Using hot shoe flash for night photography of people..

[JimNotJon]

Bit of a strange title so let me explain. A friend of mine has organised a birthday night out for the end of this month for his other half, and it is going to be a "famous faces" theme. He's created a back drop, got hold of a short piece of red carpet and couple of chrome bollards with a red rope to create a Hollywood Red Carpet type scene. He want's me to capture some photos of guests entering the bar, and some during the party, candids and poses etc.

I own a relatively old Pentax K10d but no flash for the hot shoe, but I shall be purchasing one, on a cheap budget as to be honest I probably won't ever use it again and.. I'm not getting paid for the favour so cost needs to be low.

Just looking for a few recommendations on what flash to get, and how to go about capturing the moment. I need the subjects well lit and the background vinyl (like they have behind real life movie red carpet events) not to be washed out either. I haven't a clue what to do as I have never used flash before.

[gck303]

Try a Metz 48 or 58. I would be suspect of anything costing less than £80-100 new.

A decent flash is not cheap. And a cheap flash won't have the power or coverage to do what you are after. Plus, there are electronics and sensors in the flash, which must communicate with the camera, to ensure that the exposure is correct.

I have used a Nikon SLR with a large flash that mounts to the shoe, and people have always been very surprised by the photographs taken. Even on a bright day, I will sometimes use a flash to pick out face details.

I think you will be surprised how useful a decent flash is, and how much you will use it going forward.

[Simpo Two]

Technically this is part of a wedding!

The first thing is to consider what the rest of the light ('ambient') will be like. Flash most annoyingly obeys the inverse square law, which means that closer things get much more brightly lit than more distant things. What is the existing lighting going to be like, inside and out? Daylight or dark? What kind of ceilings do the buildings have?

[Dgr90]

Try and get a 'practice run'. Even if its an extra half hour before everyone else turns up, it gives you enough time to get your head around the ambient light etc.

[Colin RedGriff]

You'll need to diffuse the flash either by bouncng it off something like the ceiling or a wall, even a large piece of card; or through something like a softbox or umbrella. As you are doing this on a budget then a bouncing it off something would be the cheapest but depends on the set up at the venue.

[andy-xr]

Tell him you dont know what you're doing and to hire someone?

Too much of a leap? OK...then just buy a cheap flash, point it at people, shoot it and give them the photos. If they complain, tell them to try the Refunds Dept

[MysteryLemon]

External flash will be the best bet but to save money and save you learning how to use it, you'll get acceptable results just using the on camera flash, especially considering you're not a pro and I'm sure you're friend is perfectly aware.

A k10d may be an old piece of kit but the images from it using the on camera flash will be leaps and bounds above those from everyone using their iphones with or without their flashes enabled. You're 8 year old DSLR could well be the saviour if they're not willing to hire a pro to do it.

[Goody13]

I must admit, I wouldn't buy a piece of equipment for something like this is I wasn't ever likely to use it again. On the flipside, I bought a flash about 3 years ago just before the birth of my daughter and a decent flash set up, with boucing, has enabled me to get some great photos.

[sgrimshaw]

andy-xr said:

If they complain, tell them to try the Refunds Dept

[JimNotJon]

I've told him I'll pass.. turns out I have to work now anyway. Seems like I need to learn a lot before jumping in head first.