Flash photography.... Any tips?

[T1berious]

Hello!

I'm hoping there's some flash users here that have some advice for an absolute newbie. I recently asked a friend if I could take some pics at his wedding reception. He graciously agreed and even gave his photographer \ videographer a heads up that I'd be there.

For disclosure, I'm hoping to learn enough photography skills to keep me busy when I retire as a hobby to keep me active etc.

So sooner or later event photography would be on the cards.

So I took my Sony 6700 with a Sigma 28 - 105mm f2.8 and a Godox V1S flash.

So far so good, the event started in bright daylight so had a fair few shots with zero flash, as things got later and darker I popped the flash on, as a newbie I just left it on TTL and snapped away.

Ooops! Wasn't too long before a member of the official photo team came over and asked me to turn my flash down as I was blinding all and sundry (they were very polite about it).

So (after some help) popped the flash to Manual and took it down to 1/64

I had done some dry runs with pointing the flash towards the ceiling, off to the right and at a 45 deg angle before the event but as a lot of the pics were taken outdoors lighting up the sky wasn't going to work.

I've decided to get a diffuser to try and tone down the harsh shadows but would be interested in hearing anyone else's tips and advice?

Cheers

T1b

Edited by T1berious on Tuesday 8th April 12:43

[Simpo Two]

Hi Tiberius. I've photographed about 150 weddings and used flash for almost every shot, whether indoors or out. Below is my way of doing it; others may have their own way equally valid.

You will need:

Camera
Fully compatible flashgun with tilt/zoom/rotate head. For removal of doubt, the same make as the camera.
Stroboframe flip flash bracket
Know how the camera and flash talk to each other.
Shoot RAW.

I used Nikon, so my flash was set to 'TTL/BTL' - ie fill flash. Nobody ever said the flash was too bright - probably because I was usually on f3.5 for a shallowish DOF but it has the bonus that the flash doesn't have to work too hard. Shutter synch speed 1/60th.

Indoors you need a ceiling you can bounce the light off. I wasn't prepared to fart about with off-camera flash, I move around too fast for that and it's another link to break in the thick of it. Adjust the angle to land on the front of the subject and pull out the little white reflector to put a catchlight in the eyes. If you want to shoot portrait, just turn the camera in the bracket - the flash stays at the top so the shadows are lost behind the subject. If no useful ceiling, eg a barn, if the subject isn't too far away you can sometimes work with the flash at 45 degrees and let the reflector do some of the work. Failing that, straight in the chops is very harsh so try to use ambient, ie more ISO and aperture if possible. I set up one of the function buttons to disable the flash. That has he bonus of allowing you to take two photos in quick succession, one with flash and one without, so you can pick the best later.

Outside - counter-intuitively the brighter the sun the more you need flash - to fill in the dark shadows and reduce contrast. Point it straight at them; the camera will tell the flash what it wants. Check the histogram and adjust EV as required. NEVER judge exposure from the monitor.

I never used a diffuser apart from the flip-down one on the flashgun for ultra wide angle. All it did for me was waste light.

Many posthumous thanks to my late friend and fellow PHer Bacardi, professional photographer, for recommending the Stroboframe; it made a world of difference. It also tells everyone YOU are the tog.

Good luck

[T1berious]

Thank you very much!

I'm happy with the pics I got but noticed some had very harsh shadows but as I'm totally new to it, it was part of the learning experience!

Some great tips there and I'll try and incorporate that in some of the next shooting I do.

Thanks again!

T1b

[Simpo Two]

Happy to assist. Shadows are easy to anticipate and manage because (1) light travels in a straight line (2) the smaller the light source, the sharper the edge of shadow. IMHO to make any useful difference to that edge you need something (ie a softbox) 18" across or bigger, but then you're heading into the realms of studio lighting which I would leave for another time...!

Wedding are hard because not only do you have to know and use your kit swiftly, you have to engage 50 strangers in polite banter at the same time and make it look easy! Try the Stroboframe first, they're not expensive and make a big difference. And if you haven't done so already, read the flash (and camera) manual to make sure you're not missing some setting that could help you.

[Itsallicanafford]

If you are serious about learning,book in with Chris, a nice guy and brilliant wedding photographer, a genius with flash.

https://www.chrischamberstraining.co.uk/

[steveatesh]

What Simpo says…….

In addition at weddings and other indoor events where you are moving about in a room and between rooms I leave the flash in ttl and use the exposure compensation to adjust as necessary. I check the image and histogram regularly as it can vary a lot in such a shoot.

Learn how to balance flash with ambient, you want to avoid photos that look flashy , they should look natural, plenty videos on YouTube and practice at home until you get it right .

Plenty training available for weddings and flash, look at The Flashmasters for starters but there’s lots to pick from.

[Tony1963]

For me, as someone who retired early, just last May, photographing weddings “as a hobby, to keep me active” is about the last thing that appeals to me!

My photography is my fun thing, I keep away from any stress or commitment to strangers, just enjoying photography for my own satisfaction.

So will it be a hobby or a business? Is your aim to be the sole/lead photographer or a second photographer?

[T1berious]

steveatesh said:

What Simpo says…….

In addition at weddings and other indoor events where you are moving about in a room and between rooms I leave the flash in ttl and use the exposure compensation to adjust as necessary. I check the image and histogram regularly as it can vary a lot in such a shoot.

Learn how to balance flash with ambient, you want to avoid photos that look flashy , they should look natural, plenty videos on YouTube and practice at home until you get it right .

Plenty training available for weddings and flash, look at The Flashmasters for starters but there’s lots to pick from.

Yup, I'm looking into that, cheers for that

[T1berious]

Tony1963 said:

For me, as someone who retired early, just last May, photographing weddings “as a hobby, to keep me active” is about the last thing that appeals to me!

My photography is my fun thing, I keep away from any stress or commitment to strangers, just enjoying photography for my own satisfaction.

So will it be a hobby or a business? Is your aim to be the sole/lead photographer or a second photographer?

I don't think it would be something I'd do as a business to make money. I hear what you're saying though as it is a stress but I found the event not too bad. It was a mate so again the pressure wasn't really on.

[Tony1963]

T1berious said:

I don't think it would be something I'd do as a business to make money. I hear what you're saying though as it is a stress but I found the event not too bad. It was a mate so again the pressure wasn't really on.

As long as you’re not the one dealing with the mother in law’s endless requests to remove so-and-so from photos a couple of weeks after the event

[Simpo Two]

steveatesh said:

What Simpo says…….

In addition at weddings and other indoor events where you are moving about in a room and between rooms I leave the flash in ttl and use the exposure compensation to adjust as necessary. I check the image and histogram regularly as it can vary a lot in such a shoot.

Well we both said it

I found that TTL/BTL (Nikon) got the flash/ambient balance about right almost every time - if not I could adjust the flash power up/down on the flashgun, but it was still talking to the camera. 'Flash EV'.

T1berious said:

I don't think it would be something I'd do as a business to make money. I hear what you're saying though as it is a stress but I found the event not too bad. It was a mate so again the pressure wasn't really on.

If you're not charging then you have little pressure to get amazing results other than personal pride. When I do stuff for free - eg my local theatre group - I do a good job because I like to get the best results I can and they're very appreciative. But if my camera was to blow up on the night of the dress rehearsal and they got no photos, that would be too bad. Their risk for not paying - no refunds!

You may simply enjoy the challenge of photographing and interacting with groups of people; in which case you can practice at parties or any other social thing. In fact if you have an amateur theatre nearby, that would be a great opportunity to get some flying hours in.

[Tony1963]

Simpo Two said:

If you're not charging then you have little pressure to get amazing results other than personal pride. When I do stuff for free - eg my local theatre group - I do a good job because I like to get the best results I can and they're very appreciative. But if my camera was to blow up on the night of the dress rehearsal and they got no photos, that would be too bad. Their risk for not paying - no refunds!

You may simply enjoy the challenge of photographing and interacting with groups of people; in which case you can practice at parties or any other social thing. In fact if you have an amateur theatre nearby, that would be a great opportunity to get some flying hours in.

Weddings have a habit of escalating. It can start with “Just a few photos, I’ll cover your costs…” that sort of thing. And then, as happened to me once, it went from 20 guests to over 300, and from a small hotel in Cambridgeshire to a large hotel at Heathrow. Erm, beyond my comfort zone, and the extra 280+ guests were all flying in from Malaysia, and few spoke English. They’re divorced now, and it wasn’t my fault!

Obviously it’s your choice, and if you find that you enjoy it, carry on! But if you start to get involved beyond the hobby level, you WILL need at least two bodies, two of each lens, back up memory cards, rolling displays on a laptop… expensive for a hobby.


For transparency, I’m not going to share here what I’ve spent on my hobby in the last two years… but, it’s cheaper than smoking 10 B&H Gold every day, so I can live with that.

Edited by Tony1963 on Thursday 10th April 13:16

[Simpo Two]

Tony1963 said:

Obviously it’s your choice, and if you find that you enjoy it, carry on! But if you start to get involved beyond the hobby level, you WILL need at least two bodies, two of each lens, back up memory cards...

And two flashguns, and several packs of 4 AA batteries. I was changing batteries at the back of the car when one fell, bounced off the bumper and went straight down a drain cover. Arse. Switch to another pack. Yep, when there's £1,000+ per wedding involved it's a different game - but then you can also afford and justify buying appropriate kit.

[T1berious]

Indeed, I've just insured my kit for a Safari and it came in at just under 6k! Now that's just to capture some once in a lifetime shots (one hopes) but if was being paid to do it, it suddenly becomes a very different level of risk management.

At that point its backup bodies / lenses, SD Cards, SSD's, Batteries for this, that the next thing and your very suddenly at well over £10k in kit.

I guess if you're happy doing it as a job those are the sorts of things you need to charge people for.

Me? I'm no where near that in either ability or desire but do want to get competent.

Cheers again!

T1b

[C n C]

Lots of good advice above, and on the various links.

I'd just add that when shooting flash, it is imortant to get a mix of ambient light as well as flash - you don't want the flash to be the sole light source as it very much looks like it was shot with flash. I generally have the flash set to TTL metering, with flash exposure compensation dialled down a bit by around 1 stop, and set the camera exposure mode to manual, ensuring the shutter speed is at or less than the flash sync speed, then vary the aperture to ensure the ambient light registers.

I also use a reflector to bounce the flash off, which does soften the light considerably, and is a must in situations where there isn't a handy ceiling/wall to bounce the flash. Also in many cases the walls/ceiling may not be white, and if coloured will give a colour cast to the images.

The reflector I use is similar to this Flashbender which is flexible and quite sturdy. As it attaches with a velcro strap it should be ok to fit to your model of flash, which I believe has a circular head.

A couple of examples below:

3O2A1349 by conradsphotos, on Flickr

062 by conradsphotos, on Flickr

138 by conradsphotos, on Flickr

[Simpo Two]

Something funny going on around the girls in photo 2...