smoody Posted November 7, 2009 Share #1 Posted November 7, 2009 Advertisement (gone after registration) I don't visit this forum daily, so I might have missed them, but I've noticed a lack of M9 photos taken with a flash. Do people avoid a flash all together for philosophical reasons? Do they not attempt shoot photos that require it (very strong backlighting, photographing groups of people in dimly lit rooms at low ISOs, etc)? Just curious. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Advertisement Posted November 7, 2009 Posted November 7, 2009 Hi smoody, Take a look here M9 w/flash -- anybody?. I'm sure you'll find what you were looking for!
rob_x2004 Posted November 7, 2009 Share #2 Posted November 7, 2009 Probably a lot dont. There was an SF58(?) example posted people should have taken notice of, a speedlight with secondary fill, all in pretty much auto TTL point and squeeze mode that was pretty impressive. I think it was on an M8. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
lars_bergquist Posted November 7, 2009 Share #3 Posted November 7, 2009 Straight flash looks pretty awful, no matter which camera or which flash. We all have at least middling fast lenses, and with the M9 we also have at last a camera that performs pretty well at useful ISO levels. So we tend to exploit these capabilities. Bounce flash and off-camera flash can be a lot better; see for instance Sean Reid's excellent piece on working with flash at reidreviews.com (a subscription site, but very nearly a must). Natural light is nearly always preferrable, but sometimes we have no choice. When some naive acolyte asked Eugene Smith, "Mr. Smith, do you always use available light?" Gene snapped back: "Yes, all the damn light that's available". Using Sean's technique I do often use the little (not so wimpy, in fact) SF24D for bounce in normal-size living-rooms. The SF58 seems to be a bit of overkill, though it is of course very capable. The old man from the Age of Flashpowder and Illumination Bombs Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
eritho Posted November 7, 2009 Share #4 Posted November 7, 2009 Interresting! How du you bounce this flash? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
jaapv Posted November 7, 2009 Share #5 Posted November 7, 2009 I do use fill flash from time to time: http://www.l-camera-forum.com/leica-forum/people/105103-sundowner-venus-beach.html Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
erl Posted November 7, 2009 Share #6 Posted November 7, 2009 Studio flash and fill flash, to name two, are very legitimate and useful forms of flash, but not exclusively so. If I may generalize, Many Leica users, myself included, find that one of the great virtues of Leicas with Leica lenses is their ability to work exceedingly well without supplementary lighting, but not always. If your style requires a lot of flash work, it is reasonable to consider that a Leica M is not the ideal camera for your work as other cameras will most likely do a better job for a multiplicity of reasons, all open to debate. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
smoody Posted November 7, 2009 Author Share #7 Posted November 7, 2009 Advertisement (gone after registration) If your style requires a lot of flash work, it is reasonable to consider that a Leica M is not the ideal camera for your work as other cameras will most likely do a better job for a multiplicity of reasons, all open to debate. It's not that my style requires a lot of flash work, but there are times when a subject is strongly backlit and no digital camera in the world can properly expose both the background and the subject, yet that specific background is important for the composition. At the moment, that's when I reach for my Canon S90 point'n'shoot (which is very tiny and has great image quality at low ISOs) because a fill flash is the only way to get the shot. (I also reach for the S90 when I need quick zoom capabilities and the M9 has my 28mm lens attached, which is usually the case). I just returned from a trip to Venice and I'd say that S90 came in really handy perhaps 5% of the time. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
jaapv Posted November 7, 2009 Share #8 Posted November 7, 2009 Well, you could reach for your SF 24D which is extraordinary capable at fill-flash on the M8/9. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
lars_bergquist Posted November 7, 2009 Share #9 Posted November 7, 2009 Interresting!How du you bounce this flash? Nikon cameras have their flash shoe contacts in exactly the same places as Leica cameras (though they use them differently). So Nikon's SF ('System Flash') extension cables can be used. One piece goes in the camera shoe, the flash shoe goes into the other one, and there is a spiral cable in between. You have to hold the camera in your right hand of course, and the flash in the left one, and direct it either for bounce or for off-camera direct flash. It is all in Sean's piece. A piece of cake -- GNC takes care of the exposure. The old man from the Age of Huge Screw-Mount Flash Lamps Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
wlaidlaw Posted November 7, 2009 Share #10 Posted November 7, 2009 First photo M9/Summilux ASPH 35 and SF58 at our local 5th of November Guy Fawkes parade. It is a very smokey atmosphere with lots of fireworks, flares and bonfires around. I have also been taking a lot of technical photos aver the last couple of weeks. The second and third photos M9/MATE and SF58 are of my next project at its starting point. In about 4 to 5 months, I hope it will be a completed Carrera 3.0 RSR historic rally car, if all works to plan. At the moment it is a dead home made turbo butchered from an original US spec Carrera 3.0 RS (it looks as it was made by the local plumber's apprentices). It has been acquired from a California scrap yard In general, the SF58 works beautifully. I use it at slow sync lens dependant but it goes a bit too slow with a 28mm for when you need very sharp photos. I then set it to minimum 1/30". Wilson Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
mwilliamsphotography Posted November 7, 2009 Share #11 Posted November 7, 2009 Yep ... use a SF24D with S-Fill diffuser when I run out of enough light to freeze motion ... at least when I want to freeze it. Mostly drag the shutter, and let the flash duration stop the action so some of the background shows up. Light's straight on and pretty flat, but it does the job. Most of the time I just use the Nikon for on-camera flash. For off-camera I use Pocket Wizards to fire a pair of Nikon SB900s ... or Profotos 600 w/s monos if called for. These are using the SF24D on the M9 @ ISO 800 ... it was REALLY dark at this reception, so I had to use flash. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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