Flash Experiment... My findings..

[Kristy]

If you know me, you know that I don't like using flash.. I can't control it, it leaves flashy spots on faces and skin, and teensy catchlights in the eyes of people. I like to see big window catchlights..

But.. my quest to figure it out continues.. Sometimes flash is just simply a must have.. too dark in a room, too much sun outside, back-lit situation... UGGGHHH...

So anyway.. I decided to try out the "Better Bounce Card". There's a website all about it.. I think its www.abetterbouncecard.com (http://www.abetterbouncecard.com) I hope that's right.

Basically, it's a .69-cent piece of that foam paper that you can buy at Walmart or a craft store... Cut into a trapezoid shape, and wrapped around your flash.

It looks something like this..... and the height of it determines how much flash pushes forward toward your subject....

[Kristy]

So I decided to give it a quick test today and see what would happen. I was pleasantly surprised... No hot spots on the skin... soft and pleasing.. The catchlights are a little funky.. but hey.. This thing works better than my Lumiquest softbox, and it cost me 69-cents... Yeah.. it looks a little weird.. and the kiddos I babysit were looking at me like I was crazy,... but... nice result.

My images are a little soft because I was messing around with the shutter and trying to reduce shutter speed to allow more ambient light to come through.. but without flash the shots were terrible underexposed. These were simply sharpened and saved for web.

I always edit my photos and soften skin a bit, didn't do anything to these yet.... so please don't comment on those things because I didn't want to do anything but show the SOOC flash result. :)

So without further rambling.. here's what I got... These are really just snapshots.. but CC is welcome. I'm just showing how natual looking the flash looks.. at least I thought so. If you think otherwise.. please let me know what else I can try. :)

Happy Day and thanks for looking. :)

[Lotto]

Great job. Very pleasant results.

About those catch lights, looks like there are 2 light sources bounce into the eyes.

[scokar]

do you still aim the flash at the subject or bounce off ceiling?

just had a thought -- wonder what impact a beige or 'warm' paper would have on the subject, if any ...

[Titus213]

Kristy - the foamies really do help, I just tried some myself. They are additionally nice in that they can be rolled down to shorten the hight, reducing the forward flash. The only comment is that generally I think they are wrapped around the short side of the flash which will let you maintain the direction while in portrait orientation. (Unless you are using it with a bracket).

And they might just be snaps but they look pretty darned good.

[Kristy]

Great job. Very pleasant results.

About those catch lights, looks like there are 2 light sources bounce into the eyes.
Yep... you're right. I was sitting near a window that throws some nice light into the room.. just not enough at that point in the day.. so the second set of catchlights is from the window behind me.

do you still aim the flash at the subject or bounce off ceiling?

just had a thought -- wonder what impact a beige or 'warm' paper would have on the subject, if any ...

Yep.. just put it straight up and the foam bounces the flash forward.. Rolling it up or down controls the amount of fill you need, and I had it all the way up in these photos.. (like Dave said below... :) )

Kristy - the foamies really do help, I just tried some myself. They are additionally nice in that they can be rolled down to shorten the hight, reducing the forward flash. The only comment is that generally I think they are wrapped around the short side of the flash which will let you maintain the direction while in portrait orientation. (Unless you are using it with a bracket).

And they might just be snaps but they look pretty darned good.

Oh... okay... around the short side.. Good information. I was wondering how to go to portrait orientation... turning it to the side would work both portrait and landscape, wouldn't it? I'll try that tomorrow. THANKS! :)

Thanks for the compliment on the images.. :) They are a little soft up close.. the shutter was down to 1/50 on these because I was experimenting and all over the place.

Thanks to everyone for commenting. I hope this is helpful to someone. :)

[Maureen Souza]

I am shooting a wedding this weekend, Kristy and I am going to give this a try. Looks like your results passed the test.

[artyboy]

i like the results, so natural! as flash guru Curtis says, alil' rubberband + index card can do wonders compared to expensive tupperware! thanks for sharing!

[Kristy]

I am shooting a wedding this weekend, Kristy and I am going to give this a try. Looks like your results passed the test.
Really?? Wow... You're going to try it on a wedding....! You are brave. Glad you like my results... Just be sure to put it on the short side of the lens rather than the long side like I did... Like Titus said.. you can shoot portrait mode that way. :)
Let me know how it works out for you.. I'm so interested...

i like the results, so natural! as flash guru Curtis says, alil' rubberband + index card can do wonders compared to expensive tupperware! thanks for sharing!

Yep... that's what I was thinking.. pretty natural looking. I played with it again today.. and tried the portrait mode.. I'm still pleased... It looks funky... but I'm liking it. :)

[Maureen Souza]

I took a test shot of Skip across the room and it was amazing! It illuminated the whole room perfectly. The wedding party is 10 people in a small chapel so I am going to feel very confidant about using this. ayotnom (Steve) showed me this same thing last weekend at out POTN BBQ so I was really sold on trying it.

Thanks!

[Curtis N]

I haven't tried that particular modifier myself, but I have often recommended it. It's cheap and versatile.

The biggest reason I have recommended the abetterbouncecard.com web page is because of the video where the guy actually explains the theories behind bounced flash, and why the tupperware devices are inherently inefficient and not very versatile.

[cosworth]

Like it, but like bad bokeh I don't like the catchlight shape(s).

[Kristy]

I took a test shot of Skip across the room and it was amazing! It illuminated the whole room perfectly. The wedding party is 10 people in a small chapel so I am going to feel very confidant about using this. ayotnom (Steve) showed me this same thing last weekend at out POTN BBQ so I was really sold on trying it.

Thanks!

Yay! :) Glad it worked for you. I hope you post some of those images when you have them.. :) Awww... you got to meet with Steve... He seems so nice. :)

I haven't tried that particular modifier myself, but I have often recommended it. It's cheap and versatile.

The biggest reason I have recommended the abetterbouncecard.com web page is because of the video where the guy actually explains the theories behind bounced flash, and why the tupperware devices are inherently inefficient and not very versatile.

His explanations are great.. and I checked the site yesterday.. he has a new video of a card that has a black strip down the middle.. didn't watch that one yet, but it peaked my interest... maybe this weekend I'll watch it.

Like it, but like bad bokeh I don't like the catchlight shape(s).

Yeah.. the catchlights are funky.... but everything else is so nice.. I guess you could reshape it some to make a better catchight shape.. Maybe I'll trim the corners and round them up some... see what that will do.

I'm thinking this thing is similar to the Lumiquest Pro-max system without all the bells and whistles maybe. If you like this, then you'll love the Pro-max.. Maybe I should add that to my wish list.

[markhyo]

I have been using a foamie on my flashes for a couple of years now for weddings, portraits and studio work. I usually shoot with it on a bracket so the catchlight is not smack dab in the middle. It also helps to give some shadows and contrast so you images don't look flat. The foamie is so much more efficient than anything I've ever used. So for less than a dollar, I get tremendous results.

[Lightstream]

Try reading Strobist.. :)

Understanding the fundamentals of light will help you control your flash much better. Also, off-camera lighting works wonders.

Flash is difficult to master, but incredibly rewarding when you do succeed. Keep trying!

[Maureen Souza]

Yay! :) Glad it worked for you. I hope you post some of those images when you have them.. :) Awww... you got to meet with Steve... He seems so nice. :)




This was my 3rd POTN meeting that Steve came to. He is nicer than you can imagine and absolutely hysterical. He makes me laugh like no other.

[whitedime]

impressive.

[disneydork06]

ooh nice. I've bought the foam pieces but have yet to put them on...someday :-P I just want to find some velcro pieces too.

[Kristy]

ooh nice. I've bought the foam pieces but have yet to put them on...someday :-P I just want to find some velcro pieces too.

Yeah.. :) I've been using it a lot now... :) I bought my velcro strap at PhotoMark.. maybe $10 - $12. One side of it is rubber so it grabbs and sticks to the flash head... I bet you can get one on ebay for cheap. It's made by Lumiquest I think.