How to use a 430-EX Speedlight & 400mm 5.6?

[wayne_eddy]

Hi all,

I've been doing a bit of search through the forum for some tips of bird photography with use of a Speedlite. Though I have seen some good results I have yet to master the technique and find adequate information to teach myself the technique.

Please post any links, tips and technical you have regarding the subject for myself and others to access.

Thanks.

[canonloader]

You want to search for fill flash. Get your 40D book out and look it up, also look up fill flash in the Speedlight book.

An overview of fill flash is sort of what it sounds like. Your not using the flash to provide the primary source of light, but to just fill in the dark spots, or the near side if you have a back lighting problem. Say your shooting a bird and the light is from behind the bird and to one side. So, what you got is a bird you can see fine, but say under the shadow of the wing it's kind of dark, and over all, the side of the bird towards you is in shade too, but not that dark. Still, If you try and shoot that particular shot, it'll come out with a dark bird and a light background.

To use fill flash, you have to set a custom function in the 40D, which is why I said read the book. I never had a 40D and don't remember which function it is on the 30D. :) Your looking for #3 I think, it puts the flash in Av Mode to Auto and off of 1/250 [Fixed]. This lets the camera meter the prevailing light and decide how strong the flash should be to fill in the shaded areas and not blow out the background and to use a shutter speed other than 1/250sec. You also have to set the speedlight to use High Speed Sync. And I am not sure if the 430 has that, again why I said read the book. There is a second custom function on the 30D to set the metering mode to Evaluative when using fill flash, I forget which one, so what do we do? Read the book. ;)

Either way, fill flash or if your really good, like Gary Fairhead, you can set the camera and flash exposure compensation manually. But that's too tedious. If I really wanted to get that into photography, I'd buy an old A1. ;)

I use this stuff all the time and it's second nature now, but I find it hard to explain it all. So read the book. :)

[canonloader]

A couple of very good links:

High Speed Sync for flash at any shutter speed. (http://www.rpphoto.com/howto/view.asp?articleID=1026) A relatively simple explanation of how fill flash works.

A more extensive explanation of how HSS and Fill Flash works (http://photonotes.org/articles/eos-flash/index.html) with the Speedlights and Canon EOS bodies. [Requires a bottle of aspirin and 1.4x TC's on your glasses]

[canonloader]

If you decide you like to use flash a lot, then your going to want to get a bigger one, the 550ex no longer made but you can buy them used still, or the 580ex. And get a battery pack for them, like this one (http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/498738-REG/Canon_1947B001_Compact_Battery_Pack_CP_E4.html). And get off those expensive duracells and buy some NiMh rechargables. They are stronger for flash and work better with the flash so you can shoot at higher frames per second. Batteries like these (http://thomasdistributing.com/shop/-maha-powerex-2700-mah-aabr8-nimh-rechargeable-batteriesbr1-free-8-cell-battery-holder-totalbrnew-5-year-warranty-by-maha-p-642.html?SP_id=&osCsid=qsjvvnjbeu151a5k6mo66om423)are what I use, and a charger.

[sfischer]

These are some nice tips by Mitch. I really appreciate this.

[tonylong]

I haven't gotten used to flash photography for birds, in fact, I'm not used to flash photography for people!

However, I recently bought a couple of Flash X-Tenders because I heard they were good for extending your reach for wildlife.

So, I'm posting this for two reasons: Anyone make use of these, and would this be a help to the OP?

[CyberDyneSystems]

Are you using a better beamer? (dirt cheap at about $20.00)

At that focal length, it does wonders, and vastly increases the effectiveness of the flash.


Also consider a nice bracket. (not so cheap) and off shoe cord (about $45.00)
This helps a good deal with the flash and beamer to eliminate "steel eye"

The 430 has high speed synch indeed, and actually with a better beamer works very well. I'd try that and a bracket before jumping on a more powerfull flash, as frankly a 430 with a beamer will out shoot a 580 without one.

I shoot partial metering for birds as that gets the metering to be more biased to the subject,
I have the flash set to hi speed sync and usually between -2/3 through -1 1/3 FEC
But the flash setting depends entirely on the situation. The trick is to get it to help with bringing out color, but not look too "flashy"

[wile_e_coyote_n_taz]

Are you using a better beamer? (dirt cheap at about $20.00)

At that focal length, it does wonders, and vastly increases the effectiveness of the flash.


Also consider a nice bracket. (not so cheap) and off shoe cord (about $45.00)
This helps a good deal with the flash and beamer to eliminate "steel eye"

The 430 has high speed synch indeed, and actually with a better beamer works very well. I'd try that and a bracket before jumping on a more powerfull flash, as frankly a 430 with a beamer will out shoot a 580 without one.

I shoot partial metering for birds as that gets the metering to be more biased to the subject,
I have the flash set to hi speed sync and usually between -2/3 through -1 1/3 FEC
But the flash setting depends entirely on the situation. The trick is to get it to help with bringing out color, but not look too "flashy"


Do you have a link for that bracket/cord that you would recommend for a mark III?


bill

[canonloader]

Here's the cord (http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/12972-REG/Canon_2391A001_Off_Camera_Shoe_Cord.html), this let's you put the flash on a backet or stand and connect it to the camera hotshoe.

I would also like to see a bracket that holds camera and flash but also attaches to a tripod head. :)

[CyberDyneSystems]

The Bracket I use, also happens to fill Canonloader's wish list,



it is the Wimberly Bracket.. it has versions that attach to any Arca plate, or to the Wimberly heads directly (full or Sidekick)
http://www.tripodhead.com/images/tpb2.jpg
http://www.tripodhead.com/products/flash-bracket-telephoto-brackets.cfm


It was designed specifically for use with long telephotos on an action head like the Wimberly, but they have since added several options to make it more universal, including one fo the ubiquitous "flip floppers' and some macro add ons.
http://www.tripodhead.com/products/flash-bracket-main.cfm
http://www.tripodhead.com/images/tpb11.jpg


I also found out I could use it for Macro work without any additional accessories, the parts are so flexible you can cobble up almost anything;
http://photography-on-the.net/forum/showthread.php?t=211506

[FlyingPhotog]

http://www.luminous-landscape.com/reviews/better_beamer.shtml

Fresnel lens for throwing flash farther and more focused.

[DaveMcBride]

I would certainly recommend a Better Beamer....got mine today. Haven't tried it on the birds yet but this shot of a chimney 40 metres away gives you an idea of what it can do. ISO200, 550EX on manual at full power - top shot without BB, bottom shot with BB. Certainly extends the range....but only for use on lenses longer than 300mm otherwise you get dark edges. Got a fair bit of experimenting to do to I guess!

[CyberDyneSystems]

Here's a few shots that I know involved the better beamer and flash bracket.

this first one was with the 1D Mk2 + SIGMONSTER @ 800mm, no (or very minimal) crop, but @ 800mm we know I was pretty far off, I'd say from memory approx 40 feet.
It was terribly overcast day, snow started a few minutes later... without the Beamer it would have been colorless, all grey affair with little visual appeal.
http://images.fotopic.net/?iid=yeem7q&outx=600&noresize=1

Another this time with the Mk3 and EF 500mm and 1.4X
Another day with not so good light, the Beamer and 580EX not only saved all the color for me, but adds a nice catch light in the eye that otherwise would have been all balck.
http://images.fotopic.net/?iid=ypwwzh&outx=600&noresize=1