Flash comparos - critique, pls

[alancheong7]

ALL are welcome to be brutally honest, and constructive. Thanks.

Trying to capture the light with darker ambient surrounding
http://img147.imageshack.us/img147/1762/dsc0007tnwm2.jpg
Normal
http://img147.imageshack.us/img147/572/dsc0008tnqk5.jpg

Without
http://img147.imageshack.us/img147/9756/dsc0014tnao4.jpg
With
http://img206.imageshack.us/img206/4198/dsc0015tnnr2.jpg

With
http://img411.imageshack.us/img411/9435/dsc0040tnli7.jpg
Without - lights totally off, with only the cooler's light on
http://img411.imageshack.us/img411/403/dsc0041tnba0.jpg

Without
http://img206.imageshack.us/img206/7461/dsc0094tnog7.jpg
With
http://img206.imageshack.us/img206/7400/dsc0095tnsk4.jpg

With
http://img206.imageshack.us/img206/3554/dsc0096tnwq3.jpg
Without
http://img206.imageshack.us/img206/8135/dsc0097tnui0.jpg

[JackJack]

some picture without the flash will show u the mood of the environment. U need to careful when playing with the flash, especially direct flash or built in flash. It always make the picture turn out unnatural or too blight because of the flash directly hit on the object.

:drunk:

[well2k26]

hey alan.. nice comparison u had here. for my taste always is capture the ambient light more. But flash do make wonder especialy in event shooting u must use flash to light up ur object. Pic 1 is good to with flash, others i prefer available light.

[alancheong7]

Hah?!?!? This is all? No tearing me apart? :D

Jack2,
Yeah, thanks

Brian,
Thanks, I prefer ambient, too.

Q: Why the bust (2nd) becomes darker with the flash but looks so nice when taken at ambient?
Open question, anyone can chip in ....

[noruazumi]

alan, great effort on the comparisons.
i really like the statue comparisons where both were great in color although we can see some areas were affected by the flash but it still have really nice color.
without the flash, it maintain it's natural gold color but with flash, it turns into silver color statue which i think it's cool!
i'm sure all these photos are purely for comparisons only.
these comparisons are great!!!
if u can put some info on your settings plus your flash positions, it'll help a lot fpr ppl to have better understanding on lighting technique. :lightbulb:

[alancheong7]

alan, great effort on the comparisons. i'm sure all these photos are purely for comparisons only.
if u can put some info on your settings plus your flash positions, it'll help a lot fpr ppl to have better understanding on lighting technique. :lightbulb:

errr...rrr..kkk! :redface: :D
hah?!? settings? wot settings? wot did i choose that day ar? :redface: :D

They are for comparing, to help me see the difference and develop my flash & ambient light photog- as can be seen the bust in ambient lighting has some handshake. They're also to help me learn composition.
D70s + 18-70 kit, WB on auto, SB800 with Stofen pointed upwards, or directly (I think...!). May have played with aperture/shutter speed, can't remember wor .... thank you.

[ShaolinTiger]

Just be careful when using direct flash and if possible ALWAYS try and retain the maximum natural lighting, just use the flash to lift the shadows a bit.

So..

a) Always bounce or diffuse flash, never use direct flash
b) Use the longest shutter speed you can do capture ambient light (1/10s is good generally), use the slowest you can without getting blur pic.
c) Try and use the light and shadows created by the flash creatively.

Out of these, I only prefer the first pic with flash, the rest are better (more natural and interesting) without.

Without really understanding your flash you'll tend to get very plain flat lighting, for me the flash is good if you can't tell any flash was used.

[alancheong7]

Thank you, ST.

[ShutterCurve]

Used to bounce my flash when I was still using film. If not possible, I just dial minus to my flash strength. But that was the past. Now, you can see you r pics (quite conveniently) after you take each shot with digital camera.

My point is, keep on shooting and learn to develop your style. And pics your best loved photo.

Always love the look of ambient mixed with a little bit of flash.

But my favorite shot of yours is the bust without the flash. :cool:

[alancheong7]

Used to bounce my flash when I was still using film. If not possible, I just dial minus to my flash strength. But that was the past. Now, you can see you r pics (quite conveniently) after you take each shot with digital camera.

My point is, keep on shooting and learn to develop your style. And pics your best loved photo.

Always love the look of ambient mixed with a little bit of flash.

But my favorite shot of yours is the bust without the flash. :cool:

Thanks, Shuttercove, appreciate it :D

[galee]

:) nice set of comparison pics... I think these without flash really capture the spontaneous environment. Flash makes it feel neutral I would say... :D

[jayhan]

Alan, the comparison pics you showed in here clearly indicates one thing. Sorry if i sound harsh, but I think you didnt use the flash properly.

1. Flash light quality wasnt balanced with the ambient (eg. Bust, Chandalier, Table Lamp). I believe a tungsten/orange gel will help in this case and make these flash pictures look more pleasing.
2. Angle of flash and angle of reflection. Light reflects at certain angles, especially very noticable on reflective surfaces like mirror or glasses. You need to find out how to capture photos from diff angle in order to not capture the reflection (eg. The Coke Fridge). A pop up flash, and direct hot shoe flash fired to a perpendicular reflective surface will highly produce such result.
3. Pic. #1 is a very good example of what I call, controlling the ambient light. This picture could be very nice, if you manage to control the exposure for ambient light, as well as provide a color-balanced flash fill in.

As far as my flash know-how goes, hope these helps.

[alancheong7]

Alan, the comparison pics you showed in here clearly indicates one thing. Sorry if i sound harsh, but I think you didnt use the flash properly.

1. Flash light quality wasnt balanced with the ambient (eg. Bust, Chandalier, Table Lamp). I believe a tungsten/orange gel will help in this case and make these flash pictures look more pleasing.
2. Angle of flash and angle of reflection. Light reflects at certain angles, especially very noticable on reflective surfaces like mirror or glasses. You need to find out how to capture photos from diff angle in order to not capture the reflection (eg. The Coke Fridge). A pop up flash, and direct hot shoe flash fired to a perpendicular reflective surface will highly produce such result.
3. Pic. #1 is a very good example of what I call, controlling the ambient light. This picture could be very nice, if you manage to control the exposure for ambient light, as well as provide a color-balanced flash fill in.

As far as my flash know-how goes, hope these helps.


Jay, you hit the nail right on the head. These are the reasons why I did this :D To learn. I needed to know, and still do, how to angle and bounce flash, output, factor in ambient light, angles and how to overcome the harsh reflection from perpendicular surfaces - thanks very much. Still a lot of shooting to do :redface:

[reds]

i think the shots without flash give more drama. a bit of diffused flash could help elevate the shadow and give better exposure.