ghostman
5th of May 2007 (Sat), 00:51
Hi,
I recently got a 430EX to learn flash photography. The only problem is, I have no understanding whatsoever about it. I never used the built-in flash on my XTI either. I read the manual, but aside from telling me how to put the flash into certain settings, I don't actually know when to use those settings or how it works. And I'm having a hard time finding the tutorials I need online.
You'll probably think my questions are dumb, but here are a few:
- I normally take pictures in Av or M mode. If I take a picture of a cup in a dim kitchen without flash, it'll tell me that I need a slow shutter. Say, 1 second. Now, with the flash, I take it that the camera will now tell me that only a 1/2 sec shutter is necessary. Is there a way to force the flash to be brighter and allow me to use, say, 1/50 sec shutter (without changing my aperture) to allow me to handhold it?
- Say I'm taking a picture of a person with direct flash using Av or M. I then meter, get a shutter speed of say 50 sec, and take the shot. Now, I shift the flash to bounce off the ceiling. If I meter the same scene, will my camera still tell me to use a 50 sec shutter speed (because it's the same scene) and leave the photo underexposed? Will the camera use a 50 sec shutter and automatically adjust flash brightness to compensate? Or will the camera "know" it's no longer a direct flash and compensate by requiring a longer shutter?
- And are there rules as to where I'm supposed to meter off when using flash? Do I still meter, say, a subject's face? Or do I meter the background and let the flash fill the face?
See. I'm horribly confused. I've only had a chance to play with it for 15 minutes so far, so I clearly have lots to learn. But does anyone know of any good Flash Photography Howto to get some firm footing before I randomly take pictures and figure things out?
I recently got a 430EX to learn flash photography. The only problem is, I have no understanding whatsoever about it. I never used the built-in flash on my XTI either. I read the manual, but aside from telling me how to put the flash into certain settings, I don't actually know when to use those settings or how it works. And I'm having a hard time finding the tutorials I need online.
You'll probably think my questions are dumb, but here are a few:
- I normally take pictures in Av or M mode. If I take a picture of a cup in a dim kitchen without flash, it'll tell me that I need a slow shutter. Say, 1 second. Now, with the flash, I take it that the camera will now tell me that only a 1/2 sec shutter is necessary. Is there a way to force the flash to be brighter and allow me to use, say, 1/50 sec shutter (without changing my aperture) to allow me to handhold it?
- Say I'm taking a picture of a person with direct flash using Av or M. I then meter, get a shutter speed of say 50 sec, and take the shot. Now, I shift the flash to bounce off the ceiling. If I meter the same scene, will my camera still tell me to use a 50 sec shutter speed (because it's the same scene) and leave the photo underexposed? Will the camera use a 50 sec shutter and automatically adjust flash brightness to compensate? Or will the camera "know" it's no longer a direct flash and compensate by requiring a longer shutter?
- And are there rules as to where I'm supposed to meter off when using flash? Do I still meter, say, a subject's face? Or do I meter the background and let the flash fill the face?
See. I'm horribly confused. I've only had a chance to play with it for 15 minutes so far, so I clearly have lots to learn. But does anyone know of any good Flash Photography Howto to get some firm footing before I randomly take pictures and figure things out?