Speedlite Flashes queries for newbie

[Snoweagle]

He was referring to the6thday's post. If you're getting underexposure from bounce flash, pumping flash exposure will not help at all.

Oh ok...missed out that point.

 

[Snoweagle]

Sorry lah.. so fast so many pple correct me :bsmilie: my bad.. yup.. EF 16-35f/2.8L.. EFS where got L orh :sweatsm:
I heard from many "pro" saying canon wide angle no good enough.. maybe that is the reason why many go for nikon wide angle on canon body :lovegrin:

Canon's wide lenses are still acceptable but they thrive at the tele end. Canon's tele lenses are indeed better than Nikon's.

 

[calebk]

dunno leh, i tried and it worked for certain situations. of course there will be a point whereby the room is just too big/ceiling too high and no amount of exposure compensation will help.

perhaps it worked in some of the situations that i was in because the flash was under-exposing. can't tell you for sure the reasons cos too many variables involved (e.g. layout of the room, reflectivity of the surfaces, colour of the surfaces, objects in the room, angle of bounce, distance covered, ISO used etc.)

in summary, my point is that if you are not flashing directly (e.g. bouncing), get the most powerful flash available. because the most powerful flash available in canon's lineup is still not powerful enough in my opinion.

a small aside: i tried using flash on a car that was about 50m down the street (think i used ISO 400). it came out fine! tried flash on this big bungalow opposite the road (about 20m away). lit up the whole bungalow! so, the 580EX is very powerful...but still not powerful enough for bounce photography in large rooms (e.g. banquet rooms with high ceilings) or mid-sized rooms with low reflectivity (e.g. matte finish wooden panelling).

Sometimes, the flash's E-TTL tends to be fooled (ie when there are a lot of highlights in the frame such as bride's gown, backlighting etc.) and so, sometimes you have to ride your FEC out, and perform FEL, something that is really hard to do in fast-paced environments.

Remember also to check your exposure settings when you find the flash underexposing. Sometimes the situation is just too hopelessly underexposed to begin with, for the flash to compensate for it.

 

[nuxnewbie]

He was referring to the6thday's post. If you're getting underexposure from bounce flash, pumping flash exposure will not help at all.

Kindly explain why dialing up flash exposure compensation is not helpful when using bounce flash.

I'm sure a lot of flash users relying on Canon's E-TTL system while using bounce flash will be interested to know.

 

[calebk]

Kindly explain why dialing up flash exposure compensation is not helpful when using bounce flash.

I'm sure a lot of flash users relying on Canon's E-TTL system while using bounce flash will be interested to know.

Read the sentence carefully again again. Dialing FEC when you're already getting underexposure with bounce flash (or direct flash, for that matter) will not help because the flash is firing at its most powerful, but it's already incapable of illuminating the scene sufficiently. Dialing in FEC will not help because the flash can't fire at any higher power; it's maxed out.

 

[nuxnewbie]

Read the sentence carefully again again. Dialing FEC when you're already getting underexposure with bounce flash (or direct flash, for that matter) will not help because the flash is firing at its most powerful, but it's already incapable of illuminating the scene sufficiently. Dialing in FEC will not help because the flash can't fire at any higher power; it's maxed out.

I do understand that dialing in positive FEC does not help if the flash is firing at its maximum duration (and hence, full power).

But if you are in the position to dial in FEC, the flash must be in E-TTL mode.

If the flash is in E-TTL mode, how would you know if the flash is firing at maximum duration?

If you take a picture using bounce flash and the subject is underexposed @ FEC = 0, does this situation always mean that the flash is already firing at maximum duration?

 

[calebk]

I do understand that dialing in positive FEC does not help if the flash is firing at its maximum duration (and hence, full power).

But if you are in the position to dial in FEC, the flash must be in E-TTL mode.

If the flash is in E-TTL mode, how would you know if the flash is firing at maximum duration?

If you take a picture using bounce flash and the subject is underexposed @ FEC = 0, does this situation always mean that the flash is already firing at maximum duration?

No, but if the flash is firing on 0 FEC, and you're constantly getting underexposed pics, you can take it as a clue that either

i) E-TTL is being fooled by something
ii) the flash is firing at max power.

Of course, you won't know for sure, but a good way to try is dialing in FEC or shooting at 1/1 power and taking necessary action with whatever results you get.

 

[Russ]

calebk is right

I often max out the flash when bouncing if the ceiling is high! You can tell just from the sound of the flash and the longish recharge/recycle! Hence the need for external power sources when bouncing in big rooms.

FEC is useless in dialling up more flash power when the flash is at its max.

 

[calebk]

calebk is right

I often max out the flash when bouncing if the ceiling is high! You can tell just from the sound of the flash and the longish recharge/recycle! Hence the need for external power sources when bouncing in big rooms.

FEC is useless in dialling up more flash power when the flash is at its max.

You can hear a loud pop and the (CSI-isque photographer) recycling sound.

 

[Snoweagle]

In fact i prefer the recycling sound instead cos in cases such as the new 580EX II which is silent, sometimes u wouldn't know if your batts are going to be weak so the sound acts as an indication for me.

 

[Russ]

In fact i prefer the recycling sound instead cos in cases such as the new 580EX II which is silent, sometimes u wouldn't know if your batts are going to be weak so the sound acts as an indication for me.

my 580 EX II is silent.
My Metz 32 Z-1 is also silent.
My Sigma 500 and Soligor 380LCD are not, you can hear them recharging

 

[the6thday]

I think you summed it up very nicely.

For me, the fastest thing to do is to up the compensation rather than to analyse the situation. If it works, great. If it doesn't...too bad, move on. This works for me in most situations, with the exception of a recent shoot where i had to shoot at 5fps with a bounce card. Every other frame had no flash. But...these occasions are rare.

Sometimes, the flash's E-TTL tends to be fooled (ie when there are a lot of highlights in the frame such as bride's gown, backlighting etc.) and so, sometimes you have to ride your FEC out, and perform FEL, something that is really hard to do in fast-paced environments.

Remember also to check your exposure settings when you find the flash underexposing. Sometimes the situation is just too hopelessly underexposed to begin with, for the flash to compensate for it.

 

[calebk]

I think you summed it up very nicely.

For me, the fastest thing to do is to up the compensation rather than to analyse the situation. If it works, great. If it doesn't...too bad, move on. This works for me in most situations, with the exception of a recent shoot where i had to shoot at 5fps with a bounce card. Every other frame had no flash. But...these occasions are rare.

Haha. Thanks.

My two cents: if I ever had to shoot continuous with flash (tried before), I'd shoot at 3fps instead, cos it gives the flash some "rest" space.

 

[the6thday]

yup, definitely. however in that case, no choice. subjects were in mid-air. can only ask them to jump so many times.

Haha. Thanks.

My two cents: if I ever had to shoot continuous with flash (tried before), I'd shoot at 3fps instead, cos it gives the flash some "rest" space.

 

[Russ]

yup, definitely. however in that case, no choice. subjects were in mid-air. can only ask them to jump so many times.

Then higher ISO and flash set manually to 1/64 is what you need to do. Or have a external power pack!

 

[calebk]

yup, definitely. however in that case, no choice. subjects were in mid-air. can only ask them to jump so many times.

Lol what event was it?

 

[Snoweagle]

my 580 EX II is silent.
My Metz 32 Z-1 is also silent.
My Sigma 500 and Soligor 380LCD are not, you can hear them recharging

I still prefer with sound though cos it also doesn't bother me.

 

[silverthorn11]

what batteries do u guys use for 580EX? I just got the mkII today. I vouch for its silent-ness! it's my first upgrade from an old starblitz 3600BTZ Twin (from my wife's uncle, about 10+ years old at least). need to digest the manual, but the first few trial shots were great. it even made my kit lens shine sharp! got it at T.K. Foto at S$710 (inclusive of GST). there are only 3 sets left as of 6pm today.

 

[calebk]

what batteries do u guys use for 580EX? I just got the mkII today. I vouch for its silent-ness! it's my first upgrade from an old starblitz 3600BTZ Twin (from my wife's uncle, about 10+ years old at least). need to digest the manual, but the first few trial shots were great. it even made my kit lens shine sharp! got it at T.K. Foto at S$710 (inclusive of GST). there are only 3 sets left as of 6pm today.

Maha Powerex 2700mAh.

 

[FilterFunk]

Sanyo Eneloops are worth considering too