Ping: Annika1980

On Sep 14, 11:16 pm, Annika1980 wrote:
On Sep 14, 4:43 am, D_Mac wrote:

Recognize this:http://search.ebay.com.au/200150807661

A little research shows that the Lambency diffuser is a direct ripoff
of Gary Fong made by some Chinese company. Even the pics on their
website are stolen from Gary Fong's site.

Having said that, i would heartily recommend that you add a diffuser
of this type to your arsenal, D-Mac. Maybe it would get rid of those
harsh shadows in your wedding pics. Whether you get the original or
the Chinese counterfeit version is up to you. Let your conscience be
your guide.

I agree that there are shadows I can't get rid of in some of my shots.
The (unacceptable) alternative (using a 20D) is to crank up the ISO
and produce horrible shadow noise. It's a sad thing that I took Mark
Morgan's advise and started using the 580EX flash. It has turned out
to be a far worse choice than the Metz I used for 20 years prior.
Today's wedding will see the Metz back in use.

You can't beat God for light. As long as where I shoot is in a
darkened room or very late in the afternoon, I'll never get sufficient
light from a 580 to totally diffuse it and still get to use ISO 100.
The S5 Fuji is worse in this area than the Canon 20D. I'm just waiting
now for the Nikon new to be released and evaluate whether I'll buy one
or a 1D Canon. Whichever I choose, it's high ISO performance will be
the deciding factor.

No flash diffuser is ever going to remove shadows when the flash sits
6" above the prism and you shoot in portrait orientation. You are
right though... I do have issues with getting enough light and
softening it too. Aussie reception centres all seem to have black or
very dark ceilings and 6 volt lighting... Not to mention the 150
decibel speaker output!

Doug

On Sep 15, 2:13 am, Peter Chant
wrote:
D_Mac wrote:
Recognize this:
http://search.ebay.com.au/200150807661

Larry Thong, or whatever... This thing is like about $7 US. What'd you
pay for that thing you use?

Question:

Can it be used to hold hot and cold beverages - it looks like it does!

--http://www.petezilla.co.uk

I understand it is about equal in usefulness to a polyurethane cup as
a flash diffuser. +1/2 a stop for the cup!
Presumably the diffuser won't hold fluid so I suppose in true contest,
it is likely to be less useful than a cup.

Doug

* Annika1980 is quoted & my replies are inline below :
On Sep 14, 9:33 am, Troy Piggins wrote:

Bret - while we are talking about the LS I have a question I have
been meaning to ask.

I remember you posting a macro pic using the LS with flash. I
seem to recall it worked well, or at least acceptable. Wondering
if it was just the LS on the flash mounted on the camera
directly, or do you have an off-camera mount for your flash. The
lighting in your macro shots is great and I'd like to learn how
you achieve that.

How did you point the flash? Did you use the "lid" to the LS?
Any other tips?

Yes, the lid works best for macro shots since you can place it only a
few inches from the subject. It's like having a nice little light
dome or light tent.
I usually use the flash off-camera, either with the off-camera shoe
cord or the ST-E2 transmitter. The hardest part is holding the flash
in one hand and the camera rig in the other.

Seems that off-camera is the go. I've been hoping that something
like the LS attached, tip the flash down a little from vertical
at say 75deg/60deg, and the diffused light sideways would be
enough. Obviously it's not. Just wanted to save the cost of a
flash bracket.

--
Troy Piggins

"Pudentame" wrote in message
...
Toni Nikkanen wrote:
writes:

You have to admit Rita. Bret could use ANY camera and still produce a
jaw-dropping work of art.

AND, he's using his current camera to take photos instead of spending
all day on eBay.

Yeah, but his talent still doesn't measure up to his hype.

Tongue-in-cheek statements like, "Who rules?", and "The fabulous 20D" don't
seem much like "hype" to me, but whatever.........

On Sep 14, 5:13 pm, Pudentame wrote:


You have to admit Rita. Bret could use ANY camera and still produce a
jaw-dropping work of art.

AND, he's using his current camera to take photos instead of spending
all day on eBay.

Yeah, but his talent still doesn't measure up to his hype.

Believe the hype, baby!

On Sep 14, 4:18 pm, D_Mac wrote:
It's a sad thing that I took Mark
Morgan's advise and started using the 580EX flash. It has turned out
to be a far worse choice than the Metz I used for 20 years prior.
Today's wedding will see the Metz back in use.

What don't you like about the 580EX?

Annika1980 wrote:
On Sep 14, 5:13 pm, Pudentame wrote:

You have to admit Rita. Bret could use ANY camera and still produce a
jaw-dropping work of art.
AND, he's using his current camera to take photos instead of spending
all day on eBay.
Yeah, but his talent still doesn't measure up to his hype.

Believe the hype, baby!

Meh. He's no Rockwell.

On Sep 15, 8:59 pm, Rita Ä Berkowitz ritaberk2O04 @aol.com wrote:
D_Mac wrote:
I agree that there are shadows I can't get rid of in some of my shots.
The (unacceptable) alternative (using a 20D) is to crank up the ISO
and produce horrible shadow noise. It's a sad thing that I took Mark
Morgan's advise and started using the 580EX flash. It has turned out
to be a far worse choice than the Metz I used for 20 years prior.
Today's wedding will see the Metz back in use.

I agree the 580EX and it's latest replacement really aren't a decent flash.
You should seriously consider shooting with a few SB800s and Pocket Wizards.
Most of the problems you are experiencing can easily be cured with multiply
flash. If multiply flash is impractical in fast moving environments you
might want to consider a single flash with Larry Thong's "DoubleThong"
diffuser with beam splitting technology.

Rita

The Metz system is absolutely for me. I understand it, can bounce from
a brolly with it while still having a filler and it doesn't "pretend"
to be something it isn't. No doubt you know that the 580 defaults to
1/60th whenever you change a lens, even if you have it set to "high
speed" sync which doesn't work as anything other than a % fill flash.

I spend more time with my thumb on the + - dial than concentrating on
what I'm doing. It really is a pathetic flash. To proudly proclaim it
meters "Thru The Lens" and then force you to switch the camer to
manual mode and let the "auto" function of the flash do the light
control is a joke.

The Metz is far more accurate at measuring it's light output and way
more reliable reporting the flash is ready as the batteries drain. At
around 250 firings (2700 mAh Nickel Metal Hydrides) the 580 EX lights
it's ready light before it has enough charge to take a correctly
exposed shot. My Metz doesn't do that. There simply isn't enough
control over the 580 EX to rate it a professional product.

IF I do buy a Nikon, I'l llook into their speedlites. Everyone tells
me how superior the Nikon system is to Canon in that are.

Doug

On Sep 16, 10:02 am, Rita Ä Berkowitz ritaberk2O04 @aol.com wrote:
D_Mac wrote:
IF I do buy a Nikon, I'l llook into their speedlites. Everyone tells
me how superior the Nikon system is to Canon in that are.

The Nikon system is worlds better. What's really amazing is a hell of a lot
of Canon shooters have been buying Nikon Speedlights. An amazing site for
getting all you ever wanted to know about flash photography can be found atwww.strobist.com.

Rita

OK... Suppose I buy a Nikon Speedlite to use on a 5D and 20D, do you
know what is needed in the way of pin disabling and how compatible the
2 actually are?

Doug