Question for Photographers
 

How important is a separate flash on safari?

We just bought a Canon 30D and a 70-300mm lens for our first trip to Africa. All our digital photography before this has been with Canon powershots. The 30D has a build in flash but I don't know that it's enough.

We're trying hard to keep the weight down. Will I regret not having an additional flash? If so, which one would you suggest?

Many thanks!

To be honest I've never taken one but then I just don't get on with separate flashes generally. I used to have one back when I was still using my first film SLR but used it only for indoor "studio" photography.

I do have a number of friends who use them outside for candid stuff but I tend not to.

It depends on how much you want to record night safaris, I guess...

At this point I am planning to bring my Canon speedlight. I have been told by - it may have been Andy Biggs, can't be sure - that it doesn't bother the animals. For shots where the animal is in the shade, or for dark monkey faces, etc. I think it will be worth taking. Just my .2!

It's worth taking for fill flash - if you know how to use it. Animals that hang out in the shade can be hard to expose for, and an external flash has more reach than the onboard flash. Also, it's helpful to generate "catch lights" in their eyes. However, if you've never done much flash photography, you should practice before you go in order for it to be worthwhile. If there's a nearby zoo that allows flash photography, go practice. Or, place a stuffed animal in the shade and practice shooting it.

you may want to try the 30d`s built in flash with the 70-300mm. Probably the lense is too long and will obstruct some of the light from the flash!!
I have also used an external flash at night. You will have to work with flash exposure compensation but will be able to get reasonable pictures

Michael

Even though catch lights in the eyes are important in wildlife photography, I would not suggest using flash on primates and monkeys.

For example, in Rwanda and Uganda when viewing the gorillas, the flash does frighten them and has a negative effect. And it provokes an increase in stress levels when used.
Therefore, it is not allowed.

I would believe it would have the same negative effect on chimps and monkeys as they are so closely related.

I would take my chances and photograph the animals without the use of flash unless absolutely necessary. And then I would still be very cautious and monitor their response after each shot to make sure you're not frightening or disturbing them.

My .02 cents worth.

My southern Africa trip will not be until October so I haven't had night safari experience yet. However, I'm certain that the on-board flash will be insufficient as it has a maximum range of about 12'. I have a Canon 420EX for when I absolutely need a flash. For the most part, if there is any ambient light at all, I find that setting the ISO at 1600 results in better pictures. On the other hand, if it is absolutely dark, a flash will obviously be necessary. Try to determine where you want to shoot and then take the flash picture without any other light (such as a spot or flash light) shining on the subject.

In my opinion (take this with a grain of salt!) there isn't much opportunity for fill flash unless shooting avian subjects. Unless you are extremely proficient with fill flash and a Better Beamer, I think you run the risk of introducing more problems to a photograph than without it.

So one has to ask "why is flash photography necessary?" Here is my short answer.

Most of the time flash photography for wildlife is done for 2 purposes: 1) fill flash for filling in shadows, and 2) to place a small catch light in the eye of your subject.

If you are using flash for fill, keep in mind that you are balancing 2 types of exposures, ambient and artificial. You should understand the relationship between them, and how to arrive at adequate exposures for each individually. Nikon has a better system for this, and Canon has, well, a more difficult time at it. This is can be a long topic for another day.

Why use fill flash? This varies, but I use it sometimes for evening out the overall tonal range within an image, so I don't have to decide on having either deep shadows or blown out skies. I mostly use fill flash for my bird subjects.

Regarding using flash for a catchlight, think of it this way. Many mammals and birds have completely black eyeballs. Without a small glimmer in the eye, the entire eye socket region can look like a black whole. I often have a reflection from the sun, but in that absence I have to introduce my own sparkly artificially. I often use a minus 1 and 1/3 flash exposure compensation for this. This is not a hard and fast setting, so please experiment with your own equipment.

At the end of the day, you should be shooting in the Manual mode on your camera, setting your ambient meter before you even turn on your flash. Learn to read your histogram on the rear of your camera, and then add flash to the mix. It takes a ton of practice and patience, and this is one of the biggest areas of mystery for most photographers on out safari.

After all of this blabber, I still only use flash about 5% of the time.

I hope this helps!

Andy

Hey Andy - I'm really glad you saw this and posted. I've been thinking about this ever since I posted above, and I think I am going to skip my flash. Mostly because the flash and its batteries add weight I don't need, and importanly, I am not that experienced with my flash. Perhaps another trip, when I've had more time to experiment and shoot with it.

Thanks again for your wise words!
Sharon

Andy, I tend to really look for shots where the natural light gives me a catch light but sometimes do use the small onboard flash to provide a catchlight in animals that aren't too far away - I also dial it down by about .5 to a full stop which does seem to stop the flash being too strong on the rest of the scene... but I just find larger flashes unmanageable - I know they can be useful shooting people indoors but I never manage to turn them to bounce of the appropriate ceiling or wall (because I switch between portrait and landscape orientation all the time). With wildlife there are no ceilings or walls so I'm guessing it's always a case of aiming the flash straight at them?

You are correct that wildlife flash photography requires the flash be pointed in the direction of the subject. No ceilings to bounce off of.

I think I'd be scared of distressing or disturbing them! Isn't a separate flash, even dialled down by a stop, pretty strong?

I personally feel that it is best not to use flash unless you absolutely have to. I do not believe that these flashes interrupt or alter the behavior of the wildlife at all. I have tested the scenario with me as a subject, and I did not feel that the flash was bad at all.

I think I'll stick to very occasional use of the small onboard flash... and continue to do without large separate flashgun. Thanks Andy...

That sounds like a great approach. My recommendation is to avoid flash if possible.

Andy, I'm curious. Would the on-board flash be of any use at all when shooting game at night? or even as fill flash during the day (given the probably distance from the subject)? If using the flash, what ISO &/or EC would you recommend in either of those situations?

Mediator, I'm not Andy but... I think my camera manual provides info about distance covered by the onboard flash - yours might too? Certainly it's not very far so if you're wanting to use flash on objects you're using a long lens to reach, the onboard flash is unlikely to reach far enough...

Using a flash to photograph game requires some skill & I would encourage you to take a seperate unit that can be used to change the angle of light on the subject. You would be wise to use a flash that has a decent range, which the built in seldom do.

That said a seperate unit allows you to angle the flash across the subject reducing the effect of red eye and can assist in creating depth where a built in flattens the subject.

regarding using the flash as a fill in, this can be very effectively used if you are able to reduce the flash output particularly in lower light conditions. A full flash will over expose the subject and flatten the image.

I say take the extra luggae for the flash, best in my day was the Metz brand, CT 65 or 75.

Thanks for your input, Andy. Do you think a better beamer would be impossible for a novice to use? I have been considering buying one. Also, please explain about adding the artificial 'sparkly' in the eyes of the animal. I use PS2 but I'm not familiar with such a trick!

Lin, if I read Andy correctly, the flash IS what he uses to introduce the "articial sparkly" into the eyes... natural being a catchlight of natural sunlight and artificial being a catchlight of flash light.

You could introduce or exaggerate a catchlight in post processing the image in Photoshop but a) it's always more work to do so afterwards and b) it's hard to get such things natural. Personally, whilst I may tidy or touch up a catchlight I don't like to introduce one wholly in Photoshop, though that is just a personal preference.

If you do want to introduce one the easiest way is probably to use the Dodge tool set to low exposure, zoom in close and apply the lightening bit by bit.