Canon 20D/580EX Q's

rich56k

Howdy again,
I have some questions regarding using a Canon 20D w/ 580EX flash, have a shoot scheduled for this wed (11/8) and will be both indoors (manufacturing plant w/prob tungsten lighting) plant tour / project bike fabrication stuff
and also outdoor late afternoon and beg. of sunset - these will be action shots (motorcycle burnouts & some wheelies staged for me)
and since I'll also be doing an interview (1st time assignment!-very nervous) i really need just some basic settings that will work for my setup -
My question is on the indoor shots (to use as fill flash) do i need to set the white balance to "tungsten" (if in fact thats what they are)and shoot in a creative zone mode and just set flash to ETTL-2 or can i just set camera to program / ETTL-2 and that will suffice?:dunno :scratch
My confusion comes from the only reference in the 580EZX manual for fill flash is on page 17 under 'high speed sync(fp flash??)' re: "can use with all shutter speeds. this is convenient when use aper. priority for fill flash portraits."(shows press: 'jagged arrow/H' button so same symbol shows in viewfinder)
The outdoor stuff will be aper. priority (2.8-4.0 -5.6 range)should just go with the above also (pg 17)??
This whole flash thing gets me very confused!:cry
any suggestions would be appreciated - noting that the less complicated the better as would rather use auto settings if possible for the indoor stuff anyhow...
thanks,
rich
http://rich56k.smugmug.com

gubbs

Hi Rich I'll try and help but hopefully someone with more experience will chip in too

rich56k wrote:

do i need to set the white balance to "tungsten"

TBH I wouldn't bother, shoot in RAW and adjust it afterwards

rich56k wrote:

shoot in a creative zone mode and just set flash to ETTL-2 or can i just set camera to program / ETTL-2 and that will suffice?

If you really want to use it as a fill, shoot on AV but turn the flash exposure compensation down by 2-3 stops...experiment or bracket if you have time. Watch your shutter speeds though, if they rise above 1/250 you'll need to switch on the hi-speed sync.

rich56k wrote:

The outdoor stuff will be aper. priority (2.8-4.0 -5.6 range)should just go with the above also (pg 17)??

same applies
as above


Good Luck

rich56k

gubbs wrote:

Hi Rich I'll try and help but hopefully someone with more experience will chip in too


TBH I wouldn't bother, shoot in RAW and adjust it afterwards

If you really want to use it as a fill, shoot on AV but turn the flash exposure compensation down by 2-3 stops...experiment or bracket if you have time. Watch your shutter speeds though, if they rise above 1/250 you'll need to switch on the hi-speed sync.

same applies
as above


Good Luck

Thanks Gubbs,

I'm pretty new to Raw (haven't actually tried a shoot yet, just some experiments) am kind of leary as this assignment is a big chance for me and hope to go in get the shots with min. of fuss.
My un familarity with the 580 for fill flash is still my biggest question....
can i just set flash exp. comp down 2-3 and still set for high speed sych ?
will try some practice today with your suggestions,
thanks,
rich

http://rich56k.smugmug.com

gubbs

rich56k wrote:

Thanks Gubbs,

I'm pretty new to Raw (haven't actually tried a shoot yet, just some experiments) am kind of leary as this assignment is a big chance for me and hope to go in get the shots with min. of fuss.
My un familarity with the 580 for fill flash is still my biggest question....
can i just set flash exp. comp down 2-3 and still set for high speed sych ?
will try some practice today with your suggestions,
thanks,
rich

http://rich56k.smugmug.com

If you have the canon software that came with your camera you'll find dealing with RAW no problem, and you can get/find plenty of help here on dgrin... Really, its easy, don't worry

Yes you can, you can either use the flash exposure compensation on the camera or flash then turn on the hi speed synch on the flash!!

ian408

if you're concerned about RAW vs. JPEG, shoot both. Select RAW and the appropriate sized jpeg.

Of course, you will need more space to store the images but shooting both
might get you over that fear of not being able to deal with the RAW image.

Ian

rich56k

ian408 wrote:

if you're concerned about RAW vs. JPEG, shoot both. Select RAW and the appropriate sized jpeg.

Of course, you will need more space to store the images but shooting both
might get you over that fear of not being able to deal with the RAW image.

Ian

Ian,
Yes thats a good idea, I'll pick up extra CF cards in the morning for that purpose,
Thanks

Gubbs,
Went out a did some test shots at a former employers plant,
using your suggestions and I feel much more comfortable now,
will probobly be back with some 'raw' q's afterwards
Thanks Again,
rich

(I guess it's time to see what everybody's talking about and by shooting both I'll still have my 'comfort' factor )

pathfinder

Shooting the 580EX as a Fill Flash, with the 20D in Av mode, is a great way to control contrast in lighting, but you must be careful to watch the shutter speed since the camera will be choosing the shutter speed in Av Mode. If the shutter speed needs to be greater than 1/250th ( the 20D strobe synch limit ) the 20D will NOT fire when you press the shutter UNLESS you have turned on High Speed synch ON THE STROBE. And you do not want to the shutter speed to fall below 1/60th or so, or you will begin to get camera movement blurring your images, and in Av mode the camera can choose a shutter speed of 1/4 sec or 1/2 second if that is the exposure needed for the background........

Another great way to use the 580ex, is to set the camera to MANUAL Mode, and let the strobe determine the appropriate light output. The aperture YOU CHOOSE ( you're shooting in Manual and you set aperture AND shutter speed remember ) will expose for the forground subject, the shutter speed will determine how dark the background is. You might play with this method and get a feel for its ability to control the lighting of the background.