Off-camera flash for portraiture

DrGed

DrGed

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Ged
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I'm seriously thinking of getting into off-camera flash for portraiture but I only have a rough idea of what I need. The phrase "the devil is in the detail" is very much applicable in this case, and I would appreciate some advice from those who know about this topic.

What I've already got is as follows :-

My camera is a Canon EOS1000D with the standard 18-55mm lens. I have two tripods and two stands for photographic lights.

What I think I need is... ...

Obviously, I need a flashgun and I was thinking along the lines of one of the YN range, possibly a 460 or 560, so long as they're compatible with my fairly basic DSLR.

Everyone seems to go for wireless triggers and so I'll need both a transmitter and receiver but there seems such a vast array available out there and I am constrained by a fairly tight budget. Can anyone recommend anything suitable?

Then there is the matter of attaching the flash to either a tripod or a light stand. Even in the area of clamps and brackets there seems to be a big range of quality and price. Like everyone else, I suppose, I don't want to spend a fortune but neither do I want to buy cheap rubbish that won't last five minutes.

There may be some aspect of this that I've overlooked since I'm a beginner and so my list of what I need may be incomplete.

I'd be more than grateful if anyone could point me in the direction of some pieces of kit that would be compatible with what I already own and that wouldn't cost me an arm and a leg.

Many Thanks,

Ged
 
If you're getting a yn560 you can get a pair of wireless triggers for about 24 quid. Look for yongnuo rf603c for a canon.

You won't get TTL so you'll need to learn to manual flash, but that's possibly a good thing!

(I'm a flash newbie, just ordered the above so just starting out. )
 
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You can try this first:
1. set manual flash output and minimal flash output power for the pop-up flash (eg. at 1/64)
2. set S1 on the Yn560 flashes
3. just shoot. the optical slave unit in those will pick up the pop-up flash and sync.

Cheapest way to do off-camera flash. only need the off-camera flashes. Problem is that the pop-up flash might be picked up, could tape a card to direct it away. I prefer to have some direct lighting for fill flash. The 2 flash becomes flash ratios.

Strobist is the best source of information for off camera flashes, have a dig through their 101 tutorial:
http://strobist.blogspot.co.uk/
 
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What Richard said for triggers.

But what you've missed is the important bit, a modifier. A small uncontrolled point light source won't offer much variety and will produce quite hard shadows. Think about a folding softbox, umbrellas are cheaper but won't offer the same control as a softbox due to light spill.

Then add a reflector - you can get a useful 5 in 1 without breaking the bank.
 
Thanks for the replies.

For me, modifiers seem to be the easy part of this one.

What I'm actually worried about is the pop-up flash which, when used on its own, goes off twice per exposure. As I understand things, the set up needs to be such that the camera only interacts with the external flash and I don't know how to do this.

If you put a wireless trigger on the camera's hot-shoe and have the camera on manual will that "do the trick" or is it not as simple as that? Obviously, you'd have to do some test exposures to get the aperture right but I don't see that as a great inconvenience.

Ged
 
If you're using wireless triggers, the only flash that'll fire is the external one, the popup won't lift with a trigger attached.
 
DrGed said:
What I'm actually worried about is the pop-up flash which, when used on its own, goes off twice per exposure. As I understand things, the set up needs to be such that the camera only interacts with the external flash and I don't know how to do this.
Click to expand...

The YN-460 & 560 flashguns have 2 slave modes - one where they fire on seeing 'any' flash, the other which ignores 'pre-flash', such as that made by a pop-up flash in TTL mode - which is what you probably want.
 
I personally thought of using the slave mode, but it seems messy to try to sync to the on-camera flash. I may be wrong about that, but for 24 quid I thought going wireless would be cleaner (once you add more flashes, you can slave those to your first off-camera flash).

Yes, I think you'll need to work in manual and fire test shots. The http://strobist.blogspot.co.uk/ blog has a good tutorial where they expose for the background, then underexpose and then add in the flash at different settings.
 
THere are triggers that will operate in TTL and Manual. Take a look at the Yongnuo 622C trancievers. There is a huge thread on this.
 
Get just the one set of triggers, rf603 will do, but then get the Yongnuo 560 III flash guns, they have an inbuilt rf603/602 receiver, you use the triggers as a shutter release and they also trigger the flash guns if they are 560 III, saves money buying triggers for each flash.
 
Many thanks for all the replies : I am very much encouraged by the help offered to a beginner.

Having thought about things, I was just about ready to remove the cobwebs from my debit card and buy one of these :-

http://www.amazon.co.uk/ELECTRONIC-...=1369053129&sr=1-1-fkmr1&keywords=yongnuo+260

and these

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Yongnuo-RF-...2983&sr=8-1&keywords=yongnuo+rf603c+for+canon.

and then experiment with modifiers.

The trouble is I've spoken to a photographer who expressed doubts about the reliability of Yongnuo speedlites and also about the practicality of doing portraits with a single off camera flash. Yes, I was a bit deflated, to be honest. However I do know that these speedlights get good reviews on Amazon.

What do people think a) about the reliability of Yongnuo speedlights and b) the feasibility of portraiture using a single off camera flash?

Thanks,

Ged
 
DrGed said:
...
What do people think a) about the reliability of Yongnuo speedlights and b) the feasibility of portraiture using a single off camera flash?

Thanks,

Ged
Click to expand...

a) Plenty of people are using them, they're great vfm and whilst there are some reported problems, they are worth a punt unless you can afford better.

b) Yes, definitely, in fact starting with a single light is definitely the best way to learn lighting. Like cooking, it's easier to add than to remove, and if you start with a complex setup and it turns out rubbish, then pinning down your mistake can be tricky. Get one light right, add a reflector, then add more lights when you have a use for them.
 
Thanks for your advice, Phil.

I'll be ordering that kit from Amazon tomorrow.

Cheers,

Ged
 
Phil's advice spot on as usual!

Good luck Ged, I'm starting with the same kit. I'm going to be getting a shoot through umbrella (the strobist blog advises them), but I think a soft box might be in order after Phil's advice.

I suspect it's going to take a LOT of trial and error and tears, but that's what it's all about!
 
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I use the 560II all the time, build quality is surprisingly good and not had an issue yet with reliability.

Shoot through brolly's are a good place to start, just be aware that if you are in a small space with a low ceiling the light will bounce around everywhere.
 
I have 3 yongnuo flashes and have nothing bad to say about them!

I echo the comments about small spaces and shoot through umbrellas. I got one initially but now prefer to use my softbox.
 
Thanks, again, everyone! :)

I did see that the Yongnou flashes got good reviews on Amazon and the comments on here have strengthened my belief that they're O.K.

I will let everyone know how I get on

Ged
 
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