We all occasionally take spur-of-the moment flash portraits, away from the studio.
With an external flash and a little forethought about the lighting, these snapshots can actually turn out to be great portraits, rather than just so many harshly-lit snapshots thrown in the back of a box.
Here's a comparison of three different flash lighting scenarios:
1. Direct, on-camera pop-up flash. Harsh light, reflections from glasses and skin, catch lights in eyes, nasty reflections off background objects, possible red-eye, dark hair. In short, a ho-hum snapshot.
2. External flash, bounced off a white ceiling. Lots of depth, shadows a bit dark, colored reflections in deep shadows, no reflections off skin or glasses, no catch lights in eyes.
3. Balance of ceiling-bounced light and direct light through use of a Lumiquest 80/20 flash redirector. Some depth, shadows not too dark, catch lights in eyes, fewer reflections due to the flash source being further from the lens, natural lighting in the room.
Equipment used: Canon EOS-D30, external Canon 550EX flash, Lumiquest 80/20 flash redirector. See:
http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/canond30/ http://www.lumiquest.com/bouncers.htm#lq872d
Many of today's serious cameras have hot shoes for external flashes. Consider getting a flash with a swivel head, and the little fold-up Lumiquest is a must-have.
-Noel
[This message has been edited by Noel Carboni (edited April 01, 2001).]
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