Use of Flash and Settings - Need Help

lifeinfocus

I have been asked to take photos at a wedding for a friend. I am not proficient in using a flash. So, in the church, like when the bride enters, what are some of the best settings to use a flash?

I am using a Nikon d700 and a 24-70mm 2.8 lens, SB700 flash. I also have the Rogue Flashbender.

The question is about TTL versus manual and the appropriate mode - Aperture, Shutter or Manual mode. Also, would the Flashbender be useful and if so with what settings - TTL vs Manual, and Aperture, Shutter or Manual?

I should also add that I have turned on Auto ISO.

Any details would be greatly appreciated as I can't seem to find any discussion or help in this area.

Phil

amirg

I would shoot the camera in manual and the flash in E-TTL. I'm not familiar with Auto ISO feature on the d700. On my Canon it sets the ISO to 400 while flash is used. You can instead bump up your ISO to 1600-3200 to capture some ambient light and help your flash recycle speed. If there is a light-colored ceiling or wall in the church, bounce off your flash from that. IF the ceiling is too high or dark, use your flash bender to throw some light forward.

Matthew Saville

lifeinfocus wrote: »

I have been asked to take photos at a wedding for a friend. I am not proficient in using a flash. So, in the church, like when the bride enters, what are some of the best settings to use a flash?

I am using a Nikon d700 and a 24-70mm 2.8 lens, SB700 flash. I also have the Rogue Flashbender.

The question is about TTL versus manual and the appropriate mode - Aperture, Shutter or Manual mode. Also, would the Flashbender be useful and if so with what settings - TTL vs Manual, and Aperture, Shutter or Manual?

I should also add that I have turned on Auto ISO.

Any details would be greatly appreciated as I can't seem to find any discussion or help in this area.

Phil

Phil, this sounds like a recipe for disaster. TTL vs Manual flash, and auto-ISO? Certainly, I can imagine there is a reliable method buried somewhere within all that uncertainty, but your absolute number one priority right now is to start chipping away at the mountain of uncertainty and room for error. In a word: PRACTICE.

To answer your questions- I shoot in this exact situation every single weekend almost, and my recommendation is to just rock it manually. Unless the church is way darker than most; you should be able to get a decent shutter speed if you rock your lens wide open and your ISO at 3200 or 6400. Don't worry, I've done exactly that, with exactly your gear, innumerable times. As long as your histogram is nice and bright, those ISO's will give you totally usable results.

But don't take my word for it. Go back to advice tidbit #1: PRACTICE. If possible, visit the church beforehand. The ceiling may be impossibly high in which case any form of bounce is going to be a waste, even at f/2.8 and ISO 3200 and 1/1 full flash power. You might just need to bite the bullet and get some f/1.4 glass at your disposal. An 85mm makes a decent aisle / ceremony lens.

Fiddle around with the flash and the flash bender, but honestly I find that most situations don't require flash.

Experiment with all-manual, (turn auto ISO off please!) ...Then start changing various things. Try manual exposure / ISO, but TTL flash at -1 stop. Try auto ISO and manual flash. Try auto-everything. Try it in near-darkness. Try it in semi-darkness, and learn to identify that exact threshold between 100% natural light, and starting to need flash.

All in all I can't say there is any one method or tip that will work. The conditions will dictate your possibilities. So the best thing you can do is to practice both methods, all options, and know when to pick the right one for the job...

=Matt=

=Matt=

lifeinfocus

Matthew Saville wrote: »

Phil, this sounds like a recipe for disaster. TTL vs Manual flash, and auto-ISO? Certainly, I can imagine there is a reliable method buried somewhere within all that uncertainty, but your absolute number one priority right now is to start chipping away at the mountain of uncertainty and room for error. In a word: PRACTICE.

To answer your questions- I shoot in this exact situation every single weekend almost, and my recommendation is to just rock it manually. Unless the church is way darker than most; you should be able to get a decent shutter speed if you rock your lens wide open and your ISO at 3200 or 6400. Don't worry, I've done exactly that, with exactly your gear, innumerable times. As long as your histogram is nice and bright, those ISO's will give you totally usable results.

But don't take my word for it. Go back to advice tidbit #1: PRACTICE. If possible, visit the church beforehand. The ceiling may be impossibly high in which case any form of bounce is going to be a waste, even at f/2.8 and ISO 3200 and 1/1 full flash power. You might just need to bite the bullet and get some f/1.4 glass at your disposal. An 85mm makes a decent aisle / ceremony lens.

Fiddle around with the flash and the flash bender, but honestly I find that most situations don't require flash.

Experiment with all-manual, (turn auto ISO off please!) ...Then start changing various things. Try manual exposure / ISO, but TTL flash at -1 stop. Try auto ISO and manual flash. Try auto-everything. Try it in near-darkness. Try it in semi-darkness, and learn to identify that exact threshold between 100% natural light, and starting to need flash.

All in all I can't say there is any one method or tip that will work. The conditions will dictate your possibilities. So the best thing you can do is to practice both methods, all options, and know when to pick the right one for the job...

=Matt=

=Matt=

Thanks so much. I have used manual everything for static outdoor subjects so I am familiar and will be visiting the location in advance. The Auto ISO is a new feature to me so it will be easy to go back.

Again thanks much,
This is a huge help.
Phil

zoomer

Auto ISO doesn't work with flash. Use TTL and try to stay the appx. same distance from your subject. Use Manual mode when using flash so you get a consistent exposure.

lifeinfocus

zoomer wrote: »

Auto ISO doesn't work with flash. Use TTL and try to stay the appx. same distance from your subject. Use Manual mode when using flash so you get a consistent exposure.

Thank you. I will be testing it out later today.

Phil

VayCayMom

some churches do not allow flash during ceremony, be sure to check it out.

angevin1

VayCayMom wrote: »

some churches do not allow flash during ceremony, be sure to check it out.

I was thinking the same thing. Often protocol dictates that no flash will be used during the ceremony incl. the run up to and the Kiss.

That D700 will work quite nicely without flash. Matt is right, get off Auto ISo, bring the ISO up to snuff to give you a right biased Histogram, and go. I think you mentioned taking a look at the space beforehand. Make certain to take someone with you and also make certain that Church folks, the wedding planner or someone in THE_KNOW has the lights/lighting set as it will be on THE DAY. That'll at least get you close so you can take some shots to see what you find.

And Phil, unless I miss my guess and this place is smaller than a cracker box, the better lens might be the 70-200mm. The 70-200 will give you room to be back away from everyone and Still find your target. You could always mount your 28-70 or even a wider lens on that D90 as an adjunct.

Foques

I really don't know of a good example where using auto anything did me any good. I always shoot at the full manual mode, and adjust as needed. Yes, I am a control freak.

lifeinfocus

Thanks to all. I will post info and maybe a shot or two after the wedding. I know I have a lot to learn for this type of event. I have already put together an Excel worksheet for the Ceremony, Post Ceremony, and Reception.; notes for the Wedding; and found a few fun ideas to encourage the B&G to have some fun during post ceremony photos.

Phil

Matthew Saville

Foques wrote: »

I really don't know of a good example where using auto anything did me any good. I always shoot at the full manual mode, and adjust as needed. Yes, I am a control freak.

I always use this example of when I used spot metering in Aperture Priority... If you're in Manual, the difference is four stops which in 1/3 increments is twelve clicks of your shutter speed. Can you nail that exposure change in just a few seconds?

Foques

I have done that before. There is no way I can guarantee that i'll be able to pull that off consistently, though.