Still getting red eye with the use of a flash bracket

Hi,

I have the Stroboframe Pro-Digital Folding Flip Flash Bracket which I am using with a 1dII and 400mm f5.6. I am doing fill flash with nature photography. I am following suggestions set out by Aurthur morris which is using ettl M mode along with 50mm and -1/3. I also have the camera set to P mode so that the shutter speed will not fall below 1/60. Anyway this bracket moves the flash up off the camera about 4 inches and I am still getting red eye in my subject, in this case I am testing it out on my dog indoors. Should I get another bracket that puts the camera even higher off the lens? Thanks!

Dogs eyes reflect light much more than human eyes so I would suggest that a dog is a poor subject for this kind of test. However, are you happy with your exposure otherwise?

michaelgreen78 wrote in post #6300314
Dogs eyes reflect light much more than human eyes so I would suggest that a dog is a poor subject for this kind of test. However, are you happy with your exposure otherwise?

I have to say yes I am. I was just really annoyed that I am getting red eye still. What about birds are they going to be the same (for instance owls and herons)? That is my main subjects. I did a test with my flat mate and no red-eye at all. Exposure was no so great, but that is due more to my inexperience with portraits. Thanks for your help!

Off camera will be better if possible.
You can also bounce the flash off of a nearby wall or the ceiling.

Do you think I will have problems with Owl eyes? Thanks.

chupacabra31 wrote in post #6300248
Hi,

I have the Stroboframe Pro-Digital Folding Flip Flash Bracket which I am using with a 1dII and 400mm f5.6. I am doing fill flash with nature photography. I am following suggestions set out by Aurthur morris which is using ettl M mode along with 50mm and -1/3. I also have the camera set to P mode so that the shutter speed will not fall below 1/60. Anyway this bracket moves the flash up off the camera about 4 inches and I am still getting red eye in my subject, in this case I am testing it out on my dog indoors. Should I get another bracket that puts the camera even higher off the lens? Thanks!

The angle formed by flash and lens to subject is too small with a long lens!

chupacabra31 wrote in post #6300248
Hi,

I have the Stroboframe Pro-Digital Folding Flip Flash Bracket which I am using with a 1dII and 400mm f5.6. I am doing fill flash with nature photography. I am following suggestions set out by Aurthur morris which is using ettl M mode along with 50mm and -1/3. I also have the camera set to P mode so that the shutter speed will not fall below 1/60. Anyway this bracket moves the flash up off the camera about 4 inches and I am still getting red eye in my subject, in this case I am testing it out on my dog indoors. Should I get another bracket that puts the camera even higher off the lens? Thanks!

You need to raise the flash much higher if you want to use a long lens like the 400 and shoot from a distance.

Wilt wrote in post #6306763
The angle formed by flash and lens to subject is too small with a long lens!

PacAce wrote in post #6306922
You need to raise the flash much higher if you want to use a long lens like the 400 and shoot from a distance.

Exaccery. The flash will need to be a few meters above your lens, or a few meters to the side.

This is why actually understanding what you're doing is a good thing, rather than just going with what you read on forums. While you often get good advice there's no substitute for understanding how things work yourself.

tim wrote in post #6306976
Exaccery. The flash will need to be a few meters above your lens, or a few meters to the side.

This is why actually understanding what you're doing is a good thing, rather than just going with what you read on forums. While you often get good advice there's no substitute for understanding how things work yourself.

Exacery?? Is that a funny way to say Exactly in New Zealand? Incidentally I am just going off of what I have observed in the field from professional photographers (500-600mm lenses) equipment. In example you will see many setups if you go to Crane Creek, Ohio during migration. Almost all of them have flash brackets similar to the one I have. I have never noticed anyone with a 7 foot flash bracket lol.

Sorry sometimes I type with an accent. People make the best light stands.

chupacabra31 wrote in post #6307198
Exacery?? Is that a funny way to say Exactly in New Zealand? Incidentally I am just going off of what I have observed in the field from professional photographers (500-600mm lenses) equipment. In example you will see many setups if you go to Crane Creek, Ohio during migration. Almost all of them have flash brackets similar to the one I have. I have never noticed anyone with a 7 foot flash bracket lol.

Everybody doing something doesn't necessarily mean that they're doing it right. It only take one person in a group doing it wrong and then the others copying his setup to make everybody else in the group doing it wrong.

Obviously, you don't need a 7-foot bracket to shoot birds. However, you do need more than a 4-inch separation to reduce or eliminate "red-eyes". I use a Wimberley flash bracket with an extender to get my flash up high when shooting birds. I have a Stroboframe Pro-T which raises the flash higher than your bracket does and even that doesn't get the flash high enough.

Just a thought on all this. Correct me if I'm wrong, but I think it may be somewhat of a crapshoot whether a photographer gets red eyes in the subject or not. I have a picture taken from probably 70 degrees from face on of a bride at a reception and she is exhibiting a slight case of red eye.

BobOh wrote in post #6310439
Just a thought on all this. Correct me if I'm wrong, but I think it may be somewhat of a crapshoot whether a photographer gets red eyes in the subject or not. I have a picture taken from probably 70 degrees from face on of a bride at a reception and she is exhibiting a slight case of red eye.

Not sure what you mean by 'from 70 degrees'...post an example of what you described.

The red eye phenomenon occurs because the light source illuminates the interior of the eye, and when the lens is at a shallow angle the lens sees the red interior of the eye. But when the light is at a greater angle, the lens no longer sees the illuminated interior of the eye. The subject needs to be looking at the lens and flash for the illumination to occur inside the eye and for the lens to see it.

Here is a heavy crop of the shot I'm referring to. By 70 degrees I mean I was 70 degrees away from looking at her and taking the photo head on. In this shot she has a slight bit of red eye in her left eye. So my thinking was if the flash (on the camera or on a bracket) was 70 degrees from head on, what good would it be to have one on a bracket if the shot is head on?

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It's not the angle from the flash to the face that's relevant. It's the angle between the lens and the flash. You usually get the most pronounced red-eye effect when the subject is looking directly towards the camera but as long as the pupil is visible no matter what the relative angle of the face is to the camera, it is still possible to get the red-eye effect as illustrated by your photo.