[WMBP]

Have been perusing this site:

http://www.planetneil.com/tangents/flash-photography-techniques/1-natural-looking-flash/
which is very good for flash photography tips.

Yep, lots of great stuff there. Throw in strobist.com and you've got a whole year's worth of study!

I've found that setting the camera to manual and trying to bounce the flash does give the best results I have had so far. Only trouble is that it takes a lot more time to setup. For those that have done some event photography (wedding, bar-mitzfah, engagement, etc) what is your technique for using flash?

Gosh, I thought I'd contributed an answer earlier but it looks like I didn't actually hit submit. I've just read through this whole thread with some amusement. A few comments, partly in response to the OP's question, and partly in response to the later developments in the thread.

First, to the OP: Flash is a black art. You have to learn to think differently about almost everything you're doing. Now you raise two somewhat distinct issues: P-TTL vs M mode on the flash; and bounce vs don't bounce. I can give a pretty definitive answer to the second question: When you can, bounce away, definitely. However, the first question is harder to answer. P-TTL seems to work pretty well when you bounce most of the time. But it has a number of problems.

One problem is that some people are sensitive enough that the P-TTL preflashes actually cause them to react, and in this case you end up with photos in which the bride's eyes are frequently drooping. (Had this happen a year ago.) If you shoot M mode, you don't get this problem, because the flash goes off just the once.

The other problem is that P-TTL metering is, at least in my experience, somewhat iffy and especially when bouncing. I don't know why but it's a fact. Using the flash in M mode is also somewhat iffy - settings for one shot might not work for another a minute later if I've moved and the total lighting equation has changed. But I seem to get more consistent results using M than P-TTL, especially when bouncing - which I do pretty much whenever possible.

*

I've attached three shots taken in my living room. Two were taken with P-TTL; for the third, the flash was in M mode. Two were bounced; for the third, the flash was pointed directly at the fireplace with the flash head angled straight forward (90°) and the distance meter displayed on the back of the 540 FGZ. It should be clear that shot B is the least attractive of the three: that's the one using P-TTL with the flash pointing straight forward. You can see unnatural reflections on the floor and even on the side "columns" of the fireplace, and the innards of the fireplace are unnaturally bright. I think the most successful of the three is the one where I put the flash to M, set power to 1/8, and bounced. How did I pick 1/8? Well, experience helps a lot here and I got lucky and got it right the first time. Normally though I'd take a test shot or two.

It is quite clear to me - and this thread proved it in spades - that the user manual for the 540 FGZ, while not completely useless, is not nearly as helpful as one would like it to be. And I know of no other authoritative sources of info about Pentax's flash system. This is a shame.

One other thing that I know is that P-TTL absolutely CAN work when you bounce it. It worked here better (shot A) than straight-on P-TTL (shot B). Although I now generally put both camera and flash into full manual modes when using flash, I didn't always, and I shot all of my early weddings using P-TTL and bouncing the flash. The results were inconsistent and sometimes a shot was just downright bad, but most shots were at least usable. I use M mode now because I was unhappy enough with my P-TTL results to keep experimenting with alternatives. I've also tried Auto on the flash; can't remember why I didn't stick with that.

When you're learning flash, the first thing to master (in my opinion) is how to properly expose a subject that is not moving around, for example, a group of people standing at the altar for a formal shot (as opposed to couples dancing at the reception). Shooting moving targets - while you yourself may be moving around - is the real challenge. Shooting dancing couples at a reception inside a barn, every time I move, my flash bounces a little differently. IN certain situations, where there's a good bounce surface, I've gotten pretty good and pretty confident. But there are other situations that continue to challenge me.

Will

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[flyer]

And I know of no other authoritative sources of info about Pentax's flash system. This is a shame.

You can get a some info about P-TTL and it's behavior here: Digital SLR and P-TTL flash guide

[alohadave]

One problem is that some people are sensitive enough that the P-TTL preflashes actually cause them to react, and in this case you end up with photos in which the bride's eyes are frequently drooping. (Had this happen a year ago.) If you shoot M mode, you don't get this problem, because the flash goes off just the once.

That's me. I always blink with the preflash. It never fails.

[WMBP]

That's me. I always blink with the preflash. It never fails.

I've had it be a problem with a fairly significant percentage of my brides and grooms and with some portrait subjects. For me, it's been enough of a problem that I feel I can't use P-TTL for this reason alone.

Will

[Ash]

I've been fortunate to be able to use P-TTL on all my weddings and experienced little problem with blinks - it usually happens with group shots, though - someone's bound to blink at just the right moment. But good thing for digital - just chimp and shoot again or move on...

[flyer]

little problem with blinks - it usually happens with group shots, though - someone's bound to blink at just the right moment.

On group shots, ask everybody to shut their eyes and open them on the count of three. You take the picture at four...:ugh:

[alohadave]

On group shots, ask everybody to shut their eyes and open them on the count of three. You take the picture at four...:ugh:

Another good tip is to keep counting past 3. At about 5 everyone gets the joke and relax, laugh and give you real smiles.

[sifun]

wow this thread. what a read-
Using flash seems so difficult. must read more tutorials

[Ben_Edict]

Another good tip is to keep counting past 3. At about 5 everyone gets the joke and relax, laugh and give you real smiles.

Tha6's a good way to get releaxed pics. But there are still those people who actually react on the preflash and will blink their eyes again.

Ben

[sifun]

I am pretty new to flash photography, but I just had a few questions regarding camera settings etc.

For example, if i am in a low light situation, how do I know what camera settings to use in terms of shutter speed, aperture if there are flash involved?
Are the camera settings that you obtain from the settings measured with what you have in the given light correct for shutter, aperture to get the correct exposure?

If I bounce off a roof, doesn't that affect exposure to a point that exposure of the subject will be inaccurate? Does that mean I need to compensate on the flash gun?

[MrApollinax]

wow this thread. what a read-
Using flash seems so difficult. must read more tutorials

I'm starting to get the basics down myself.

Start here: Strobist: Lighting 101

Then go here: Strobist: Lighting 102: Introduction

I've been shooting on-camera bounced with my 540 but I've now added some radio triggers and my friend's 280T. Since then it is like a whole different game.

[egordon99]

I am pretty new to flash photography, but I just had a few questions regarding camera settings etc.

For example, if i am in a low light situation, how do I know what camera settings to use in terms of shutter speed, aperture if there are flash involved?
Are the camera settings that you obtain from the settings measured with what you have in the given light correct for shutter, aperture to get the correct exposure?

If I bounce off a roof, doesn't that affect exposure to a point that exposure of the subject will be inaccurate? Does that mean I need to compensate on the flash gun?

Basically, with flash, the FLASH exposure is solely determined by flash power (actually duration, how long the bulb is actually firing for), aperture and ISO. Ambient exposure is determined by ISO, shutter speed, and aperture (just like without any flash), so the trick is balancing the two. If I'm indoors in a smallish room (such as in someone's house), I usually just forget about ambient since the flash is powerful enough to light up the entire room (hence the 1/180s below, if the flash didn't fire, I'd have a more or less black picture) Now although you're shooting MANUAL Mode, that's only for the ambient exposure (the exposure needle in the viewfinder will blink warning you about underexposure, but ignore that). The camera's P-TTL metering will determine the needed flash output for a proper exposure.

Here's something I wrote on another forum -
"Easy" recipe for great P-TTL flash shots -
1)Point flash at ceiling/wall (to the side or behind you, experimentation is the key!)
2)Put camera in MANUAL mode on the mode dial
3)Set FEC to +1 on the flash head

4)Shoot RAW (this allows you to recover some highlights that might get blown as a result of #3 above)

5)Set ISO to 200 (to start)
6)Set shutter speed to 1/180s
7)Set f-stop to whatever DOF you want


Now if the flash runs out of "power" because of high ceilings, you can raise the ISO or open up the f-stop to compensate. Or you can slow down the shutter to bring more ambient light into the exposure (in addition to adjusting ISO/f-stop) If the ceiling is REALLY high (like in a church), you may need a reflector to throw some of the light forward (I use the Joe Demb Flip-it).

Quick and dirty outdoor fill flash tutorial -
Basically, if your subject is in shade and the background is bright (ie under a tree) or majorly backlit, fill flash is your friend. Think of those times when you got a properly exposed background, but the subject was almost pitch black.

Put camera into Av mode, metering will set the shutter speed to expose the overall shot (which in the situations that call for fill-flash will generally be the background) based on your selected aperture/ISO.
Make sure flash is set to HSS (in case your shutter speed go faster than 1/180s) and P-TTL. Fire away! The shutter speed/f-stop/ISO will expose the background, and the flash should output enough power to light up the foreground.

Now to control the background exposure, you use exposure compensation on the camera body (which would adjust the shutter speed), to adjust how much fill for the flash exposure, you use Flash exposure compensation. The trick is balancing the two (as it is with indoor work), and that comes with experience/experimentation.

[sifun]

Thanks for the feedback- will experiment cheers