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07/06/2005 07:47:48 AM · #1 |
I'm very much a photography newbie (my D70 is a little over a month old), but I've been reading books like mad, looking at the works of others, and taking lots of photos. One of the areas I’m most “in the dark” about is the use of fill lighting. I usually recognize when it is needed, but am unsure about technique.
Case in point: although my recent “Obsolete” photo placed in the top 10 (yay!), I’m unhappy with how it came out due to the use of my on-camera fill flash.
With the morning sun behind the subject, it had to be lit. However, a flash bright enough to bring out the detail resulted in overexposed highlights and reflections. In the end I went with a less intense flash (-1.7EV) to limit reflections, but also ended up with a darker image.
So I guess my question is, how would you have lit this scene?
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07/06/2005 09:15:29 AM · #2 |
I'll qualify my remarks by stating that I'm no lighting expert, but I do have a couple observations that I think are relevant.
First, the late-day light gives those beautiful golden tones, and the flash is very "blue" in comparison. You'd be much better off with a shoe-mounted flash bounced off a gold reflector to match the natural lighting.
Second, IMO you could have gone even easier on the fill. You want a natural look, an it's apparent that the shot is backlit so the viewer expects the front of the pump to be a little darker. Even with a bit less fill, you'd have plenty of detail. The trick with fill flash is to make it look like there wasn't any.
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07/06/2005 09:29:21 AM · #3 |
I get those a bit underexposed shots with fill flash too. I use levels to fix it up a bit. It is not a best option but correction is very minor so it works for me.
Nick |
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07/06/2005 09:42:03 AM · #4 |
I use a shoe-mounted flash, as mentioned before, it gives a more naturally colored light. Also, I am a huge fan of using reflectors outdoors to bounce sunlight where I want it. The large Oval shaped ones that are intended for your car's windshield (to protect car from heat) work wonderfully and fold up for easy carrying.
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07/06/2005 11:07:35 AM · #5 |
I would have spot metered the background and would have given it about a stop to a stop and a half less light than metered to peserve the sunrise/set lighting. Set the flash to manual and start with about 1/8 power and dial it up until you get the fill ratio your looking for.
I never use the built-in flash except in commander mode, but if you have to use it try this...
Take a sheet of letter size typing paper paper and tear it in half. Tape one end (the short side) to the area between the hot shoe & eye piece then tape the other end to the "Nikon" on the front of the prism housing. This semi-tube will greatly disfuse the light. It will cut down on your range, but remember your just using it as fill. It also works well for macro shots. The only down side is that it will create a square catch light in someones eyes. |
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07/06/2005 11:12:48 AM · #6 |
| If you purchase a shoe mounted flash, get a diffuser with it. It helps give a softer light and it will cut way back on reflections. |
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07/06/2005 11:34:36 AM · #7 |
| Since your subject is a static one, metering off of the backgroud and using slow-synch flash with a diffuser and your camera mounted on a tripod may help. |
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07/07/2005 09:24:07 AM · #8 |
Thanks everyone for your insights.Thanks everyone for your insights and creative suggestions (windshield reflectors and paper tubes?!).
While I have been planning to get a shoe flash and cable (for off-axis flash), I did not realize that it would help with the “blue” cast as well. I’ve also been reading about gels, diffusers, and colored reflectors, so there are lots of “tools” to help with both the coloring and the obvious reflections/highlights of using flash-fill lighting.
I guess my first step is actually going to be to get a reflector (or two) and head back to the site for another early morning shoot and see what I can capture.
Finally, thank you kirbic for pointing out that the viewer expects the foreground to be dark! Particularly during my early photography experiments, I should probably repeat the mantra of “do less” (focus on composition, DOF, etc.) before worrying too much about more advanced techniques.
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