Stupid Question ABout Fill Flash

I have tried a search but I am hoping for a quick and simple answer to my fill flash querie.

Basically do these look right for fill flash, kind of looks like the background has been 'Photoshopped' in (We were standing on the side of the road facing the sunset) but I was using my Sigam DG 500 Super flash in a small softbox for the first time.

Byte size: ZERO | Content warning: NOT AN IMAGE

Byte size: ZERO | Content warning: NOT AN IMAGE

I like picture numer 2 best. Something about #1 makes her head look funny. Prolly the 18mm lens setting. The second was shot at 50mm and it looks better. T he shot looks pretty good to me but I am not an expert on fill flash.
Good luck tomorrow.
Mike

They look fine in terms of exposure. There's no right or wrong, only whether or not you achieve your artistic goal.

The reason they look a little "fake" is because the color temp of the flash is much higher than the ambient light at sunset. So the colors in the image are mismatched. A gel on your flash to lower the color temp in these conditions can help a lot.

Take a look at this thread.

Maybe a little more diffused flash lighting would have given those pictures a little more natural look. The flash lighting is too bright to really be considered fill lighting. And since you do have an obvious sunset in the background, the hard shadows cast by the flash on the face give the pictures a very unnatural look, if a "natural" look was what you were after. But technically, there's nothing wrong with the pictures.

Pic 2 looks the better of the two, but they're both good pics.

Was the flash off camera? It looks as though it's coming from the left.

Yes Martin, It was hand held in a small softbox to my left buddy. I will try the Gel thing and see how it goes. Thanks Guys will keep playing with this setup

you could also use a golden reflector to get a little "warmth". What bugs me on those, is that she is reeally close to the camera, maybe that is, what makes it looks like she is photoshopped in..