Flash Photography can be a bit Hit or Miss.

As you can see from the example below, direct flash will give you harsh shadows, reflections of the flashlight on shiny surfaces and a "Cool" look to the picture. Whereas, by simply bouncing the flash you lose the reflections and shadows and get a much more pleasing, warm and natural look.

Many people spend good money on the latest flashguns, with all the gizmos and buttons, and then realise it can take a bit more effort in order to get the desired results.

The main problem when using flash photography is the size of the actual flash tube in the head (or the lack of size to be more precise). By aiming directly at the subject you are simply asking for trouble so a little help is needed. As in the section below you can, if possible, bounce and tilt the head to reflect the light from another surface thereby diffusing the light. An alternative would be to tape some tissue or cloth over the end of the flash, again to diffuse the harsh light.

My main advice if using a shoe mounted flash gun on an SLR? Take it off the camera. You will significantly reduce the chance of redeye whilst at the same time produce a much more pleasing effect. Either hold it in your hand and bounce the light until you get the desired effect or use a bracket to attach it to the base of your camera and allows you to fire the flash backwards into a brolly for example.

You could even buy a long enough cable and look for an adaptor that will allow you to attach one or two flashguns to a tripod. This use of flash photography will be about as near to studio quality without actually having a studio. Basically, once you have one or two flashguns, play about with them and learn how the light actually works. Once you master it, you can get away without owning expensive studio lights for just about any occasion!

The following links are just a guide, there are MANY different ways of using flashguns in your photography, and just as many TYPES of flashgun, the best advice is to practice, practice, practice!

• Which Flash can MY Camera use?
• Bounced Flash
• Shoe Mounted Flash Photography
• Remote Flash
• Fill-in Flash
• Info on Flash Speedlights