Flash ’em!

by Janet Denninger

Whether we travel to take pictures or just take pictures as we travel, we all want to come home with images which tell the story of our adventure and we are proud to share with friends and family. Each issue, this column will suggest simple techniques anyone can use, with any camera, to achieve a more dynamic picture.

Light up a smile

Almost every modern camera comes equipped with a flash. Whether yours is the automatic, pop-up variety or requires you to attach it, it’s a good idea to learn its capabilities and to use it often.

Your flash is not only there for use indoors, in low light. It can solve a variety of lighting and other problems.

Although it’s an old adage to put your subject in direct, strong sunlight, this is not always possible, or beneficial. Subjects tend to squint with the sun in their eyes, and strong sunshine can register everything bluish on film. If your subjects are people, try putting them in open shade and using your flash (on the red eye reduction setting) to even out any dappled light.

The red eye reduction setting produces a little burst of flash prior to the main one. This closes down the subject’s irises, making them less reflective and helping to minimize that awful “red eye” on the film or in digital media. Remind your subjects about the two flashes and ask them to hold still until they see the second flash.

If your subject is posing against the sun or a very light background like a glacier, he or she will come out as a dark sillouhette. Use your flash to illuminate that smile.

If your subject is a cute chipmunk, even if he’s some distance away, the flash will produce a slight highlight in the eye, making him look more lively and attractive on film.

Want to capture those beautiful roses in the park but the wind is blowing them around? Use your flash. Not only will it stop motion, it will even out the shadows you didn’t notice and darken the background, making your rose more dramatic.

Use your flash indoors? By all means, but watch out for highly reflective surfaces like mirrors, windows and eyeglasses — you’ll get a nasty glare. You can ask people to remove glasses, but often they look odd without this customary item. Shoot from an angle to avoid this.

Also, indoors, if your subjects are standing close to a wall or sitting on a sofa, a dark shadow will appear behind them with full flash. If you can, reduce the strength of your flash or have them step away from the wall a bit.

Your flash can’t really do anything about light on the Acropolis — the light won’t reach much over 10 feet. But we’ll talk about landscape and light in another column. Read your manual, and understand and use your flash. With little effort, you can immediately improve your results.

Janet M. Denninger is a photography tour operator.