To Flash or not to flash

[novelle72]

I have purchased Understanding Exposure by Bryan Peterson. I am looking forward to delving into that! Allow me another question if I may what do you guys do when you just want to snap "good" photos of a particular event a trip to the park, a party or somthing like that. Do you just click them off or do you still take the time to thoroughly analyze everything or does it just become that natural?
Thanks for all of the input it has given me some things to consider.

 

[markc]

As an appendix Digital can't fix EVERYTHING. You can compensate for underexposure, but blown highlights are lost forever.

You also can't do anything about direction of light, diffusion, etc. Yeah, you can cover up some things if you are good, but most edits along those lines seem rather obvious. Software is no replacement for good lighting. I think the number one myth about digital photography is overestimating what Photoshop can do.

 

[markc]

I have purchased Understanding Exposure by Bryan Peterson. I am looking forward to delving into that! Allow me another question if I may what do you guys do when you just want to snap "good" photos of a particular event a trip to the park, a party or somthing like that. Do you just click them off or do you still take the time to thoroughly analyze everything or does it just become that natural?
Thanks for all of the input it has given me some things to consider.

I've found that the more you shoot, the more natural it becomes to make the choices that lead to good photography, or at least the photography you want to be doing. My eye now sees how my 50mm and 85mm lenses see, as those are all I use. I don't have to do much thinking. I just shoot. Not everything turns out all that great, but I have a good idea which ones will be keepers as I hit the shutter.

 

[ironsidephoto]

7. it just looks cool.

If you truly love photography, how you look shouldn't make a difference. I use a hotel shower cap on my camera in the rain, for example



for the flash thing, i'd master what you have first. once you master your camera, adding accessories will be easier and you'll learn how to use them more quickly. it also depends on what kind of pictures you'll be taking. i've been taking pictures for two years and just now bought an external flash.

 

[mysteryscribe]

I hate to tell you this but "looks cool" sells a heck of a lot of cameras whether buys want to admit it or not. Especially young photographers. And that was sarcasm

 

[bitteraspects]

LET ME HELP ILLUSTRATE THE NEED FOR A FLASH...

 

[Groupcaptainbonzo]

I think that maybe the original question was a little too simplified. Firstly oncamera (Built in) flash should be avoided at all costs. the flash is too close to the lens and red eye, flat lighting is inevitable Also it is just too damn weak.. etc etc etc... So, if you need a flash . you need an off camera one.
If you have to have flash it should be as powerful as poss and as far away from the lens as poss. (You will have seen people with brackets on their cameras with the flash attatched to the top of it).
I think you are talking about walking around with a flash attached to the camera. Not the studio variety. If so get a good un', a big un' and stick it on a bracket. heavy etc but better results. But honestly as a PERSONAL preference I avoid flash as though it were the plague. And will try to use all sorts of tricks to bring in the image with ambient light.
But you must be the judge of what you need.

 

[mysteryscribe]

I would rather shoot with light bulbs than strobe, but you can't avoid it much of the time.

What comes to mind here is a picture in the wedding thread. Actually in several the eye sockets were black holes and they made it to the forum without the shooter even noticing it.

It had to be pointed out that he needed a fill flash. What the hell was he doing shooting someone's wedding. Sorry I don't mean to step on anyones toes, but yes you need a flash if you don't know how to properly expose for backlight ect.

A good flash with basic knowledge will cure a lot of whats wrong with new shooter's photographs.