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 Bracket users...why do you like them? | |
The reason bounced flash still works in dark surroundings is due to reflectivity. Almost any surface will have some reflectivity, even dark surfaces. Most places, actually are not all that dark. A dark, wood beamed ceiling might seem like a no-go for bounce, but then be coupled with lighter walls, so you are back in business. You can even bounce off white table cloths and guests (watch that you don't blind them)--even the floor. In this kind of situation, you are muscling the flash off the surfaces. It will take more flash power and higher ISO. Whether or not you want to go that route is up to you. My worst situation was a place with flat black walls and an extremely high, black ceiling and black floor. It was a large place, too, and dimly lit. About the only option were the table cloths and guests. I didn't want to go the extremely high ISO way so I used off camera flashes and an on camera Demb/ABBC.
A bracket should not be compared with diffusers. Two entirely different purposes. I use a bracket sometimes and sometimes I don't. The criteria I use is whether I will see flash shadows and whether those shadows will be disturbing. A secondary concern is how the flash is used--if for subtle fill, it makes no difference that the flash is at the lens level; if the flash is more prominent (for whatever reason, like shooting against bright sunlight), you may want a higher angle on the face so the nose shadow isn't flat--or not--it is up to you. Another factor is whether you will have enough control to always pull subjects away from walls (where you get shadows even bouncing). If I am in a situation where I don't know if I'll have control, I pack my bracket, even though I may not use it. In fact, my bracket is in my equipment case when I shoot weddings.
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