Chapter 2 Getting Started

1. A beginner’s configuration: Canon Rebel T1i/500D with a 430EX II flash unit
2. Flash exposure compensation (FEC)
3. Bounce flash
4. Daylight fill flash
5. An advanced configuration: Canon EOS 50D with two 580EX II flash units
6. A practical example of wireless flash
7. Dragging the shutter
8. Getting the flash off the camera

Chapter 3 Top Ten FAQs

1. 1. My camera already has a built-in flash. Why should I buy an external one?
2. 2. Why are the backgrounds of my flash photos pitch black? It looks like I was in a cave!
3. 3. Why does the camera set a really slow shutter speed when I use a flash? Parts of my photos look sharp, but there’s weird fringing
4. 4. Why are the eyes of my friends and family glowing an evil red?
5. 5. Why won’t my camera let me set a high shutter speed when I turn on my flash?
6. 6. I have an old flash unit. Will it work on my new Canon EOS digital camera?
7. 7. I took two flash photos in rapid succession. Why is the second one totally dark?
8. 8. Why are my photos dark when I use a Speedlite EX or built-in flash to trigger my studio flash equipment?
9. 9. Why use flash at all? Why not just use a fast lens and a high ISO?
10. 10. Why do my flash photos look so lousy? Do I need to buy a better camera or a more expensive flash unit?

Chapter 4 Terminology

Chapter 5 A Brief History of Flash

1. Pyrotechnics
2. Flash bulbs
3. Electronic flash
4. The first challenge: flash synchronization
5. Open flash
6. Flash sync
7. Controlling flash exposure
8. The second challenge: flash metering

Chapter 6 Automatic Flash Metering

1. Enabling internal flash and external Speedlites
2. Subject and background in flash photography
3. Ambient light metering versus flash metering
4. Freezing motion
5. Normal flash sync
6. Slow shutter sync
7. EOS flash and icon modes
8. CA (creative auto) mode
9. EOS flash and ambient metering modes
10. Program (P) mode
11. Tv (shutter speed priority) mode
12. Av (aperture priority) mode
13. M (metered manual) mode
14. DEP (depth of field), A-DEP (automatic DEP), and B (Bulb) modes
15. Fill flash
16. Fill flash ambient light reduction
17. Flash exposure compensation (FEC)

Chapter 7 Technical Topics

1. Canon EOS flash metering
2. TTL flash metering
3. A-TTL flash metering
4. E-TTL flash metering
5. E-TTL II
6. Type A and type B cameras
7. Flash technology availability summary
8. Metering patterns
9. Flash metering patterns
10. How mechanical camera shutters work
11. Maximum X-sync
12. High-speed sync (HSS)/FP (focal plane) flash
13. First and second curtain sync
14. Inverse square law
15. Guide numbers
16. Quantifying flash output
17. Exposure value (EV)
18. Color and shades of white
19. Color filters
20. Infrared (IR)
21. EXIF
22. Safety and physical properties

Chapter 8 Dedicated Flash Units

1. Built-in (popup) flash
2. Canon Speedlites
3. Speedlite naming scheme
4. Older Canon Speedlites
5. Third-party flash units

Chapter 9 Canon Speedlites

1. Hotshoes
2. Flash heads
3. LCDs
4. Swivel and tilt for bounce flash
5. Zooming flash heads
6. Flash head diffuser panels
7. Autofocus (AF) assist light
8. Redeye
9. Flash exposure compensation (FEC)
10. Flash exposure lock (FE lock or FEL)
11. Fill flash ratios
12. Auto fill reduction
13. Flash exposure bracketing (FEB)
14. High-speed sync (HSS)
15. Enabling second curtain sync
16. Manual flash
17. Enabling wireless E-TTL flash
18. Integrated Speedlite transmitter, or built-in flash as master
19. Advanced M (metered manual) ambient metering
20. Quick Flash/Rapid-fire mode
21. Stroboscopic (MULTI) flash
22. Flash exposure confirmation LED
23. Range warning
24. Modeling flash
25. Auto Power Off/Save Energy (SE) mode
26. Speedlite autoflash/External flash metering
27. Optical slave triggers
28. Custom functions (C.Fn) on flash unit
29. External Speedlite control
30. Test flash (manual firing)
31. Rear control dial
32. Weatherproofing
33. Automatic white balance compensation
34. Live View, silent shooting, and flash
35. Cycle time and high voltage ports

Chapter 10 Manual Flash Metering

1. Manual flash metering
2. Trial and error
3. Flash meters
4. Choosing a manual flash unit
5. Trigger voltages
6. Incompatible shoes
7. Autoflash metering

Chapter 11 Off-Camera Flash

1. The Seven Basic Methods for Off-camera Flash Control
2. Off-Camera Method 1—Open flash
3. Off-Camera Methods 2 and 3—Wired cords
4. Off-Camera Method 2—Wired sync-only: PC cords
5. Off-Camera Method 3—Wired with automatic metering: Canon flash cords
6. Off-Camera Methods 4 and 5—Wireless optical control
7. Off-Camera Method 4—Wireless optical, sync-only: optical slaves
8. Off-Camera Method 5—Wireless optical with automatic metering: Canon wireless E-TTL
9. Off-Camera Methods 6 and 7—Wireless, radio frequency (RF)
10. Off-Camera Method 6—Radio, sync-only
11. Off-Camera Method 3—Radio with automatic metering

Chapter 12 Flash Accessories

1. Flash diffusers
2. Small diffusers
3. Small reflectors
4. Medium-sized reflectors
5. Large portable diffusers
6. Other flash accessories
7. Ringflash adapters
8. Filter gels
9. Do it yourself!
10. Supports
11. Batteries
12. External battery packs

Chapter 13 Studio Flash

1. Types of studio lights
2. Basic flash unit features
3. General studio gear
4. Studio light modifiers
5. Hot lights
6. Cheap vs. expensive

Chapter 14 Basic Technique

1. Direction
2. Intensity
3. Quality
4. Color
5. Basic Speedlite portrait photography
6. Building a studio portrait
7. Experimenting with light

Chapter 15 Advanced Techniques

1. Slow shutter sync and motion
2. Hard isn’t all bad
3. Narrowing down the light
4. Backlighting and flash in the frame
5. Kill the ambient
6. Cookies
7. Open flash
8. Stroboscopic (MULTI) flash
9. High-speed photography
10. Cross-polarizing
11. Learning from the masters

Chapter 16 Conclusion