Benjamin Moore wrote:
Noted. I'm usually wary of stepping over hte 800 ISO mark, but I may have to get acquainted with 1600 and *cough* 3200. Speaking of which, has anyone tried the 3200 on the 5D? How are the results?
I've used 3200 on my 5D - its hit and miss so I avoid it if I can, but its better than not being able to get the picture at all - you just have to make sure your exposure is bang on. I find 1600 very usable and 800 is excellent.
Using 3200 on the 5D is ok, but you really need to know for sure, in advance of the big day, what your results will look like. If you can go to the venue ahead and do test shots with your subject, in the exact same light the night of the wedding, then you will know what to expect. Pay attention to your WB, if your shooting Jpegs at 1600 and 3200, they tend to shift a tad up in that range, but it depends on the light temp and the intensity. So WB is the crucial thing at these high ISO's.
The Gary Fong LS doesn't work that well. It eats up too much light and you will constantly have to keep your F stops at F/4 and wider, (at ISO 800). The diffusion is not bad, it does diffuse the light, but just keeps your working distance down. I prefer the, 'A Better Bounce Card' and the, 'Flip-It'. These diffusers both work the best for any situation. But again, you really have to work with them way ahead of time so you know exactly how to set them up, in different rooms etc, so you know what your getting. You need to find what works best for you way ahead of the big day. You don't want to be guessing all the time and just hoping for the best.
And most importantly: Have a back-up rig and a back-up rig for the first back-up rig. I have heard of too many major wedding disasters this year and it really scared the crap out of me. So prepare for the worst case scenario. Its bad enough to have that little thought in the back of your head, 'I sure hope my compact flash cards don't go bad on me and I loose the key shots....' Yea, weddings are stressful enough so think 'back-up' and you will have an easier time. Good luck to you on this wedding.
I used to be afraid of indoor formals...but now I carry what I call my "portable window light" It is a bogen stand which has mounted a quantum Q flash on bracket which I can attach a white umbrella for shoot thru when needed. I even have a storage clip on the stand legs for my umbrella. This all stays together in my car and I pull it out at a moments notice when needed. The flash stays on manual and I get F6.3 at 1/4 power at iso 400. I set my camera on manual and move this light around just like portable "window light"...you don even need
fill because it just bounces its own fill around the room...triggered by a cheap
ebay radio slave which is permanently attached to my camera strap. Here's just one example of what can be done:
Thanks for the tip. Right now I've got a bracket for my two 580ex's that allows for a shoot-through umbrella, and I think that's probably what I'll be using for most of the B&G shots. One question: in that example you linked, are you using just the one light, or two, on either sides of the camera?
Jazzman: Backups covered by a 20D and a laptop (for immediate transferral of images)...I understand your anxiety, though. Thanks for the word on WB and the 5D. I'm going to play with it a little tonight.
echelonphoto wrote:
Actually on that one, I have a little fill coming from my on-camera 580 (with a stofen) Never use a light on both sides of the camera.
