Use An Off-Camera Flash To Add Depth And Soft Light To Your Photos

Photography is as much an art as it is a science and by keeping a few rules of thumb in mind, you can significantly improve the quality of your images. The flash is of course extremely important, though it’s easy to use sub-optimally, or even the wrong way.

Video: Manny Ortiz

In this video, photographer Manny Ortiz shows the difference between having the flash on the camera, compared to off (and on a stand). The effect of having the flash off the camera is subtle, but certainly worth it, as Ortiz explains:

Look at that. You’ve got the beautiful rim light, the nice soft light from the speedlight and … notice how nicer … how much more flattering the light is on her.

And it’s true — with the flash on the camera, you get a flatter image. It still looks OK, but you lose a lot of depth.

That said, not all of us have the luxury of owning a light umbrella and stand, but if you can find a way to light your subjects from different angles, without resorting to your camera’s built-in flash, you’re going to end up with a higher quality shot.

On camera flash vs Off camera flash LIVE demo using Sony A7RII and Flashpoint Li-on R2 speedlite [YouTube]


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