advice, please

[palaima]

hello to all!
Well i am an amateur photographer, i mostly took shots of wildlife (birds, frogs, bugs and so on) and now i have to take some shots for an advertisement of closes, i will be working with a very good model, so that is not the problem, but i don't have any external flash! My only flash is the one installed in my 400D, so i thought maybe i could get away with it by using some other lightsources or is a proper flash needed?
(sr for my english!)

[Scott-JL]

Ooooh... this is a very open ended question, and a very extensive one. Let's start with your current flash....

The standard flash you have on your camera is very limited. You get very direct light, which is very 'hard' - basically, because you are firing the flash directly at the subject using a bare bulb. This causes hard shadows behind the subject you are shooting if they are close to a wall or background, and also gives you a very flat light on the subject.

Now... you could get away without needed a flash, and just by using the light around you. I've seen many pictures of people which are light by street lights, lamps, light bulbs, etc. The problem here is what you are shooting. If your client wants something a bit edgy, then you could position your model next to a window and use daylight to act as the light source. Or, you could position your model under a house light. If your client wants something more studio-based and cleaner, then you would need proper light sources. The thing you need to do here is get a clear understanding of what the shots should look like.

If you need to go for a 'proper' studio look, then it becomes a lot more complex - you need to get a backdrop, lights to light the backdrop, light sources to light the subject, reflectors, etc. None of this kit is cheap, and you need to know how to use it, both in terms of positioning lights to get the right effect, and more importantly to be able to use them safely.

Fire off some shots of someone you know already using the onboard flash, and get used to what it does. If you know someone with a hotshoe flash, or can rent one, then try it out to see what you can do differently. I'd strongly recommend getting a book about lighting and read up on different terms and what does what, as this will help you alot to both understand light, and understand how it affects your photos.

Good luck with your shoot, I hope this helps.

[seaside]

Scott has good advice here. Also, you can use reflectors to bounce natural light sources. You may need help from an assistant to position the reflector.

[palaima]

thanks a million! It really helped! This week will be spent solving the problems of lighting in the library

Take care you all!