Learning off-camera flash techniques

[OrionsByte]

When i first started with lightning, I was using the - setting on my d90 to fire my strobe using the optical triggers. I am not sure if the popup flash contributed to the exposure of my pictures but i could clearly see 2 catch light in the models eyes, 1 for my key light and 1 from my popup flash.

You can the small catch light that came from the popup.

I was taking some shots of my daughter this morning (she's incredibly patient with that flash going off in her face all the time for a three-year-old) and noticed the same thing. It's to be expected since I can't turn off my popup, but the intensity is plainly far below the speedlight's.

(I cloned out the catchlight from the popup in her right eye because it was all by itself and looked really odd.)

 

[kundalini]

Unless I'm looking in the wrong place, the D70 doesn't have that ability. I can set the Flash mode setting (CSM 19) to "Commander mode", and then I can choose TTL, AA, or Manual (and then choose a manual setting for the remote flash power), but I can't set the master unit separately.

Okay, Nikon must have changed the menu architecture starting with the D80 because it is the same with the D300 and D700 also. It allows what I suggested earlier. My bad, didn't bother looking at the D70 owners manual, just assumed. :blushing:


EDIT:
To avoid the pop-up catch light, I have used white business cards, fashioned aluminum foil, whatever, to get the pre-flash to miss the eyes, yet still emitt enough light to signal the OCF. I've even gotten the flash to fire when it was 5' behind me outdoors (in the shade )

 

[kundalini]

However, if you're close to a reflective object, there will be some effect. I did some tests shots to proves this somewher. I'll try to locate.

I found the thread. Here's what I was talking about. ghache also gave good examples on the eyes.

http://www.thephotoforum.com/forum/...7323-using-sb-600-wirelessly.html#post1943300

 

[sam_justice]

1/500 second is awfully good