Do you use lights at your Wedding receptions?

just wanting to take a poll of all you wedding photogs out there...
Who uses off camera strobes at receptions? Who relies on bounced light from a good flash? What are your favorite camera settings for an average reception to get a good amount of ambient light in your shots?
I have a reception coming up that will be pretty dimly lit, and surrounded by windows.
What's your favorite reception technique?
Thanks!!!

I use off camera lights a lot. And there is no go-to setting like Sunny16 or any one technique that works everywhere. You just gotta evaluate the site, take readings and work on the fly. I know that doesn't help you much but that's the way it is.

One thing I like to do, is if there is a reasonably close ceiling, I put a flash on the floor right infront of the head table, facing straight up to hit the ceiling right infront of the bride and groom. This lights them up nicely, no matter where you are positioned in the room. You'll need reliable triggering though like pocketwizards. And you might have to adjust the light now and then as servers and guests can kick or step on the lights.

OK maybe I'm a moron, but just how high are you putting that light up? Seems like it would be really distracting right in front of their table, not to mention it'd be in a lot of shots. Or are you literally putting it at floor level?
Here's another question on this subject. Obviously I have a light meter, but it seems like the lighting is constantly changing at receptions (ballroom balls, DJ lights, dimming of lights at certain points... and the list goes on and on). How do you meter for this?

Yes, I literally put the light on the floor. Not even on a stand. It lays on the floor. hahaha.

You can control your flash exposure by your ISO and aperture. Shutter speed does not affect flash exposure for most small flashes, as long as you stay below 1/250. So when the lighting changes, you can change your shutter speed to get the correct amount of ambient light in, and it won't affect your flash exposure.

I'm using off-camera lighting and the more I do the more I love it. Lloyd's the expert though. I'm a newb.

Well, Like Lloy said, it really just depends on your situation. I am pretty new to it, but I pretty much just set my light up on like an 8ft stand in the corner of the floor and set it to about 1/8th power and just shoot away (adjusting my iso and aperture on the fly.) It has worked out pretty well for me so far.

i dont use any lighting apart from my flash gun...but it depends on what lens im using with the 24-70 definately use flash and when i use my 85mm i dont...some of my reception picks are here...let me know what you think..
www.f5photography.co.u​k
i prefer to use the available light and anything i can take from the dj lighting etc..

Nope, too much going on for people to knock over stands, trip, etc..I just use my 580exII on a bracket.

I like off-camera flash quite a lot.

I double light almost all the time I can...off camera Main under radio remote, on camera Fill

form wrote in post #6118309
I like off-camera flash quite a lot.

That's a really nice one Joey. Since getting set up with Skyports, I'm 3 for 3 with off-camera flash usage. I suspect I'll be doing it every wedding possible.

Yeah, that's a great shot. Once you tried off camera flash, you'll probably never go back. I know I wouldn't.