Off-camera flash for weddings

[Uncle Frank]

I use a single flash on an stand, fired through a white umbrella, for last weekend's formals, which were pretty informal .

[wildscenes]

These are very nice images Frank, the flash is lovely and soft on these. Must try the old strobist technique myself, but I usually end up i-TTling it off the ceiling. Are warming the flash at all, say with a 1/4CTO? Also, how are you doing the exposure? manual, then setting the flash at 1/4 power and chimping?

Regards

John

[Uncle Frank]

Originally Posted by wildscenes

These are very nice images Frank, the flash is lovely and soft on these.

Thanks, John.

how are you doing the exposure? manual, then setting the flash at 1/4 power and chimping?

Bingo!

[Mark McCall]

Lucky guy!...look at the big brown eyes on that bride.
You can feel the warmth in these shots. Very informal, very relaxed.
Outstanding job, Frank.

I see only a small nitpick, and that is the "spider" growing on the shoulder of the bride in shot #1.
We always teach our students to place the arm around the waist of the bride to avoid the "spider syndrome".

Great series. Great day to shoot outdoors too.

[Bomber]

manual, then setting the flash at 1/4 power and chimping?

... excuse my ignorance, what is "Chimping" ?

[Mark McCall]

Chimping is going "oh, oh, ah, ah" while viewing a great shot on the back of the camera. (much like the sound a chimpanzee makes).

[Uncle Frank]

Originally Posted by Mark McCall

Lucky guy!...look at the big brown eyes on that bride.
You can feel the warmth in these shots. Very informal, very relaxed.
Outstanding job, Frank.

Thanks, Mark. I was lucky to have such a beautiful bride to work with.

I see only a small nitpick, and that is the "spider" growing on the shoulder of the bride in shot #1.
We always teach our students to place the arm around the waist of the bride to avoid the "spider syndrome".

I try to avoid them too, but looking at that set, there were spiders in all 4 samples . Not fatal flaws, but they do detract from the portraits. I'll be more diligent in the future.

[JDArt]

These are fantastic: wonderful color and clarity.

[Brewyet]

Frank, Nice job! I like them mucho aloto. (that is the extent of my Spanish Great exposure and posing. Where was your light in relation to you and your camera? How high up is your light? Thanks...Chris

[kc7dji]

Frank,

Those are very nice! Where did you have the stand and umbrella positioned? Just behind and above you? Almost straight on but to the side a little?

The only think I see your flash setup couldn't do was fix the hair on all those guys.....

[Uncle Frank]

Thanks J-Dart, Chris, & Scott! It's always a treat when folks take the time to comment on one of my pictures.

The flash was on an 8 foot stand, positioned ahead of the camera to insure it would trigger wirelessly. The stand was to the left of the camera, and the angle varied based on the size of the group.

[jfrancho]

Frank, did you have to spin the base of the flash around, so it pointed at the camera, and rotate the head 180° to point the light at the subject? I sometimes have to do that with my Canon flashes.

[Uncle Frank]

Originally Posted by jfrancho

Frank, did you have to spin the base of the flash around, so it pointed at the camera, and rotate the head 180° to point the light at the subject? I sometimes have to do that with my Canon flashes.

The built in Nikon system relies on visible light from the internal flash, an external flash, or an IR contraption to command the remote. The remote's receptor port has to be on the same side of the flash as the commander. It doesn't have to be pointed directly at the commander, but it has to be ahead of the commander not behind it.

[KellyL]

I've got to work on my off camera flash so badly. Frank, you post so many examples with things turning out so beautiful. If I would ONLY get my act in gear and start playing with that OCF.

Mark: The chimp has evolved. I don't think you have to oooo ahh ahh ahh anymore. I think you just have to say, "Dangit...look at that histogram."

[Uncle Frank]

Originally Posted by KellyL

I've got to work on my off camera flash so badly. Frank, you post so many examples with things turning out so beautiful. If I would ONLY get my act in gear and start playing with that OCF.

It's worth the effort, Kelly. I think there's been a step function improvement in my work since I've gone off-camera with my strobes. It makes the results look 3 dimensional, even with my most inexpensive lenses. I used the 35mm f/2 prime for this baby pic.




Try if out, Kelly, and I guarantee you'll be hooked.

[KellyL]

Very nice. How are you triggering your flash? How are you diffusing it? I hate outdoor flash. I hate outdoor pictures. I used to love them, until I started posting on the camel and realized how bad my outdoor shots are.

[Uncle Frank]

Originally Posted by KellyL

Very nice. How are you triggering your flash? How are you diffusing it?

I set up a location "studio space"... a temporary studio... for the baby pics, and shot two strobes through umbrellas. I shoot Nikon, and control my remote strobes wirelessly with an infrared controller called an su800.

I hate outdoor flash. I hate outdoor pictures. I used to love them, until I started posting on the camel and realized how bad my outdoor shots are.

All it takes is one strobe to get an outdoor off-camera-flash effect. Use the ambient light as the fill, and the off-camera-flash for the main, and viola...

[White Buffalo]

Originally Posted by Uncle Frank

It's worth the effort, Kelly. I think there's been a step function improvement in my work since I've gone off-camera with my strobes. It makes the results look 3 dimensional, even with my most inexpensive lenses. I used the 35mm f/2 prime for this baby pic.




Try if out, Kelly, and I guarantee you'll be hooked.

This one is enough to melt any mans heart

[WildHorse]

Those wedding images are great.