Tone Down Flash HELP!

[jarrydbekker]

I was asked to take some shots along with another photographer for a

designer ( of mainly evening gowns )next week. We'll be shooting out

in the bush in the afternoon and I will be using a Bronica ETRS. I

don't have very much experience with flash and need help with toning

down the background. I can't get hold of any major flash equipment

but can borrow a dedicated flash unit and possibly a soft box.

 

How would I go about toning the backgroung down?

 

Regards

Jarryd

[richard_cochran]

If by "toning the background down" you mean make it darker,

just give it less exposure. If you're using flash outdoors,

make sure your background is far enough away that not much

light from the flash hits it. Use the flash power and lens

aperture to give a normal flash exposure to the main subject,

while making sure the shutter speed and lens aperture

combined to give a couple stops of underexposure for the

background.

<p>

Doing this in broad daylight will likely require a fairly

powerful flash and a fast shutter speed. For example, using

ISO 100 film, your normal exposure for a sunlit subject will

be around 1/125 at f/16. You could shoot at 1/500 at f/16

(I assume your camera has a leaf shutter that can sync at 1/500?)

to make the background dark. But you'll need to set your flash

to expose properly at f/16, which may require a fair bit of power,

depending on your flash to subject distance.

<p>

Doing the shot on a cloudy day, in shade, or during twilight

gives you more flexibility to open up a bit. Opening up a bit

may also give the advantage of throwing the background out of

focus if that's what you desire.