Need an idiot's guide to flash!

Greensquared

Okay, so I've used full studio strobes in the past, but I have never managed to master my little speedlight. I've got the camera, the flash, the synch cords, and the flash meter. Since my flash is too old to use TTL with the camera model, I assume I have to use everything in manual mode. Whenever I try, it's just not clicking with me. Does anyone know of a real basic step-by-step guide guide for using a camera and flash together manually to factor the correct settings and exposure?

Emily

colourbox

This where you want to go. This guy is amazing. I've learned so much.
Strobist: Lighting 101

Andy

Some good stuff by our Artist-in-Residence, Shay Stephens, here http://www.dgrin.com/showthread.php?t=4266

BenA2

Strobist
I'm with Colourbox. Try out Strobist. It's not compact, but it's the best source for lighting with small strobes off camera.

Careful though, it's addictive.

Greensquared

Thanks everyone. I've checked out Shay's info in the past, and strobist as well, but there's something extremely basic that I'm missing and I think it has to do with how to control the power in my particular flash unit. I guess I'll have to mess around with it some more.

Emily

colourbox

Greensquared wrote:

there's something extremely basic that I'm missing and I think it has to do with how to control the power in my particular flash unit.

Here is one Strobist lesson having to do with balancing ambient light by adjusting flash power, which is inextricably linked with your aperture and shutter speed.

pathfinder

With a manual strobe off camera, and your aperture fixed and not changed, and a shutter speed somewhere between 1/100 and 1/200th ( I am assuming the strobe is the main lighting source here )

Then, exposure is pretty much just a matter of moving the strobe closer or further away from the subject - the distances are the same ratio as f stops 2 feet, 2.8 feet , 4 feet, 5.6 feet, 8 feet, 11 feet, 16 feet, 22 feet each drops the light by one stop .

If the strobe has a convenient, AND accurate, mode of altering its output, you can use that of course...... But the distance method will always work without fail Once you know the distance, the ISO, and the aperture, you could calculate a flash Guide number, but that is too much thinking for me.

If you need even more or less light, then you can open or close the aperture as needed for the lighting from the strobe, or slow the shutter speed to increase ambient lights contribution. Slowing the shutter speed does not admit more light from the strobe, only ambient, of course.

If the strobe supports High Speed Synch ( and most non-OEM strobes do not, I think), then you could even cut ambient lights contribution by raising the shutter speed abve the max synch speed.

Greensquared

Thank you, Pathfinder. That is just the information I need! I figured it was either extremely basic, or a lot a calculations, but didn't want to feel like I was just guessing. Thanks for the tremendous help!

Emily

pathfinder

Happy to help a lady out

jdryan3

Greensquared wrote:

Thanks everyone. I've checked out Shay's info in the past, and strobist as well, but there's something extremely basic that I'm missing and I think it has to do with how to control the power in my particular flash unit. I guess I'll have to mess around with it some more.

Emily

Which one do you have? I used to have a 380EX, and I could only do FEC in camera. As Pathfinder said I picked up from practice what settings to use. That was a major reason I went for the new 580EX II. It is just more flexible (uh, and expensive!).

Greensquared

I'm using a Nikon SB26 with a Nikon D200.

All the info I've read says they can be used manually together, or in the Auto mode, just not TTL. Most people seem to just buy the new model so they can shoot in TTL mode, which I will probably do sometime in the future, but it's certainly not in the budget yet. I much prefer to learn how to do things manually and have a full understanding anyway before I go that route.

jdryan3 wrote:

Which one do you have? I used to have a 380EX, and I could only do FEC in camera. As Pathfinder said I picked up from practice what settings to use. That was a major reason I went for the new 580EX II. It is just more flexible (uh, and expensive!).