Wildlife Photography across the Water: Off Camera Flash Cord

Wednesday 19 August 2009

Off Camera Flash Cord

I use Flash quite a lot in my nature photography and the off camera flash cord is one of my most used accessories, It allows me to put the flash on my wimberley head totally separate from the camera body and lens so that i can switch from Landscape to portrait without moving the flashgun-staying above the lens so as not to cast any unusual shadows

The cord also allows me to handhold the flashgun away from the body/lens so i move the flash into the position that i want and give the lighting effect that i want, I find this particularly useful when shooting macro images

This was me this morning taking images of a very beautiful spider that had made its web outside my back door

I shot both sides of the spider, Here the first image has flash and the second image doesn't, Both are perfectly OK and sharp however the flash brings out extra detail in the spider and also shows the web with isn't evident in the unflashed image

You can see in the image of me that i held the flash slightly above the lens and just to the side,This gives quite an even light, I could have held it further to the side if i wanted to add shadows etc,
The Nikon cord i feel is better than the Canon one that i used to use for two reasons, Firstly its much better quality, I used to break the Canon one all the time and secondly its longer than the canon which i felt was way too short, With the Nikon i can hold the flash a meter away from the body if i need to, Of course if you have a Canon ST-E2 or Nikon SU800 remote transmitter you don't really need to use the off camera cord but every photographer should have one in their kit bag just in case and its something that doesn't break the bank

Dave

2 comments:

Dave Newton19 August 2009 at 21:12
That looks like a wasp spider - the European version is Agiope sp.
Do like the shot where the web is visible.

If you want a more hi-tech way - take a look at the PocketWizards - realy good for getting the flash off camera and not needing to rely on line of sight.
Dave
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Dave20 August 2009 at 13:01
Hi Dave
You are correct with the I.D although out here its called a black and yellow spider-very inventive
Would love some pocket wizards just need to sell a kidney

Dave
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Bio's

David Courtenay, a self taught wildlife and nature photographer, has been capturing images for over 30 years. He has had a passion for wildlife since early childhood and remembers being glued to the television whenever Survival, Wildlife on One and other natural history documentaries were shown. In the 2006 he swapped his established career for the life of a wildlife photographer, such a move demands a measure of uncompromising passion and commitment.

David has travelled extensively throughout Europe as well as spending more than 7 months in India working with local guides and trackers in search of Bengal Tiger, Asian One horned Rhino and Asian Elephant. He has also photographed Wildlife in Australia, Malaysia, Thailand, Sumatra, Africa, Canada and America. Working closely with Conservation companies he tries to raise funds to help Wildlife that has been put on the endangered list by poaching and habitation loss

Martin Dyer has had a passion for avian wildlife since childhood, particularly raptors. Photography was also another keen interest and it was with the specific availability and control of the whole process that digital offers that Martin was then able to combine the two in 2003. Based in the UK, Martin is a regular visitor to Scotland, specifically the Isle of Mull to watch the Eagles resident there. Other trips to Europe and around the UK are usually part of Martin’s agenda in a typical year.

However, as a firm believer on making the most of the local patch, Martin has spent a lot of time and hard work creating a wildlife garden which is reaping the rewards with many new species and varieties of wildlife. A keen member of a number of wildlife photographic groups, Martin is keen to expand his portfolio into other areas of wildlife, and has already established a wide portfolio of images of fungi.