Helpies/ party photography

[equinephoto's]

I'm shooting for a friend at her birthday ( nothing too big ) I have an eos 400d and I'm renting a 50mm 1.4 for the night I have a basic flashgun 'canon speedlite 220ex' It was just about settings, I have a fair idea, but wanted help as the flash gun isnt the best, I was told to just use my flash on the camera but wasn't really sure. Any help much appreciated!

 

[itsdavedotnet]

point the flash at the ceiling....

 

[Mike Jackson]

Have a read of http://photonotes.org/articles/eos-flash/index.html

Depending on how much ambient light there is and what sort of pictures you are looking to take will depend on how you set your camera up.

If you set it in AV or TV the camera will expose for ambient and use the flash for fill flash. This can give a nice feel to party shots but if the ambient is too low the shutter speed may be too low and you may need to up the ISO.

If you use the camera in manual and set the shutter and aperture to what you want the camera will try to use the flash to provide the correct exposure for the whole scene. This may be a problem with a lower powered flash like the 220.

 

[PSILVERMAN]

point the flash at the ceiling....

Except if it's a coloured ceiling!

 

[Tracer]

Except if it's a coloured ceiling!

Attach a white index card behind the flash head (as a 'bounce card') with an elastic band and it will prevent colour casts from the ceiling, and also fill any shadows under the eyes that can result from ceiling bounce.