 Teresa A. Collins |
Olympus FL36 or FL50? I have been asked by a family member to photograph their wedding YIKES. It's a small wedding so I feel I can do a good job....I have a concern about my FL36 flash. I have taken pictures in a large church in the past and the church was dark with very little natural light so my pictures were dark especially when I would zoom in for a closer shot. I was disappointed in what I got and frustrated that I didn't have the numbers right. Would the FL50 give me better pictures for a wedding at a further distance (say a balcony?) I was using my 15-45mm lens. Is there an easy formula to coordinate the flash camera communication for perfect pictures? Thank You so much for your help!!!
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Alan N. Marcus |
Hi Teresa, I did a little digging; I discovered that the FL50 is twice as bright at the FL36. Your camera and these units work together to automatically set the proper exposure. However we can do a little math and manually calculate this stuff. What we need to know to set your camera is the proper aperture setting. To calculate we need to know the published guide number for these units. For the FL 50 this value is 165 for the FL 36 this value is 118. These values are for 100 ISO with the flash at the middle of its angle coverage i.e. for the equivalent of a 50mm focal length on a 35mm film camera (this is the standard used). We use a guide number by estimating the distance to the subject in feet. We divide footage into the guide number. The answer is the aperture to use for that situation. Assume the camera is set to 100 ISO For the FL 36 we calculate 118 ÷ 20 = 5.9 this is the aperture setting we round to a value we can easily set, this is f/5.6 For the FL 50 we calculate 165 ÷ 20 = 8.2 this is the aperture setting we round to a value we can easily set, this is f/8. Complicated I know! However, you asked for it. Thus for 200 ISO: Thus for 400 ISO Tip: For a room like a church with large high ceiling open up aperture 1 ½ more f/stops. This is true because guide numbers are published for normal rooms with low ceilings that are white, they take into account scatter light reflecting from the low ceiling. Nobody said it’s easy! Alan Marcus (dispenses truly marginal technical gobbledygook)
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Teresa A. Collins |
Alan.... Thank You so much for your research and explanation...it gives me a better understanding of the numbers and where I am going wrong. I have had my nose in the book but just seemed like I needed a little more guidance. In your opinion would the FL50 be better for weddings? Thanks again!
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Alan N. Marcus |
Hi Teresa, The difference between the units is one f/stop. An f/stop is a 2x change in light energy. Stated another way, the FL50 delivers 100% more light energy than the FL36. By the way, the model numbers are the guide numbers in metric. Using the FL50 subject 6 meters from camera thus 50 ÷ 6 = 8.33 set f/number at f/8. Six meters = 19 ½ feet. Guide number 165 ÷ 19.5 = 8.4 set f/number f/8. See how that works? Seems to me, in a church or any large enclosure, more light energy is better. When you get your flash, you will likely draw on the automation provided by the camera-flash combination. However if you have time, place a test subject 10 feet away. Best if this test is carried out in the target church. Shoot a series using all the available apertures on the camera. Have the subject hold a placard that indicates the aperture used. Take a good look at the results. Select the frame/aperture that turned out best. Multiply aperture by distance (in this case 10). Example best frame was shot at f/11. Thus 11 x 10 = 110. This math calculates with great accuracy, the guide number. The advantage is, it will be accurate for the target edifice. To modify a guide number for different ISO’s – helpful if working from a published value. +1/stop multiply published guide number by 0.70 An electronic flash must synchronize with the shutter to work properly. Likely your camera will synchronize at all shutter speeds however best to check the manual. In a church environment it is helpful to utilize both flash and ambient light. The flash is instantaneous however the ambient light is accumulative. Thus if the exposure time is slow this light adds to the exposure. Such a combination can be very helpful as they can work together to brighten a dingy interior like a poorly lit church. Also flash falls off rapidly with distance i.e. it doesn’t carry very far. Ambient + flash can help a lot. The color of the flash is blue (simulates daylight) the color of the ambient light is generally tungsten, that adds a salmon hue. We would like both to be the same but ….. Use a slow shutter speed like 1/30 sec. to employ both. Hope this helps! Alan Marcus
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