Fill flash indoors

I am taking photos of graduates receiving diplomas - girls in gold gowns, guys in brown. I am using a Canon T2i with Canon 430EX flash. If I shoot all auto, the gold gowns are somewhat underexposed, the brown overexposed. If I meter before I start shooting, and shoot in manual, won't the flash still over or underexpose depending on the gown color. How do I get accurate exposure each time regardless of the gown color?

ETTL isn't metering things properly for you? If not, you will need to use manual flash…

Actually, the TTL metering is working properly. It, like every light meter is setting an exposure to get to middle gray. The gold robes are lighter than mid-gray so its decreasing exposure and the brown is darker so its adding exposure.

That's what FEC is for, to let you adjust. Under these circumstances I'd pick a livable exposure based on skin tone and use manual flash since it sounds like you will be the same distance more or less for each shot. I would also put the flash off camera on a stand and get the ambient to about a stop under and then set the flash to give pleasing skin tones. The robes should take care of themselves.

Ah yes, a new take on the old "white wedding gown, black tux" scenario. As David described, the camera is behaving as one would expect.

Keep in mind you have two exposures to manage here: an ambient exposure and a flash exposure. And it would be a royal pain to constantly adjust exposure compensation, and flash exposure compensation, every time the gender of the graduate changes from one to the other.

But if all the shots are from basically the same spot, then the situation begs for manual mode, both on the camera and the flash. It will take some trial-and-error to get things dialed in. Start with the flash off and take some test shots to set the ambient exposure, then add the flash.

Thanks for all your input! It does appears that manual flash is the way to go - meter the scene for ambient, set camera manually, then add just enough flash to get a decent skintone. So I would take a few test shots to get the settings right (before ceremony starts). Yes all shots are taken from the smae spot - I will photograph about 98 grads without changing position.

FACT Photo wrote in post #12600521
Thanks for all your input! It does appears that manual flash is the way to go - meter the scene for ambient, set camera manually, then add just enough flash to get a decent skintone. So I would take a few test shots to get the settings right (before ceremony starts). Yes all shots are taken from the smae spot - I will photograph about 98 grads without changing position.

sounds like a good strategy