 Andrea R. Siebert |
vertical shots without shadows i have had a problem with vertical shots and shadows to one side or the other of the person(s) i'm shooting. can you tell me the best position to point my flash (SB800). should I poisition my flash to bounce off the ceiling or will that limit my light? one person suggested to 'swivel your flash head so that it bounces to the upper far right or left of the subject' i'm not sure if understood this so if you know and can explain it to me that would be great! Sorry if this question is hard to thanks! Andrea Siebert
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anonymous |
Andrea This happens to me also, I think the only real way to elimiate it is to use a flash bracket. Flashes are at their optimum when they are in their normal position (ie horizontal), but this can't be done without a flash bracket on a vertical shot.
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John P. Sandstedt |
Natalie's correct. You'll need a flash bracket to get the flash into the proper orientation at the top of the camera. I use the Stroboframe. But, you can also try using some kind of reflector. There are inexpensive, collapsable ones available. The trick is to properly position them, something that does take away spontaneity! Check out this month's Pop Photo. There's an article about wearing and using a white shirt as the reflecting device. Cool idea.
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Andrea R. Siebert |
thanks for responding so quickly. I don't have the option of getting aflash bracket right now, so what is your best suggestion when not using one? i have a flash reflector, but its tricky positioning it when doing a vertical shot...it doesn't work very well. your suggestions are very important to me! thanks for you time! andrea
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John P. Sandstedt |
Get a piece of white board. Place it on the side of your subject that usually has the black shadow. Shhot. If you use a digicam, check the LCD to determine whether you need to change the board's position.
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Kerry L. Walker |
Andrea, as others have stated, the best option to eliminate the shadows is a bracket. However, you can get the same results by bouncing your flash off the nearest available white surface, be it a wall, the ceiling, a piece of white poster board, etc.
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Debby A. Tabb |
As everyone has stated, a flash bracket really is the best way, here is a Ebay link to a Stroboframe: http://cgi.ebay.com/Stroboframe-Flash-Bracket-Quick-Flip-120-Mamiya-Nikon_W0QQitemZ140128505371QQihZ004QQcategoryZ3350QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem I do hope this helps,
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robert G. Fately |
Andrea, while a flash bracket is one approach, as John alludes above, you can also use a diffuser (not a reflector, actually). In general, the issue is that when the flash head is above the lens axis (in normal position) any shadowing will generally fall behind and nelow the subject. But when you turn to portrait mode and the flash ends up on the left (or right) side of the camera, the shadow falls to the opposite side of the subject and becomes immediately noticeable. A proper bracket will allow you to flip the camera and still have the flash in the 12 o'clock position - and this will work. You want to be sure to get a decent bracket - if the "flipping" mechanism is weak the camera might start to reorient or get shaky. I've had Stroboframes (will sell you one if you like) but found the Custom brackets brand to be a far better made piece of gear. Yet I have pretty much avoided using brackets at all after going with a diffuser. The one I like best is the Gary Fong lightsphere (though he has a new one called the 'whale tail'). You can find his website, on which he has plenty of examples and some video demos as well. I find the lightsphere produces a very nice light effect, making the light seemingly almost "wrap around" the subject (can't explain the physics of that!) and it works in landscape and portrait modes without the use of a bracket at all. You might find it worth a look.
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Andrea R. Siebert |
when you use this diffuser are you still pointing the flash directly to the right or left of the subject when doing a vertical portrait?
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robert G. Fately |
The diffuser sits on top of the flash head, which is set to point to the ceiling. If you rotate the flash head 90 degrees, then when you flip the camera to portrait mode you can simply 'bend' the flash so once again the light is aimed upward. If you are outdoors and there is no ceiling for bouncing, there is a "diffuser cap" that you can simply pop on the top of the diffuser. Again, check out their website at http://store.garyfonginc.com/wt.html to see what I'm describing. Hope that helps!
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John P. Sandstedt |
Actually, Bob, I was suggesting using a reflector. Diffusers, that mount on small flash heads, may not be the best waty to go at all. Collapsible reflectors can be stored at about 10-12 diameter "pancakes." They are positioned near the subject, as you well know. The difficulty is spontaneity, as I said before. I have a Lumiquest diffuser for attaching to my EZ-420 flash and, frankly, never liked the results.
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