when to use flash?

nyamy · Jul 28, 2008

I've heard 'them' say (they not being pro's or anything) not to use flash if you can help it. and the truth is, once I disabled my flash on my p&s I started getting better shots (flash always seemed to wash out faces).

so the first thing I did when I got my canon xsi was disable the flash. now I'm rethinking...
if canon put a flash on the camera, there must be a time and place for it.

so when and how do you use your flash?

swmocity · Jul 28, 2008

night time...sunny days with shadows...fill in flash im still a beginner also..correct me if im wrong

icassell · Jul 28, 2008

The only time I use on-camera flash (and sparingly, at that) is at reduced power for fill flash. I do most of my flash now with the off-camera 430EX. I just built a ringflash, but that's a different story.

I think the reason they put it on the camera is for those consumers who buy a camera and don't want to sink the money in for a flash.

If you want to learn about flash, check out the workshops on http://www.strobist.blogspot.com and they will give you more than you ever cared to know

Snyder · Jul 28, 2008

Personally I try not to use flash as much as possible, I use natural lighting. (A controlled studio portraits is an exception for me) Im a photojournalist which doing this works great for me. Flash can be very destracting at times. However sometimes there is a need for flash, if the location you are shooting is too dark you will need a flash. It also helps freeze action. You can add gels and throw different colors into the photo for a desired effect. And much more. Every situation is unique its your call.

icassell · Jul 28, 2008

Snyder said:
Personally I try not to use flash as much as possible, I use natural lighting. (A controlled studio portraits is an exception for me) Im a photojournalist which doing this works great for me. Flash can be very destracting at times. However sometimes there is a need for flash, if the location you are shooting is too dark you will need a flash. It also helps freeze action. You can add gels and throw different colors into the photo for a desired effect. And much more. Every situation is unique its your call.

I agree, but on-camera flash is rarely satisfying.

Snyder · Jul 28, 2008

icassell said:
I agree, but on-camera flash is rarely satisfying.

Who use's on camera flash? My D3 doesn't have one

I would never use on camera flash.

icassell · Jul 28, 2008

Snyder said:
Who use's on camera flash? My D3 doesn't have one I would never use on camera flash.

...my point exactly!

nyamy · Jul 28, 2008

Snyder said:
Who use's on camera flash? My D3 doesn't have one I would never use on camera flash.

I was refering to on camera flash
but that answers the question

I guess I will learn more about flash and start saving up for an off-camera flash

icassell · Jul 28, 2008

nyamy said:
I guess I will learn more about flash and start saving up for an off-camera flash

If you don't need all the bells-and-whistles and the fancy TTL metering (something which photographers did without for years), there are alot of less expensive options to the flashes sold by Canon. Read the stuff on strobist and learn ...

manaheim · Jul 28, 2008

An on-camera flash is handy if you get in a situation where you have no other choice, but 99 times out of 100 it's absolutely not even worth taking the shot as it will come out SO AWFUL. Even if you tone it down, it's just harsh dead-on light.

Here's an example of one of the VERY few times I took a picture with the on-board flash... I just HAD to get this picture of my wife. It looks like crap... harsh shadows, reflections, etc... but I couldn't miss that moment and had no time to flip ISO or anything.

The external flashes are great because if you need them you can bounce them off a ceiling, or a reflector card... and if you have time and planning (or an assistant) you can run them externally... (options vary with diff. cameras and flash units).

Here's one of my more favorite shots that I got using an external flash bounced off a ceiling. It's not perfect as I was very new to the whole thing, but its WAY better than it would have been had I popped up the on-board flash and snapped a pic 4' away from my daughter.

So in short, yeah... try to avoid flash if you can, but there are cases when it can be made to work reasonably well, and there are cases where you simply have no choice.

Joves · Jul 28, 2008

I use on camera as fill light but, not very often. The one on the D300 can be put down to a very nice level. I also have my SB600 but, there are times where you dont have time to pull it out to use it like this example. This little guy wasnt going to wait around too long and, the backround was heavily washed out without the flash. I was set to 1/85th power.

nyamy · Jul 28, 2008

nice shot, joves
I've never seen a butterfly that color.

Joves · Jul 28, 2008

Thanx, I almost missed him because of his color camouflaging him so well.

Village Idiot · Jul 29, 2008

icassell said:
I agree, but on-camera flash is rarely satisfying.

An on camera (not to be confused with built in) can yield some good results with the right settings.

But my flashes stay connected to my camera 90% of the time. Usually it with a pocket wizard.

nyamy said:
I've heard 'them' say (they not being pro's or anything) not to use flash if you can help it. and the truth is, once I disabled my flash on my p&s I started getting better shots (flash always seemed to wash out faces).

so the first thing I did when I got my canon xsi was disable the flash. now I'm rethinking...
if canon put a flash on the camera, there must be a time and place for it.

so when and how do you use your flash?

www.strobist.com

Usually when 'they' say not to use flash, 'they' don't know how to use it.

You could go as "complicated" (I say this because a recent article on strobist has a guy using 12 lights or so) setup with 4 lights:

Or as simple as a shot with one light.

Neither of those two shots used on camera lighting and each had some sort of modifiers on most of the flashes. It's all about learning another discipline and knowing how and when to apply it.

You could compare shooting without flash to trying to build a house without hammers. Big rocks might work, but not well and if you'd just pick up a hammer to use, it would makes things go so much easier when you needed that tool.

Village Idiot · Jul 29, 2008

manaheim said:
An on-camera flash is handy if you get in a situation where you have no other choice, but 99 times out of 100 it's absolutely not even worth taking the shot as it will come out SO AWFUL. Even if you tone it down, it's just harsh dead-on light.

Here's an example of one of the VERY few times I took a picture with the on-board flash... I just HAD to get this picture of my wife. It looks like crap... harsh shadows, reflections, etc... but I couldn't miss that moment and had no time to flip ISO or anything.

The external flashes are great because if you need them you can bounce them off a ceiling, or a reflector card... and if you have time and planning (or an assistant) you can run them externally... (options vary with diff. cameras and flash units).

Here's one of my more favorite shots that I got using an external flash bounced off a ceiling. It's not perfect as I was very new to the whole thing, but its WAY better than it would have been had I popped up the on-board flash and snapped a pic 4' away from my daughter.

So in short, yeah... try to avoid flash if you can, but there are cases when it can be made to work reasonably well, and there are cases where you simply have no choice.

If I get motivated, I'll upload and post some photos when I get home. I use a 580EX II on camera and pointed directly at the subjects. You might be surprised at the results.