outside fill flash

[Keltic Ice Man]

I'm trying to get my head around fill flash when I take shots outside.

I have the 350D and a Sigma 500DG Super. Can I get Fill flash when shooting in Manual mode. I know if I were to shoot in AV or TV it would be fill flash as the 350 does this if the flash it EttL.

Any thoughts / comments / things to try would be gratefully accepted.

I'm looking to achieve outside portraits with only the Canon and the flash and maybe a bit of sunlight to add to the mix.

[CT]

AS long as the flash is set to ETTL, it will provide fill flash in any camera mode including Manual. Just make sure you meter for the ambient light and the flash will adjust it's output accordingly. You'll find the results pretty well acceptable usually, but the final balance of flash to daylight is a matter of personal taste. I usually reduce flash power by about 1.5 to 2 stops to keep the flash effective but subtle, but as always - take a couple of test shots first.

[pxl8]

Yep, what CT said. ETTL does a great job in most situations.

[iriches]

You could do a lot worse than read the EOS Flash Bible:

http://photonotes.org/articles/eos-flash/

This explains the ins and outs of the EOS flash system in detail. The section on using flash in Manual Exposure mode is here:

http://photonotes.org/articles/eos-flash/index2.html#manualexposureflash

Ian