Changing the flash output

You won't always need to use your camera's built in flash but there are times when a bit of extra light can be just enough to tease a picture to life. However, using too much light can saturate the picture, so how do you reduce the intensity when you want to use a bit of flash? 

Most modern DSLR cameras have a menu option which enables you to set flash controls. You will need to be in one of the programmable camera settings in order to access this menu, so shutter priority (TV or S) or aperture priority (AV), for example, as opposed to the fully automatic mode. 

Go through the menu tabs until you see a flash control option in the sub-headings list. 

Select flash control and within this section you will see an option to change the built-in flash function setting. Select this option.

Now select the exposure compensation option, as highlighted below.

Finally, set your flash intensity to more or less light (the default setting if you are going to use the flash is the zero, in the middle of the scale).

To compare the extremes of the settings available, the following four images range from flash plus 3 on the exposure compensation, flash at the 0 midpoint, flash at minus 3 exposure compensation, and no flash. No other settings were changed for the shots. 

+3                                                                                  0

-3                                                                        No flash

The difference between the extremes of +3 and no flash is very apparent. To expose a bit of detail without saturating the image I would suggest a setting between 0 and -3 for this particular photograph. 

(Note that all images on this post are my own. They are not marked up as such to avoid detracting from the detail of the pictures).

Making Music

I wanted to try something different with these pictures. As someone said to me recently, it can be fun to ‘make’ a photograph rather than just to ‘take’ the picture. The following photographs were made using everyday equipment and with no editing. 

As a keen musician I enjoy the range of emotions which music can provoke and I wanted to capture some of this in the photos. From a tempestuous symphony to a delicate sonata, I tried to represent a flavour of the different feelings associated with music. 

For these pictures I used the shutter priority mode and speeds ranging from 1 second to 1/60 second. I used a dark sheet for the background and an uplighter and a torch to create the lighting which I wanted. The faster shutter speeds of 1/60 second were used for the clarinet pictures to catch the glitter burst. I slowed the shutter down for the guitar photos and used incense sticks to paint across the picture. In the first guitar picture I used a star filter on the camera lens to bring the lights to life. 

The camera was mounted on a tripod and I used a cable shutter release. Doing this avoided camera shake and also afforded greater flexibility in using the props to create the images.

This is just the first effort and might lead to a more detailed project in time. I prefer not to edit images after taking them so will need to come up with a range of different ways to make further images as opposed to just taking photographs of musical instruments.

Pet Portraits

I enjoy taking photographs of pets. Using portrait photography techniques, you can capture such wonderful expressions in their eyes. I recently took a series of pet portrait photographs at home and thought I would share the results with you.

I wanted to focus on the eyes in particular, leaving much of the rest of the picture to the imagination. This worked well for the darker cats although the lighter coloured cats were obviously more clearly visible against the backdrop.

I was particularly pleased with this set of pictures as I did not use any specialist equipment but instead used things which I had to hand around the house. This included a combination of lights, a dark velvet sheet, and a distraction toy.

The camera was on a tripod and I used a cable shutter release to avoid camera shake. The shutter speed ranged from 1/125 to 1/250 seconds and the ISO remained fixed at 3200. By using an uplighter and a small torch I created all the light I wanted for the shots. Fortunately the subjects all sat still for long enough for me to take some sharp photographs.

Don McCullin Quote

"Sometimes it felt like I was carrying pieces of human flesh back home with me, not negatives. It's as if you are carrying the suffering of the people you have photographed."

Guardian article