Photography Blog

“Bigger is better” is just as much of a myth in the realm of flash diffusers as it is in other areas. For an on-camera diffuser to not produce undesirable harsh shadow, it would need to be not just big but large to the point of being unwieldy and impractical.

The following six flash diffuser secrets for professional photographers help make the point.

Secret #1: The on-camera diffuser alone, regardless of size and design, cannot produce the desired soft lighting. It is the bounced light that does this!

Contrary to common belief, smaller is better, when it comes to on-camera flash diffusers.

Secret #2: You need a lot of bounced light and a little fill light to create a well lit, shadow-free image.

Camera manufacturers designed their flash heads to swivel and tilt, so that they can bounce light off ceilings, walls or nearby objects. If you want to bounce light off both a wall and ceiling, at the same instance, you will need some way to split the light output into multiple paths without diffusing or diluting intensity. The best method is the use of mirrors to manipulate the light path.

Many popular diffusers on the market today cannot effectively bounce light off ceilings and walls, because there is too much energy loss involved. This is because the moment the light strikes a diffuser, whether it’s reflected or transmitted through, much of its intensity is diminished due to diffusion and dilution. The actual light striking the wall or ceiling needs to be at full strength, concentrated, so that the bounced light will have enough intensity returning to the subject being photographed.

Secret #3: Bouncing light effectively requires the full energy and intensity of the original light source.

In addition to the energy robbing nature of translucent diffusers, due to the milky-white material, there is another inefficiency about them. They are designed to spew light all around, in the hope of striking a suitable surface (or surfaces) to bounce the light. If the room is small enough, there is little risk of underexposure. Once more distance comes between the camera and the subject or a group of subjects, however, underexposure will become more apparent, as the flash struggles to produce enough power to overcome the loss of intensity caused by the filtering (restricting light passage) effect of the milky-white material.

Secret #4: The flash unit has to work extra hard to push more light through a translucent diffuser to achieve correct exposure.

What if there’s absolutely nowhere to bounce the light: no ceiling, no nearby walls, pillars or people standing around wearing white clothes (really)? In this situation, it’s advisable to just go with direct flash, as soft lighting cannot be achieved without the “bounce.”

Secret #5: If there’s no ceiling or wall to bounce light, then use direct flash. There’s little to gain from using a diffuser.

Every lighting situation is unique, with its own unique opportunities and pitfalls. One fixed solution for all occasions is not effective. As the famous psychologist Abraham Maslow once observed, “I suppose it is tempting, if the only tool you have is a hammer, to treat everything as if it were a nail.”

Secret #6: “Move & Modify” is actually no secret at all. You need to adjust and adapt to the opportunities at hand.

The next time you see a flash diffuser that is bigger than yours, you might want to reflect upon this verse:

Think big but go small. The bigger the diffuser, the harder the shadows fall.

Hopefully, the above six flash diffuser secrets for professional photographers have helped you realize the myth of “bigger is better” in the realm of flash diffusers. By improving your knowledge of diffusers and how they work, your flash photography results will significantly improve.

Copyright (c) by PRESSlite.com. All rights reserved.

Fortunately, we no longer have to deal with buying flashes for our cameras anymore. Flash digital photography is now a real term used both in words and in the photography industry. The flash (instead of being put on top of the camera like it used to) is now built right into the flash digital cameras themselves.

Today, our digital cameras come with a built in automatic flash and, even better, is the feature that allows you to change the setting, depending on how much light is available. Some digital cameras even come with a setting that will let you know when the lighting isn’t right for the setting you have it set on. Then you will need to change the setting yourself.

The best way to use flash with your digital camera is to first read the instruction manual on how the settings are set up and how you should use them. You should also learn how to use the settings by then taking that knowledge and working with your camera hands-on. Try it outside at different times of the day, in different areas, in your studio (if you have one), in your home and anywhere else you might be taking pictures. By doing this, you can see first-hand what settings work best for what type of lighting.

Unfortunately, some digital cameras have the flash too close to the lens and that can lead to red eyes in your pictures. Fortunately, you can get a digital camera that has a setting to help reduce red eye or you can fix the problem with your photography software.

You should also play with the settings with different areas where shadows could show up. This will help you determine how far away from your subject you can be before the shadows disappear. This happens because the flash didn’t reach those areas. The camera manufacturer will usually list the maximum flash strength and how far away you can be when taking a good shot. You certainly don’t want to lose any perspective and/or depth in your pictures.

You can reduce both of these problems of red eye and poor depth by getting a flash device that is separate from your camera. You will just need a detachable flash component that is simply powered by a bracket on the camera along with a cable that all work together to help the flash inside the camera to work with the external flash unit. This will help your flash digital camera by providing an extra source of flash and reduce the amount of red eye and poor depth coming out in your pictures.

Your flash digital camera can provide you with a wealth of creative photography opportunities. You just have to know how to use it and this is easy to learn. By using the steps outlined in this article and by playing around with your flash settings, you can get a great number of beautiful pictures using flash digital photography.

In the beginning there was product photography, and it was good, good for anything printed on paper that is.  But now the advertising world is different. Every year more and more consumers turn to the internet for not only information but for purchases, large and small. And since they cannot touch the product they want as much information about it as possible.When Apple computer invented QuickTime Virtual Reality almost 20 years ago, it promised to change the way we looked at photography, both of \’objects\’ and environments.  As exciting as it was, for several reasons it never became part of the mainstream. Perhaps the most significant barrier was the technology itself.  Until the last few years, Apple computers claimed only a 5% market penetration in the PC market. That meant that even in the early 2000’s 95% of computers not only did not have QuickTime installed on them, but that the owners of those computers had mostly never heard of QT, and considered it an \’Apple thing\’. Sadly, generally attempting to open a QT movie without the application installed on one’s PC, resulted in computer crashes and hangs. Also several companies capitalized on the technical aspects images for 360º degree photography and produced very specialized and very high priced special tripod heads, rigs and computer controlled turntables—which contributed to yet another misconception, that one had to have lots of money to produce this kind of imagery (which wasn’t going to make you any money anyway).Another barrier was the file size of the final image file. Though small by today\’s standards, there was the perception that with consumers mostly using dial up connections that, even if they by some chance had QuickTime installed on their computer, they would not be willing to wait for the file to download. There also wasn\’t an abundance of asymmetrical CODEC’s or streaming possibilities.Lastly, though the QTVR interface has several extra capabilities, they are not well known or obvious to a viewer who doesn\’t know QuickTime, and most think only of products spinning on a white background, or being able to pan around a room—entertaining but not ‘ready for prime time’.All these factors combined to make QTVR and as a consequence, all 360º photography, perceived as a novel technology that though fun to view and experience, was not economical to produce, not capable of delivering attractive exciting photography and most importantly was not viable for real world retail uses.These days… Not so.With Adobe\’s Flash player boasting an almost 100% installation on all computers and 70-80% of internet consumers using some type of broadband connection the possibilities for 360º views and elaborate product tour interfaces.  Products can now be shown not only in 360º views but with zoom and pan features as well as informational graphical or even video ‘call outs’.  With broadband connections being so prevalent in households, and Flash being a streaming media the product displays can use high quality photography and video.  They are used cross media as well for not only web, but trade show displays and even sales presentations.  A salesman can carry a laptop computer full of virtual products that otherwise would be too large or numerous to carry, as well as not possibly getting past security in office buildings.Retail giant, Party City, for the past 2 years has used “Virtual Fashion Shows’ on their website to promote their extensive line of Halloween costumes.  They feature live models photographed as a 360º view and place them in a custom interface that not only rotates, zooms and pans, but is designed with a Halloween style to match their wed design. Since Halloween sales represent  over 30% of their yearly business, Party City feels that it’s important to use all possible technology to give themselves an edge in a very competitive business.©2008 Logan SealeOregon based  Benchmade Knives uses 360º photos with video call outs to display the features of their high line knife collections, again it gives them an edge over the competition which these days is more important than ever.©2008 Logan SealeSome photographers are even experimenting with making unusual and artistic virtual reality photography. With careful planning and control one can be very successful with this idea.For more information and images visit http://www.LoganSealeInteractive.com

Have you ever tried to take pictures in a poorly lit room with your point and shoot camera? How was it? Doesn’t your subject turn out to be completely blown out by the flash? It was horrible to see that your subjects are engulfed by the bright light. So, below are 5 tips to help you avoid this common flash blowout.

1. Stepping back

Various digital photography tips told you to get close to your subjects so that you can fill up your frame. However, the closer you get to your subjects with flash, the brighter they will get.

So, it is wise that you take some steps further from your subjects and zoom into them when you need to flash on your subjects. This can help you to fill your frame and reduce the blowout.

2. Bounce the flash

As any point and shoot camera user already knew, you can’t control the direction of the flash (DSLR flash unit can be twisted and bounce the light to other direction). However, you are not cursed to stick with this situation forever. You can change your fate with some effort.

You can use a small white card and place it at an angle in front of the flash so that the light can be directed to the ceiling or wall. One thing about this digital photography tip is that you want to be careful with the material you use to direct the flash. This is because different color can impact the light from your flash. So, you will see a different picture when you bounce the flash with a red card instead of white.

3. Diffusion

Unlike DSLR camera users, compact digital camera users can’t control the output of the flash. If you know that your flash is too strong, what you can do then is to stick white tissue or cello tape over the flash unit.

Again, the materials you use to cover the flash unit can affect the light from your flash. So, it is good that you can stick the flash with white or clear and transparent material instead of colorful tapes.

4. Setting

Now this is the time when you look into the setting your point and shoot camera and use the ‘night mode’ to avoid flash blowout. In this mode, your camera will automatically slow down the shutter speed and take the picture with flash.

While your shutter speed is being slowed down, your aperture size will usually be increase (although you might not be able to control this). When that happens, more light from the environment can be allowed to enter the camera so that it reduces the usage of the flash hence your subject can be properly illuminated.

5. Add more light

This is the most obvious digital photography tips ever. However, this might not be effective when you are in a party or clubbing. You can literally get yourself kick out of the room when you do that.

If that is the case, can you get your subjects to a better lit place? If the flash still blowout your subject, you probably will want to add in the stepping back tip here.

 

One of my subscribers asked me how he could take digital photos at his friends wedding. He did not want to use the flash to distract the bride and groom during the time they were saying their vows. What he was asking me was how to get better digital photos in low light conditions without the necessity of using a flash. It’s a very good digital photography question. Good news; it can be done.

The flash is the biggest solution to low light digital photography. However the problem with this is that not all situations can benefit from using the flash. It’s also very directional, meaning it comes from the front only and does not light up the subject from all angles as you would need.

The flash can sometimes interfere with your “moment” socially and artistically and can flatten out your digital images. This is especially true for a flash that is built-in on digital cameras. The built in flash (and a flash in general) has the effect of lighting your subject on the front only which compresses the depth in your digital photos. Compressed depth can really decrease the beauty of your subject in your digital photography.

This can be avoided to a certain degree, depending on your subject and by watching how your light falls. Learn how to see how the light falls on your surroundings and your mind will become adept at knowing what works and what doesn’t with the flash.

A good way to combat the problem in low light is by using a higher ISO. Your ISO simply means the amount of sensitivity of light falling on your sensor. For example take traditional photography as a comparison to digital photography. Traditional photography ISO will be film sensitivity. (ISO in traditional terms works with film speed as well.)

The only set back in digital photography ISO is noise. If your ISO is perfect for the photo yet there is a significant increase in noise you can use software to sharpen up your digital photo. There are two good noise reduction software programs called “Noise Ninja” or “Neat Image”. If you don’t push the ISO higher you may find the problem with camera shake if a tripod is not in hand. By adjusting the ISO you will find that noise is better than camera shake. In digital photography noise will always be something to consider.

In digital photography, a higher ISO allows you to take photos in low light situations. In traditional photography you’d have to change your roll of film from. In digital photography ISO give you the opportunity to adjust a setting, rather than fiddle with changing film. This is advantageous if the subject is not going to stay around or you yourself are unable to stay for an extended length of time.

I’ll use another example. Let’s take for example you are taking dome digital shots indoors, like someone speaking, or playing an instrument. Perhaps the flash is not appropriate in this situation. In this case (which happens a lot in digital photography) you would simply adjust the ISO to a higher setting. If you set the camera on “ISO Auto” your digital camera will then detect that a higher ISO is necessary. Alternatively you can set the ISO yourself. This higher sensitivity can give you the opportunity of gaining the right exposure for the shot.

If you find that’s still not right, because your digital photo now has camera shake and you don’t have a tripod, you can in fact decide on the next top ISO which will then enable you to select a faster shutter speed.

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SimpleTech Compact Flash cards are one of the most popular types of compact flash cards available on the market today. They are also very versatile. They can be used with your digital camera of course, to store more photographs, but they can also be used with your MP3 player to sore music tracks, or with your PDA handheld computer as well.

They are light and compact, and therefore very portable. This is very important in today’s rapid lifestyle, where speed and portability are watch words.

So what are compact flash cards?

Compact flash provide a physical interface between a variety of host devices. When the card is attached it will appear to the main device as addition hard storage space, which is what flash cards actually are. They have low power requirements as well which is a massive benefit especially with portable devices. If the card were too much of the hosts resources, it would nullify the benefit of portability. The other major plus point in the favour of flash cards is that their storage is non volatile. This means that the data stored remains on the card when the power is disabled.

If you are looking to purchase a flash memory card, then reliability is critical. You need to know that when you plug the device in that you will be able to read the data accurately. When you are talking about things like photos, you do not want to lose your images, because in most cases they will be irreplaceable. There are arguments about the speed of compact flash, and whilst speed is nice to have, if you trade speed for the sake of reliability, then you are wasting your time and your money.

CompactFlash cards do not have any moving parts. This is good news for reliability, because there is less than can go wrong with the unit. Where they do vary is in the amount of storage that they offer. If you are looking at single brands like SimpleTech for example, then the only difference you get for the additional storage is the price you pay. Having said that, storage of this nature is not expensive any more, and you can get a great deal of space for a very reasonable price.

Why not invest in one of the most popular and most reliable forms of Compact Flash cards, the SimpleTech Compact Flash Card. Thousands of satisfied customers will tell you that the quality and price are both excellent.

Faster Than A Speeding Bullet–Electronic Flash Units

R. Dodge Woodson

World Photographers Organization

The right lighting system combined with a camera that offers a fast shutter speed can literally stop a bullet in mid-air. Well, it looks stopped when you see the picture. No, I’m not suggesting that you shoot the lights and watch them explode on impact. I’m referring to capturing the rotating bullet as an image. Studio strobes can be extremely powerful and can stop all sorts of motion without risk of blurred images.

If you plan to convert a spare bedroom, basement, or attic into a studio, you should give serious consideration to buying some studio strobes. This type of lighting is not cheap, but you can get name-brand lights that do a wonderful job for reasonable prices.

My studio lights are made by Novatron®, and I’m very happy with them. This company is known for its excellence in lighting equipment for both serious amateurs and professionals. It is common to find kits offered by Novatron and other quality manufacturers that will give you all the basics of good studio lighting. For less than $600, you can frequently find kits that include at least two flash heads, sometimes three, light stands, umbrellas, a carrying case, and other accessories. Anyone with an interest in studio photography can benefit from these semi-pro lighting kits. If you decide to use this type of lighting, invest in a good light meter that takes flash readings. Otherwise, you will suffer trial-and-error exposure ratings that will be very frustrating. Another option is to use the automatic mode on your camera and depend on the camera’s light meter.

Quartz

Quartz-halogen lights are an alternative to flash heads for studio photography. Problems occur with flash photography. One of the most common is finding out after you look at pictures taken that the flash units created unwanted shadows. This doesn’t happen with quartz-halogen lights. These lights are on while you are composing a picture, so you see the exact effect the lighting has on your subject. This is a big advantage for a lot of photographers. An added bonus to this type of lighting is that it’s less expensive than flash units. A good quartz-halogen starter get will cost you about $250. It will include the lights, barndoors (which allow you to angle the lighting), light stands, and a carrying case.

(CAUTION) Quartz-halogen and other photo lamps get extremely hot during use. They can easily inflict serious burns and are capable of starting fires if they come into contact with flammable materials.

I started my studio lighting with quartz-halogen lights and continue to use the same lights today. My flash heads see a lot of use, but so do my steady lights. Both types of lighting have their advantages and disadvantages. One drawback to quartz lights is that they get very hot. This can make a model’s make-up run, present a fire hazard if flammable materials come into contract with them, and there is some risk of serious burns if someone touches the lights.

Another problem with quartz lighting is that it can’t stop motion like a flash unit can. Since quartz lighting produces tungsten lighting, you will have to put a corrective filter on your lens to maintain accurate colors in color photographing. But, this is no big deal. Of course, you can made lighting corrections in your photo editing program in your computer.

Quartz lights allow you to take normal light readings. This can be done with an independent light meter or the one that is in your camera. A flash meter is not required. Since quartz lights are on at all times, you can see shadows and lighting effects before you fire the shutter. This is a big help. If you want big-time lighting on a limited budget, quartz-halogen lights are the way to go.

Ring Lights

Ring lights are a specialty flash. They are used with macro lenses when taking close-up pictures. These units often consist of a sensor that mounts in the hot shoe of a camera, a battery pack, and the flash attachment. The flash mounts on the ring of a lens, in a way similar to a filter. Since the flash elements surround the lens, it gives good, even illumination of your subject. Some models, like the one I have, allow you to disable one-half of the ring for creative photography. Other models fire all at one time. For documentary photography of close-ups, ring lights can’t be beaten.

A ring light would not normally be used for anything other than documentary work. Taking a picture of a human model with a ring light used for flash would result in a bright, well-lit photograph that would probably be boring. Ring lights bring out extensive detail in subjects. This is usually not desirable when photographing people or pets. If you don’t chase after grasshoppers, mushrooms, and wildflowers, you shouldn’t need a ring light. But, if you love to bring nature home on your memory card with you in a film canister, a ring light might be right for you.

Flash In a Box

Some photographers like to take their flash shows on the road. If you are one of these road warriors, look into portable studio flashes that can travel with you. Any studio lighting can be used where electricity is available, but if your take your photos off the beaten track, you may want some battery-powered flashes to go along with you. There are two ways to do this. One is much more expensive than the other.

If you want to take full-power studio strobes out into a meadow to photograph a model, be prepared to spend between $1,000 and $1,500 for the privilege. You might find a portable, battery-powered location kit for less than $1,000, but they are not numerous. It might be cheaper to take your regular studio lights and rent a small electric generator for your location session. For that matter, it might even be cheaper to buy a small generator to run your AC lights. It’s very difficult to justify or afford location strobes. But, don’t get discouraged; I’m going to show you how to beat the system.

Most photography doesn’t require super-powerful studio strobes. If you want to take models on location and get some great shots, you can do it with inexpensive, portable, battery-powered flash units. I’m talking about the same electronic flashes that you might normally mount on your camera. These flashes when put together with either sync cords or slaves and some light stands make a good substitute for expensive location kits. You can still use umbrellas and reflection cards, and you will save a tremendous amount of money. Granted, you won’t have the full power and control you would with a location set, but you probably won’t need it.

To give you an idea of the results you can receive with inexpensive, pocket-size flash equipment, let me share a story from my past with you. When I started doing wedding photography, I couldn’t afford the best equipment, but I needed my work to look good. My second wedding assignment was a tough one.

I was going to have to light a large dance room with electronic flash to meet the demands of my customer. This would have been a good time to own a location set of strobes, but I didn’t. To compensate for my problem, I took several modest flashes, some inflatable umbrellas, and some light stands to the reception area. My assistant and I positioned the lights prior to the crowded arrival of guests. Each electronic flash was equipped with a peanut slave. When I fired my powerful, bracket-mounted camera flash, all of the slaves would trigger the other flashes. This simple, inexpensive set-up allowed me full light coverage of a large room and crowd with minimal cost.

I have never owned a location set of strobes. During all of my years in the field, I’ve always used simple, battery-powered flashes with good results. You can spend a lot of money on flashy pro gear if you want to, but it’s rarely needed.

Other Flash Factors

There are a number of accessories available for photographers who use flash equipment. Whether you’re using a $60 pocket flash or a $1,000 pro setup, you can always enhance your flash photography with accessories. Buying stuff is half of what makes photography so much fun! The accessories available are not mandatory equipment, but many of them can improve your photography and produce nice special effects. You will need a camera with either a hot shoe or a pc sync connection port.

Many photographers advance to a point where they want remote and or multiple flash sources. If you reach this level, you will likely use a sync cord for your remote flash. Slave devices can be used to trigger multiple flashes. There is one problem often encountered with sync cords. They don’t always maintain good connections with the camera body.

You can reduce flash failures by using a sync key, a small device that resizes the connection pieces, to keep your connections tight. This is a very inexpensive accessory that should be kept in your camera bag or vest at all times when doing flash photography.

Slaves come in a variety of shapes and sizes. Peanut slaves are inexpensive and work well under most conditions. This is the type of slave that I use, and I can recommend them highly. Most slave devices are made like a hot shoe. The ones that are not can be coupled with a remote flash by using a sync cord. The cord runs only from the slave to the flash, not from your camera body to the remote devices. Once you get to the point of doing creative things with artificial lighting, you will want multiple flashes and remote firing devices.

Studio strobes of good quality usually have slaves built into them. When you fire one light, they all go off. Before you invest in any studio strobes, make sure that they have adjustable power settings and built-in slaves. When this is the case, you only have to connect one light to your camera body with a sync cord, which is also known as a PC cord.

Filters

Filters are available for most photographic lights and flashes. Using filters with your lighting can produce some outstanding results. Even inexpensive pocket flashes are often sold with an assortment of colored filters. Some models use gel-type filters and others use plastic filters. It is a good idea to make sure that any lighting units you buy will accept filters for future interests in special effects.

Snoots

Snoots and barndoors sound like things you would find down on the farm, but they are accessories for photography lighting. Any reputable studio light will accept these types of accessories.

Barndoors consist of two or four metal flaps that allow you to angle light creatively. Snoots are used to concentrate a beam of light. They are often used to highlight a model’s hair. There are many other types of add-ons available for studio lighting, so make sure the products you are considering will accept them.

Umbrellas

Most people have seen umbrellas used in flash-photography sessions. They are used to bounce light in a soft, shadowless, attractive manner. Most photographers use white umbrellas, but silver umbrellas produce more bounce. You should experiment with both types until you are comfortable with which one to use on various assignments. As good as umbrellas are, the can be cumbersome at times, and they don’t allow a lot of mobility. There is a solution to this dilemma.

Inflatable umbrellas are the answer to higher mobility and better results when using small flash units. These little blow-up umbrellas are only several inches in diameter, but they produce great results. They attach to an electronic flash with elastic bands. Your flash fires into the clear surface of the device and is reflected by the white or silver interior surface. You get bounced lighting from a small, portable, affordable package. I’ve used them to photograph modeling sessions and weddings with wonderful results. This is one accessory any serious flash photographer should own.

Reflector Cards

Reflector cards are often used in photography. They are implemented with natural light and flash photography. A reflector card can be a small, hand-held size, or it can be a large unit that is supported by a stand. The painted walls and ceilings of buildings act as large reflector cards for photographers bouncing flashes. By bouncing flash or natural light with reflector cards, you receive lighting that is not harsh and distasteful.

Lightweight survival blankets fold to pocket-size proportions and are often silver on one side. These inexpensive items make fantastic reflectors.

Meters

Light meters are critical to good photography. Most modern cameras have some type on built-in meter, but these meters can be fooled under certain conditions. The use of multiple flash units is one of these conditions. If you are going to do much flash photography with any type of flash other than a dedicated, automatic, on-camera flash, invest in a decent flash meter. You will save time, frustration, and wasted film many times over. A lot of flash meters double as reflective meters, so that you are getting two meters for the price of one. This is the type that I would recommend. Flash photography and studio lighting can add a new dimension to your hobby, so give it serious consideration. You should enjoy the journey.

“Bigger is better” is just as much of a myth in the realm of flash diffusers as it is in other areas. For an on-camera diffuser to not produce undesirable harsh shadow, it would need to be not just big but large to the point of being unwieldy and impractical.

The following six flash diffuser secrets for professional photographers help make the point.

Secret #1: The on-camera diffuser alone, regardless of size and design, cannot produce the desired soft lighting. It is the bounced light that does this!

Contrary to common belief, smaller is better, when it comes to on-camera flash diffusers.

Secret #2: You need a lot of bounced light and a little fill light to create a well lit, shadow-free image.

Camera manufacturers designed their flash heads to swivel and tilt, so that they can bounce light off ceilings, walls or nearby objects. If you want to bounce light off both a wall and ceiling, at the same instance, you will need some way to split the light output into multiple paths without diffusing or diluting intensity. The best method is the use of mirrors to manipulate the light path.

Many popular diffusers on the market today cannot effectively bounce light off ceilings and walls, because there is too much energy loss involved. This is because the moment the light strikes a diffuser, whether it’s reflected or transmitted through, much of its intensity is diminished due to diffusion and dilution. The actual light striking the wall or ceiling needs to be at full strength, concentrated, so that the bounced light will have enough intensity returning to the subject being photographed.

Secret #3: Bouncing light effectively requires the full energy and intensity of the original light source.

In addition to the energy robbing nature of translucent diffusers, due to the milky-white material, there is another inefficiency about them. They are designed to spew light all around, in the hope of striking a suitable surface (or surfaces) to bounce the light. If the room is small enough, there is little risk of underexposure. Once more distance comes between the camera and the subject or a group of subjects, however, underexposure will become more apparent, as the flash struggles to produce enough power to overcome the loss of intensity caused by the filtering (restricting light passage) effect of the milky-white material.

Secret #4: The flash unit has to work extra hard to push more light through a translucent diffuser to achieve correct exposure.

What if there’s absolutely nowhere to bounce the light: no ceiling, no nearby walls, pillars or people standing around wearing white clothes (really)? In this situation, it’s advisable to just go with direct flash, as soft lighting cannot be achieved without the “bounce.”

Secret #5: If there’s no ceiling or wall to bounce light, then use direct flash. There’s little to gain from using a diffuser.

Every lighting situation is unique, with its own unique opportunities and pitfalls. One fixed solution for all occasions is not effective. As the famous psychologist Abraham Maslow once observed, “I suppose it is tempting, if the only tool you have is a hammer, to treat everything as if it were a nail.”

Secret #6: “Move & Modify” is actually no secret at all. You need to adjust and adapt to the opportunities at hand.

The next time you see a flash diffuser that is bigger than yours, you might want to reflect upon this verse:

Think big but go small. The bigger the diffuser, the harder the shadows fall.

Hopefully, the above six flash diffuser secrets for professional photographers have helped you realize the myth of “bigger is better” in the realm of flash diffusers. By improving your knowledge of diffusers and how they work, your flash photography results will significantly improve.

Copyright (c) by PRESSlite.com. All rights reserved.

For most of us firing the flash is something that happens in the background and that does not require our attention.. Flash photography was not always so easy to use. Flash is useful in many situations for example when taking photos in dark scenes or when getting rid of shades in fill in mode. It is beneficial to know some facts about flash usage and how it works.

Flash photography has been around for more than a hundred years. At first it was a dangerous and a manually controlled technology. It used powder that was literally ignited by either fire or electrical current. These flash solutions were both dangerous and hard to use since the flash was not automatically synchronized to the camera’s shutter. This meant that the photographer had to manually synchronize the shutter and the flash making sure that the flash was fired at exactly the time when the shutter was being opened. Modern flash units use an electronic flash tube that is synchronized to the camera’s shutter – relieving the photographer from the burden of timing the shutter and the flash.

Here are some facts that are important to know about flash units and shooting photos using them:

Internal flash units: Internal flash units are built into the camera. They are controlled through the camera’s menus and buttons. Internal flash units are usually small (limited by the camera size). As a result they are relatively weak units and only allow photography in dark conditions to a distance of a few feet. Internal flash units are easiest to use as they do not require any special settings or buying and installing accessories. In most cameras the internal flash can set to an automatic “point and shoot” mode in which the camera fires the flash whenever it senses that it is needed. Some low-end cameras can only use built-in flash units. Most cameras however support external flash units attached to the camera body.

External flash units: External flash units are either mechanically attached to the camera’s body through a dedicated slide-in slot or are mechanically detached from the camera and only connected via an electrical synchronization cable. External flash units come in many sizes and have different features. They vary in intensity- how much light they generate and for how long – and in mechanical features – can they be tilted or skewed or are they fixed in relation to the camera’s body. The external units are electrically connected to the camera allowing the camera to control the flash timing. Some connection standards also transmit advanced information to the flash unit such as the reading of the camera’s light sensors, its optical settings and more. This allows smart external flash units to optimize their settings for shooting the best photo.

Firing the flash:The decision to fire the flash is either automatic or manual. The camera can fire the flash when there is not enough light available. In some scenarios the camera will not automatically fire the flash although doing so would have resulted in a much better photo. One such scenario is taking a photo during day time when the object is shadowed. For example if the object is wearing a hat the hat can block the light from the object’s face or when the object is lit from the side the object’s nose can block the light creating a shadow. In such scenarios the flash unit can be set to “fill in” mode. The flash will be fired to fill-in those shadowed areas but it will not be fired strong enough to wash out the photo. Another scenario is when the sun is behind the object. One example is taking a photo on the beach during a sunset. If taken without a fill-in flash the result will most likely be a silhouette of the object. If taken with a fill-in flash and the object in range the result will be a clear photo of the object against a sunset.

Flash can also cause problems: Shooting a photo using the flash can also cause problems. One such problem is washed out photos as a result of the flash being too strong or the object too close to the camera. Washed out photos do not have enough details and the object appears to be too white or too bright. Another problem is a photo with more details than in the original scene: in some scenarios the flash can create artificial shadows and lights which result in a photo that includes details that are exaggerated relative to their appearance in real life. For example when taking a photo of an older man using a flash the skin wrinkles and imperfections can look much worse than they really are in real life.

Flash is limited: It is important to know the limitations of the flash unit. Any flash unit has a certain amount of light that it can generate. Usually this amount can be translated to an effective flash range. When trying to take a photo with the object too far – more than the flash unit range – the object will appear dark. If you need to take a photo with your objects not within your flash unit range it is better to turn off the flash completely and use a tripod and long exposure. Using the flash in such scenarios can fool the camera into setting lower exposure which results in a photo darker than a photo taken without using the flash at all.

It is important to know the flash unit that you are using and to get a feeling of when and how it should be used. The best way to accomplish that is by experimenting. With digital photography experimenting is practically free as there is no film development cost – take advantage of that and experiment shooting photos in different scenarios with and without a flash.

Many of us do not think twice about the usage of our digital camera’s flash assuming that the camera will use the flash automatically as needed. Flash however can and should be manually set in many scenarios resulting in high quality digital photos.
The most common usage of flash photography is when there is not enough ambient light for example when taking an indoor digital photo in a dark room. There are many other ways in which you can use your digital camera’s flash to get high quality digital photos. One such usage is fill-in flash.
Before setting your flash to manual mode and making more efficient usage of it you should know a bit more of the technology and history behind flash photography. Flash photography has been around for more than a century. During the early days of photography flash was implemented as a powder that was literally lit by either fire or electrical current. At that time flash photography was a risky business. Digital cameras today use a safe implementation by utilizing electronic flash tubes that are automatically synchronized with the camera’s shutter.
You have two options for using flash with your digital camera. The first option is using the digital camera internal flash. Practically all digital cameras have build-in flash units. Most cameras also allow the usage of an external flash unit. Such flash units can be either mechanically attached to the digital camera or they can be connected to the camera via a cable and mechanically positioned on a tripod or any other mechanism. They are synchronized and controlled by the digital camera. External flash units vary in price and features. They can have different maximum light energy that they can emit and different mechanical capabilities (tilting, skewing).
In automatic flash mode the camera sensors evaluate the amount of ambient light in the scene. The digital camera fires the flash if the amount of ambient light is not high enough. There are limitations to the cameras automatic sensors resulting in either firing the flash when it was not needed or vice versa.
In some scenarios the usage of flash can result in poor digital photos. For example when the object is too close to the digital camera the flash light will be too strong and will wash out the object. Another example is in scenarios where the flash creates unwanted shadows in the digital photo. Yet another example is exaggeration of details such as when shooting a digital photo of an older person the skin wrinkles and imperfections details can be overly detailed.
Digital camera’s flash units have a certain effective range. This is a limitation of how much light energy the flash unit can emit. Internal flash units usually have shorter range than external flash units. If the object in the photo is outside of the flash range the flash will not be effective and the object will be dark. On the other hand if the object is too close to the flash unit or the flash unit emits too much energy the object will be washed out. If your object is outside of your flash unit effective range you should turn off the flash and use slow shutter photography preferably with a tripod or another stabilizing mechanism. If your flash units allows the setting of the light energy that will be fired (usually by setting the distance to the object) make sure that it is set right to prevent washed out objects.
In some scenarios there will be enough ambient light to take a digital photo but without the usage of the flash the digital photo quality will be very poor. In such scenario if the camera is left on automatic flash mode it will not fire the flash. For example daytime photography with an object that is shadowed. If the object is wearing a hat it can create shades on the object’s face or when the object is lit from the side the object’s nose can create shades too. Putting the flash in manual fill-in mode will force the flash to fire. The flash will lit those shadowed areas and prevent the shades in the final digital photo. The object of course must be in effective flash range. Another example is an object that is lit from behind such as when taking a digital photo of an object against a sunset. Without a fill-in flash the photo will likely be just a dark silhouette of the object.
These were some basic concepts behind flash usage. There are many other advanced options for your digital camera flash. For example bounce flash can result in great digital photos in that mode instead of pointing the flash directly at the object it is pointed to some reflecting surface like a wall or a special reflector. The result is more natural light and color rich digital photos.