eric v

There are some flickr folks that have a discussion group for this technique I think. Probably lots of good info, but it seems like you figured out your main problem. Check out I think he uses this technique for his insect stuff. Click on any of those macro shots and it should list relevant groups on the right side (the groups will have discussion threads that may be helpful).

We first need to know what equipment you currently have, how much you are willing to spend and how much room you have to play with. But like others have said, you don't always need lights for good portraits.

SB-600 to start, but then you will crave an SB-800. Go with the 800 if you can manage it, but it's OK to start with the 600. It will give you plenty to play with.

Try a gel to match the two sources? Others will have more knowledge on that subject than me. What did the scene look like with other white balances? I probably wouldn't worry about it. Chances are most of my shots (if it were me) would be from the window side facing in to the room to work with the light instead of against it.

I don't get it. There is no pre-flash when using the pop-up commander in maual mode. And there is no detectable (read annoying) pre-flash when using the SB-800 as master/commander in any mode.

I second Anthony's thoughts. When you are shooting an event outside, use whatever mode you are used to (program, aperture priority, etc.) and set the flash to TTL or TTL-BL if the SB-600 has it. In that situation I usually set TTL to -2/3 or so because I want the main exposure to be the ambient light. I am just looking for the speedlight to open up some of those shadows. Per your original question re: when to use it and when not to use it outside: If you ever see an unflattering shadow on someone's face, use fill flash. If it is 30 minutes before sunset, and you can have them face roughly toward the sun, then you can go without flash. Or if you are in the shade near a white building that is reflecting light on to them, you probably don't need it. Basically, any time the lighting is not what you would choose, use a flash to improve the situation.

8 seconds or so. Show was fine. On a side note, the vignettes are too strong IMO. Just doesn't seem to fit some of the bright images (shots of him and her with the nice white and blue colors). I would reserve those strong vignettes for moody B&W shots. Images were great! Just a thought...

sticking with the bird theme...

And yes, the bird threw the fish up and gave up (after 30 min. of trying).<div></div>

Are you kidding Dave? That would be great in the perfect world, but in reality, there are couples that realize, upon returning from their honeymoon, that they blew way too much money on this little shindig and they immediately brainstorm on ways to get it back. It is very easy to say "I don't like these pictures, now give me $3000."

Alec - that's great!

agreed that it is a pretty small source (strobe with a reflector). It could be a softbox if it was far away, but you can tell from the light fall-off that the light was pretty close to the subject's head. Regarding the color, I am at a crappy monitor right now, but it seems like it was desaturated almost to the point of black and white. Just a hint of the original color giving it a sepia-like quality. I am not seeing any green.

What UV filter are you using? I also have been getting lots of flare on that lens and thought that I maybe bought a cheap UV filter. I forget what kind I have though. Sometimes the flares are awesome, but usually they just look like weird green ghosts.

Hi Justin,

I have pretty much the same exact setup as you do. I just recently got the Tamron 17-50 2.8 and I am liking it a lot. It reduces the need to pull out the 50mm 1.8 for all available light shots. Now I can sometimes just turn my flash off and the 2.8 will suffice. Another reason I love it is being able to shoot on manual mode at 2.8 throughout my entire zoom range. With the 18-70, you are kind of stuck at 4.5 unless you keep changing the aperture as your focal length changes. The lens is also useful in getting more out of my flashes. I use flash (usually two) on lots of images, usually set to 1/2 power to keep a decent recycle time so 2.8 really helps to get more out of those speedlights.

 

Short answer, you don't NEED one, but it sure will help. You will just have to rely on having that 50 1.8 on a second body slung over your shoulder at all times.

Michael and (and especially) Ralph,

you guys are the exception. Hand-holding at those shutter speeds is not common and you are lucky to be able to do so. Although I second an earlier post that I would like to see some 1/4 shots at 100%. The rest of us gain huge adavantage from VR, especially at 100-200mm. I guess if you can already hand-hold 200mm 2.8 at 1/60 consistently, you wasted your money on VR. Also, I am not sure what your shooting style is like, but I can hand-hold some low shutter speeds at home in a controlled environment, but at a wedding with a second body strapped around my shoulder, sweating, with my energy level cranked up, or shooting a special moment that didn't allow the time to properly stabilize myself, the VR comes through big time.

No need to upgrade at this point. Some additional info would be helpful. What aperture/shutter, ISO? Flash pointed straight on or bounced? Exposure compensation or flash compensation set? Auto, program, manual, aperture priority, etc? From what distance are you shooting? Maybe post an example pic to show what you are experiencing.

I guess it depends on which beach you want to visit (no real beaches in landlocked orlando). WARNING: blatant self-promotion ahead. If you head to the gulf coast, check out <a href="http://evphotos.com">evphotos.com</a> and <a href="http://tampaphotoweddings.com">tampaphotoweddings.com</a>. FYI it will be HOT.

A good trick I learned (from photo.net) for dealing with glasses: have them raise the part above their ears slightly. It angles the lens down enough to eliminate glare, but its close enough to the regular position to look right in the pictures.

Sorry about that.

and this one i slowed the shutter way down to get a creative look.<div></div>

this one lets the ambient in and blurs the subjects a little, but not enough to distract from the image.<div></div>

aaarggghhh. Sorry, work computer; using microsoft picture manager!<div></div>

this one is with a fast shutter to isolate the subjects and not let the ambient light illuminate the background.

your shutter speed was just a little too slow. You're ambient light exposure was a little overexposed in my opinion, so I am guessing you could have used 1/20 or 1/30 or something and still captured the cool colors and just the right bit of motion. Tripod is pointless. Next time, shoot in manual, and start your shutter speed at 1/60 or so. If you want more ambient light or motion, keep slowing the shutter down until you get what you want. If there is too much motion, select a faster shutter speed. You can always fine tune the settings to get the effect you want.

"what is your reasoning for this"

 

To possibly make some money on print orders, while still satisfying the growing demand for high-res files.

 

"How do you explain this logically to the client"

 

Despite the fact that I am a friendly person working hard to please you any way I can, the power company, supermarket and mortgage company insist that I pay with them with money.

 

The other option is to release the images immediately and tack on $500-1000 (or whatever you feel is appropriate) to your package price so you don't have to worry about reprint income.

With posed shots like this, I prefer manual mode because I know that all exposures will be a) correct and b) the same. This makes batch processing a snap. I love TTL in many situations, but, like the camera's meter, flashes are dumb. They are easily fooled by a black tux or white dress. You still retain many of the nice features of CLS like being able to control the remotes via the master in addition to the portability and ease of setup. I am talking from mainly a wedding perspective, when those speedlights are being used anyway, so I just use them for formals also. In a prom-type setup, I would consider renting real lights if I didn't own them. Sounds like this is a fairly small affair though.