tint - otherwise levels and using the eye-dropper tools to define a white, grey and black spot can also sometimes fix colour hazing.

 

[elizpage]

Ok before we go any further first a few more details please:

1) What settings did you use for these shots - check your EXIF data if you can't recall.

2) How did you use the flash itself - what type of flash, position, settings etc...


I'll say now that in almost all cases you can't fix motion blur (if you're a really good digital artist you might be able to rebuild the areas, but you're looking at a lot of work to get it to look right)

If you shot in RAW you can adjust the white balance which might help you with the yellow tint - otherwise levels and using the eye-dropper tools to define a white, grey and black spot can also sometimes fix colour hazing.

Hi. I shot in RAW, Thank God. How do I adjust that? Let's see.. I shot with a 16-35mm f/2.8 L II at 29mm, ISO 400, f/2.8, and 1/60 shutter speed for most of the pictures.

 

[Overread20]

In RAW you can set the white balance for your shots - the tint and temperature control this so have a play with the sliders (there might also be good set values for specific lights - some are default entered into most RAW processing software options, and there might be more suggested values online if you google around).


On the subject of the flash any more details about it? It's hard to say what might have gone wrong if we don't know how you were using the flash itself.

 

[elizpage]

I just used the flash straight on the subject :/ This is probably a no-no.

Here's how another image turned out (this one is edited to have DOF in bg)



Is it too much/too unnatural?

 

[pgriz]

What editing software do you have to work with? That will influence what kind of advice we can give.

 

[elizpage]

What editing software do you have to work with? That will influence what kind of advice we can give.

I have Photoshop CC and Photoshop Lightroom.

 

[pgriz]

You have better software than I have, so I'll let others tell you from an editing point-of-view what you can do. As for direct flash, it's a harsh light and creates all kinds of issues, as you already know. If you were to find yourself in a similar situation, I'd suggest shooting bounce, or back up to a white wall and use that wall as a large reflector. Takes practice tho, to get it right. If this shoot was a one-time thing, and you can't reshoot, then I don't have much helpful advice, because as I noted earlier, you already have better software than I have access to.

 

[runnah]

The color is beyond repair on these. Maybe a bw conversion or add some disco themed color grading to cover the mistakes.


As for the flash, point at the ceiling, use the little piece of white plastic for catch light and set it to ETTL.

 

[MikeFlorendo]

Ok before we go any further first a few more details please:

1) What settings did you use for these shots - check your EXIF data if you can't recall.

2) How did you use the flash itself - what type of flash, position, settings etc...


I'll say now that in almost all cases you can't fix motion blur (if you're a really good digital artist you might be able to rebuild the areas, but you're looking at a lot of work to get it to look right)

If you shot in RAW you can adjust the white balance which might help you with the yellow tint - otherwise levels and using the eye-dropper tools to define a white, grey and black spot can also sometimes fix colour hazing.

Hi. I shot in RAW, Thank God. How do I adjust that? Let's see.. I shot with a 16-35mm f/2.8 L II at 29mm, ISO 400, f/2.8, and 1/60 shutter speed for most of the pictures.

Next time use a higher shutter speed to avoid the blur and play with the settings more and see if you can get away with a lower iso. Take a few test shots and zoom in on areas to see if they are blurry and what you expected. Sorry can't help with external flash I have never used one.

 

[elizpage]

The color is beyond repair on these. Maybe a bw conversion or add some disco themed color grading to cover the mistakes.


As for the flash, point at the ceiling, use the little piece of white plastic for catch light and set it to ETTL.

I did some bw conversion and disco-themed color grading. Thank god for that. I need to learn how to use a flash apparently... I didn't really read up on it and the client requested it at the last minute because of the dark room..