Here's a Carolina Wren I shot this morning on my feeder post. It was pretty dark, and the metered exposure at ISO 800 was about 1/60th @ f/5.6, so I popped an off camera SB600 with a Pocket Wizard. FP HSS. 1/800th @ f/5.6. Subj to camera dist ~ 20 ft. Subj to flash dist ~ 10 ft. The flash didn't bother the bird at all, but then the wrens aren't too skittish. One real advantage in using a feeder is that you can somewhat dial in your settings, especially if you do use flash.

I suppose you really need to watch your composition to avoid harsh shadows.

Originally Posted by Montec I suppose you really need to watch your composition to avoid harsh shadows.

Yes, especially when it's dark. In brighter light, when you're just trying to pop a little fill, it isn't such a big deal. OTOH, when you're not using flash on a bright sunny day, your shadows can be just as harsh. Remember, hard shadows aren't an artifact of flash. They're an artifact of a small, bright light source . . . like the sun.