On Camera Flash Tips and Tricks

[@bikemanrockfan]

Thank you for including both the hits and misses. As a photographer leading portraiture and flash I learn so much from seeing the misses and how you work to correct them. Long term subscriber, first time commenter. Thank you for all the work you do to make these videos from us. I love the no-bull, real working pro presentation.

[@kaskoPhoto]

That means a lot, appreciate the support.

[@dpfreedman]

What an amazing building you're in, John. It's half museum and half Coney Island.

[@kaskoPhoto]

It is incredible. The owner did way to many drugs in his early years and this building is the result 😂

[@robscott9312]

Thank’s John for your honest and humble account of the shoot. Your drive to help photographers and enthusiasts never wanes. Your videos shows both the highs and lows of the shoot and provide solutions to the problems. Thanks again regards Rob

[@musanetesakupwanya1050]

You have no idea how much these videos are helping me. I just got an old 430ex ii in immaculate condition (owner literally just kept it in the box), and this journey with flash has been so exciting! Feel like a kid. I picked up my camera about a month ago after 3 yrs of just toying around once every 6 months.. Taking it far more seriously now and enjoying your advice immensely! 😊

[@kaskoPhoto]

Thank you so much, that really is exciting. I hope I continue to help. Thank you.

[@RandumbTech]

This is so helpful to see the keepers AND the missed shots - thx John!

[@kaskoPhoto]

Very welcome. Always hate to show misses but they are more important than the keepers

[@sli8462]

If this was all in one building, what an awesome array of different backdrops! That being said, I really appreciate how to the point this video was. No wasted dialogue... everything you said was purposeful with direct examples showcasing what can occur and how to fix it. Very useful and very practical scenarios.

[@kaskoPhoto]

It really is a great place to shoot and I appreciate you taking the time to watch and comment.

[@jasonbodden8816]

For the phone booth shot that you said the dress blends in too much, I think it's perfect lol. I absolutely love that shot. It totally works for me. Great vid, as always :)

[@kaskoPhoto]

Thank you! I love the shot, and I get it. But if that dress doesn’t stand out above all it’s not going to work for them

[@jasonbodden8816]

@ Well, yeah, to show off the dress it doesn’t really work but as a glamour shot it totally does 🙂

[@kaskoPhoto]

@ agreed. Unfortunately they are signing the check 😂😂

[@jasonbodden8816]

@@kaskoPhoto Yip 😄

[@juliobarkan9529]

Great information. A lot of thinking goes into a shoot that most people don't think about or know. Thanks for bring that to our attention. .

[@kaskoPhoto]

You’re very welcome! Thank you so much for watching and commenting.

[@marcthibault8723]

Love your commentary as it helps analyze the photos! Thanks for another informative video! 🇨🇦

[@kaskoPhoto]

Very welcome! Thank you for watching and commenting

[@lubopaskov4346]

Love this video. Love this thought: thinking about my photo vs thinking about my client needs. By the way the proper way to think about the stofen is “barebulb converter”

[@kaskoPhoto]

Thank you very much!

[@ArminHirmer]

when Bruna is in, we always enjoy it :)

[@kaskoPhoto]

😂 that will make her day.

[@ArminHirmer]

@@kaskoPhoto she does not need me for that :D

[@tedphillips2951]

Really interesting & helpful video.

[@kaskoPhoto]

Thank you. Appreciate you watching.

[@Tom_YouTube_stole_my_handle]

Nice practical demonstration of on camera flash in the field. Couple of questions: Opinion on the round versus rectangular flash heads? And secondly as you admit more of the ambient into the scene how do you manage the differing white balance between flash and ambient background?

[@kaskoPhoto]

I think the roundhead may have a tiny benefit, depending on how you’re shooting it. I think magnetic modifiers are the biggest benefit of them. In the old days, I would just throw a filter on the flash. Unfortunately, today, with a mix between LEDs and standard lightbulbs everywhere, there is really no one filter that can do the trick. I’m always using my flash as a fill or a touch more so the color difference isn’t that vast and when it is, I can correct it in Photoshop.

[@leeinnes7127]

Your videos are always a great watch.

[@kaskoPhoto]

Awe thank you!

[@merkury06]

Very very helpful Thank you!

[@kaskoPhoto]

You are very welcome!

[@kennethnielsen3864]

Thanks for sharing.

[@kaskoPhoto]

Thanks for watching!

[@ChacoOutdoorsman]

Great video, great content and awesome pictures. Waiting on my ZF and Voigtlander 40 f1.2 thanks to your review

[@kaskoPhoto]

Good choice! I love that setup.

[@johnkasianowicz6536]

Nice video!

[@kaskoPhoto]

Thank you for watching!

[@AndreasSchmidt-e6c]

Great video as always, thank you for that. Would you please be so kind to tell me what flash-mode was used, auto or manual? Thank you.

[@kaskoPhoto]

I actually used a mixture of both on the shoot.

[@toothoot8202]

When you do these fast paced shoots, constantly changing location and ambient lighting conditions, is your flash on manual or TTL (while using fully manual camera settings)? If flash is TTL, which metering mode do you use? I use spot metering and expose for the face but sometimes the flash power output seems inconsistent, dependent on where I point that small focus/exposure square on the face. Any advice?

[@kaskoPhoto]

That is to broad of a question / answer. I did use TTL a few times in this shoot and made on the fly adjustments with flash compensation. But manual mode is key for some of the more trying lighting conditions

[@dsimon9s29]

Thank you for posting. So when using the flash, in my case the SF40, when tilting the flash head upwards(to bounce of ceiling or side wall), is the flash/camera smart enough to make adjustments or do you find yourself using a slight exposure compensation? Assuming you are using the flash in TTL mode.

[@kaskoPhoto]

Again, this depends on the room in the shooting situations. When I’m shooting events with the SF 40 I am in manual mode and 99% of the time. But in a smaller room, I do find the camera/flash combination is smart enough.

[@shadyninja1]

What flash power did you use when pointing the flash head towards your subject or model.

[@kaskoPhoto]

It varied but never went above 1/8th

[@stephenspiteri_zunkus]

I’m curious on how you shot the black dress in studio. Did you shoot on white? Still difficult I think.

[@kaskoPhoto]

I did shoot on the white with manual settings. The key with that kind of contrast lies in the distance from the backdrop more than settings adjustments. A little closer to the background helps even out the exposure.

[@clay_atc]

John! Question. How do the different metering modes change the flash output when in TTL? Or am I misunderstanding TTL? What is the best mode for TTL?

[@kaskoPhoto]

That’s a really good question, but I don’t think there’s a best mode for ttl. And it really does depend on the environment, the clothing and so much more. On a Sony flash to ttl system with newer cameras, it actually considers the face. And using a spot meter, with someone wearing a black suit say, or a white dress- that spot is most likely going to fall on the outfit instead of the face anyway. So a multi metering mode is usually best with TTL.

[@veivoli]

@@kaskoPhoto Hah! I was wandering around taking photos outdoors on a bright cloudy day, so set my camera to spot metering so I could choose what I wanted to expose for. Later I was asked to take quick group photo in a room with mixed lighting, so put the flash on the camera. Unfortunately my entry level Nikon (I'm old and poor, with the emphasis on *poor*) only does TTL in matrix or centre-weighted metering, so the images were overexposed. Luckily not so much that I couldn't recover detail from the highlights. I recommend that people RTFM to see if their camera/flash combination has similar restrictions. And I need to remember to take a few seconds to check the settings, or a few seconds more and go manual.

[@Tom_YouTube_stole_my_handle]

@@veivoli With Nikon it will help your flash exposure to keep the focus point on the subject during the exposure, ideally on the face.

[@veivoli]

@@Tom_KZbin_stole_my_handle That's not what I said. Metering has to be matrix or centre weighted in my case. Nothing to do with focus.

[@Tom_YouTube_stole_my_handle]

@@veivoli Flash metering in Nikon is heavily influenced by where the focussing point is. Nothing to do with focus. Depending on which camera and flash you have, spot metering may turn off i-TTL BL but it does not turn off TTL metering. You cannot for example expect to lock focus and recompose and get a consistent flash exposure as the focussing point is no longer over the subject.