In DWF Pro member Neil van Niekerk’s world, this statement has been refined to read:
Shooting with your on-camera flash in a straight-ahead position while indoors is possibly the worst way to use flash.
It isn’t quite as punchy, but is much more accurate and thought out.
Not content with this simple phrase, Neil takes 124 pages to refine, explain, qualify and clarify this concept, starting from the basics of how to use your flash and creative techniques using one of the most important flash controls: Flash exposure compensation.
The techniques he shares in this book and on his blog (http://neilvn.com/tangents/) are not earth shattering for anyone who uses on-camera flash regularly and creatively, but are a well thought out, systematic approach to lighting using one of the most basic, portable, and easy to use lighting systems available to professional photographers.
The book is dividing into three parts. The first covers some basic concepts about lighting and equipment. The second covers the technical stuff: Exposure metering, flash modes, sync speeds, etc. The third part is the heart of the book, outlining techniques: bouncing flash, balancing color temperatures, and using flash in broad daylight.
The knowledge contained in this book is important, but it is not as important as actually practicing the techniques Neil talks about, and finding what actually works for you. Neil spends a number of pages early on describing the difference between how his (then) current Canon and Nikon camera systems differ. This is not, in my reading, an absolute “if you are shooting Nikon, then here’s what to look for”, as his observations on how the cameras’ histograms display information may change with the next generation. Instead, these are observations that Neil has made by becoming intimately aware of his camera, his flash, and how the two interact. It’s up to you to learn how your gear works, using what Neil writes here as a starting point and as a baseline.
Now the $34.95 question: is this book worth picking up? If you do not have an intimate knowledge of your flash, how it behaves in different lighting situations, how to dial in exposure compensation, and how to use everything at your disposal as a light source, then absolutely. Owning this book will give you a college-level course worth of instruction on the hows, whys and wherefores of on-camera flash.
Even if you (think) you have a complete understanding of your flash and how to use it, this book can be a good read. As we use our gear, we start to develop ruts: ways of using things that become habit over time. This is not a bad thing, but sometimes we need to be reminded of some of the other ways of using gear, or other techniques, or just to see how other people are dealing with the same issues we are, and add a few techniques (black foamie thingy, anyone?) to our own bag of tricks.
On-Camera Flash
Techniques for Digital Wedding and Portrait Photography
Neil van Niekerk
Amherst Media, $34.95
DISCLAIMER: This book was provided by the publisher at no cost or obligation to us for the purposes of review, and we have received no financial remuneration for reviewing this. However, if you wanted to order this book and used this link, we’d be ever so happy. No puppies were harmed in the creation of this review.
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4 Comments at "Review: On-Camera Flash by Neil van Niekerk"
4 things every event photographer should own:
1. Camera
2. Lens
3. Flash
4. This book
Get the book! This book is one of the two items I recommend on DWF. The other is Ray Prevost’s PS DVD.
This book is well writing and easy to understand. It helps to open your eyes to what you really should be looking for in your flash. A large light source and Neil explains it very well.
This book should be essential reading for any aspiring photographer of any disapline.
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