If you capture lots of low-light weddings, shoot a range of events, and make use of creative lighting, flash photography lets you bounce lights off the ceiling as you switch from master setting to slave setting remotely and adjust the power option with no running cables.
Flash photography is great for weddings. It allows to light shadows accordingly. This one is necessary when you don’t have very bright lens, particularly indoor. It also allows you to make a good shoot during the evening party, dark scene at night.
Using Flash During the Wedding
Flash is ideal when lighting conditions are difficult to light up a scene or a part of a scene you would like to photograph. The flash can be automatic with a TTL mode a.k.a Through The Lens, a measure of the exposition, or manual, sometimes both of them. Flashes can be combined with other small off-camera flashes and studio strobes, then it will drive other light sources. The best use is the indirect flash.
Top 2 Ways to Model Your Light
In order to have the most natural depiction (grey shadow and mat sheen) and not to light up your subject directly, you will need to model your light source. You can make use of light shapers against the flash as clouds can filter the ray of the sun or swerving the flashlight using a wall as a reflector.
1. Use Light Shapers
On the market, there is a multitude of light shapers for small off-camera flashes going from the simple diffuser to the little transportable softbox or beauty dish. According to the wished result it will be advisable to use an adapted light shaper. But these accessories have an important cost and are not easy to transport specially for the wedding photographer.
2. Swerving the Flash
For me it remains the best technique and the simplest to implement provided that the walls of the room are white or with clear color. You can direct your flashlight to the ceiling what will give a homogeneous reflected light creating little shadows under eyes and mouth. By directing the flash behind you, you will obtain a much more natural depiction. Never forget that the color of wall can modify your white balance! Indeed the flashlight will take the color of the wall.
Wedding at the Church
The church is generally the darkest place and one of the most important moment of the wedding. That the reason why it’s necessary to control your light. You can raise up the ISO until 3200 or 6400 but the post-production on Photoshop Lightroom will be so hard. If you make use of flash, the light bounces on the walls of the church and is then filtered when it arrive on the subject.
To conclude, it’s necessary to mix the various sources (natural and flash) and play with the white balance to blend yellow colors and blue colors in the lights. Swerving light is the best way to avoid sending light in front of subject and so having a flat picture. It’s necessary to create relief by moving the light source.
Additional Tips on Wedding Photography
Here’s a well-designed infographic about questions to ask a wedding photographer, bridal posing guide, as well as a wedding checklist. VIEW SOURCE
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May you get motivated to study this article on flash photography tips and apply it on your wedding venture. Find out what best works for you. Once you get used to it, you will certainly end up focusing more on the creative side of capturing wedding photography.
Lorenzo ACCARDI is a French wedding professional photographer who is passionate with creatiing people images, capturing their emotions, shapes and curves that are visually interesting. Check out his Website, or follow him on Facebook and Google Plus.