A photographer might want or need to use flash photography at some point. And for many, it can be an intimidating prospect!

But even photographers who rely primarily on natural light could find themselves in a situation where a flash is necessary or would significantly enhance the picture.

Knowing how to effectively use and manipulate flash lighting could be a handy skill. Besides, it certainly won't hurt for you to understand how to use one! You might as well know how to handle a flash.

We're not saying you must be an expert in flash photography or even that you must use it. We're saying that some knowledge of flash photography could benefit and enhance your work.

For that reason, we've put together a beginner's step-by-step primer to help you get started. You can also read more about lighting in this previous blog post. Let's get started!

1. Benefits of Using a Flash

Sooner or later in your photography work, you'll arrive at a scene when the natural light is insufficient or ineffective for what you want or need. That's when pulling out a flash could make a difference. Here are three good reasons to use a flash:

Amount of Light: You can't always shoot when natural light is at its best. Once you lose light, a flash eliminates that issue.
Manipulate Light: Yes, natural light is typically the best. But it's challenging to manipulate or modify. You have to work within its parameters. However, a flash opens up a world of options. You can change its direction, strength, settings, and even the quality of the light.
Color of Light: Simply put, you can control the color of the light with a flash in ways that aren't possible with natural light.

2. The Difference Between TTL & Manual Flash

There are two flash settings you need to understand - TTL and Manual. If you want accuracy with image exposure, you'll want to use one rather than the other.

And trust us when we say there will be times when you want complete control over the camera and lighting. That's when TTL won't do.

Here are the differences between TTL and Manual Flash:

TTL: In this setting, the flash fires a pre-flash to measure light and produce a reading. It then fires the flash again according to that reading, which may or may not result in a correctly exposed image. Although technology has come a long way in allowing for more accuracy, it's a fully automated reading; it's not always perfect.
Manual: For complete control and precision, there's the option to go manual all the way. You, not the camera, assess the lighting and exposure and set the flash and camera settings for accuracy. In tricky lighting situations, this is usually the way to go.

3. Quality of Light

There are four types of light - hard, soft, diffused, and specular. Let's look at each of them because it's essential to know them when working with flash photography.

Hard Light: This is relatively straightforward. Hard light is the transition from light to shadow (light to dark) on a subject.
Soft Light: This light creates a gentle transition from light to shadow.
Diffused Light: A diffused light has removed reflective features so that light doesn't bounce off a subject back into the camera. As a result, it has a diffused, soft appearance.
Specular Light: Specular light has reflective qualities, causing it to bounce back into the camera when it hits the subject. As a result, it has robust highlights and contrasts.

4. Different Light Patterns

To work with light, it's good to understand standard lighting patterns.

Rembrandt Light: Rembrandt light is dramatic and leaves one side of the face mostly in shadow while leaving some light between the eye and cheekbone.
Butterfly Light: Butterfly light is directly in front of and above the subject's face. It will create shadows directly below the subject's facial features.
Split Light: Split light is the most dramatic light and is usually the least flattering. It splits the light and shadow straight down the middle of the nose and chin.
Flat Light: Flat lighting is the least dramatic and faces directly at the subject - from the camera lens angle. It casts the least amount of facial shadows, reducing the dramatic effect.
Loop Light: Loop Light puts most of the face in light while creating enough shadow to add definition. Loop light is between a flattering flat light and a dramatic split light.

5. Using Flash and Ambient Light

This is more challenging than you might think. Working with ambient lighting will sometimes require flash lighting to fill in gaps or address unwanted shadows, etc. The photographer's job is to balance the flash with the ambient light to achieve correct exposure. You can reduce the flash power and use longer shutter speeds to create a natural light appearance.

For a more dramatic lighting effect, you would use (carefully) a higher flash power with shorter shutter speeds. To balance between ambient lighting and flash, start with the background exposure. Set that first. Then add the flash. Because the aperture determines how much flash gets to the sensor, you must address the flash power. If you've set a wide aperture for the background, you will need to set less flash power for correct exposure.

Frankly, it's a bit of trial and error. The more experience you have under your belt, the better you can balance flash and ambient lighting to produce good results. Our suggestion is practice, practice, practice!

6. Flash Power

This one is a bit complex, but it's hugely helpful for you to know if you're going to work with flash and light meters. So, here it is. The Inverse Square Law is an equation that affects the intensity of a light source to the illumination it produces at any given distance.

(Told you it was a bit complicated!) Let's simplify it. Basically, the light will diffuse according to distance from the source. We all know that as photographers. The further away you move from the subject with your light source, the more diminished the becomes. Just how diminished?

That's where the Inverse law comes in. If you double the distance between flash and subject, the light isn't diminished by double but by 75%! So if you're three feet from the subject and move back three more feet, you don't reduce the light by half. You reduce it by 75%. This is important to keep in mind as you calculate flash power relative to your subject.

7. Use Flash Modifiers

You could consider this a more advanced step in working with flash. Eventually, you'll want to use a flash modifier as you move into more creative photography. You can also use modifiers to make corrective adjustments to light.

There are various modifiers on the market, but some of the most popular brands are Lastolite and MagMod. (MagMod is probably the best option for beginners.) Handy items include an omnidirectional flash diffuser, a light grid, and various gels.

8. Bounce Flash vs. Direct Flash

Two types of flash to consider: bounce and direct.

Bounce flash is suitable for indoor venues with neutral, low, or bright ceilings. If there's an unusually colored ambient light, you'll need to use a daylight-colored light. This will create natural light in the scene. Basically, you should match the flash gel to match the dominant light color in the room.
Direct flash needs to be used very carefully to fill in the dark areas of a scene. Pointing it directly at a subject, as inexperienced photographers might do, can create the wrong highlights. Power your flash so that it acts as the primary light for the scene, but not so much that it blows highlights.

9. Understand Creative vs. Corrective White Balance

Lastly, let's talk about White Balance. It will help you achieve the correct color balance in your images. To get comfortable with it, we suggest some practice using the Kelvin dial.

Try this inside and outside. The key is to memorize the corresponding numbers to diverse shooting conditions.

For example, most daylight will be 5000-6000K, while indoor light will be 3000-4000K. Then for deep shade, it will be 7000K+. The more you work with this and use it, the more the settings will become second nature.

We hope you've found our guide useful for your journey into using flash photography. We always remind folks that photography is all about practice so that settings and conditions become second nature.

It's never more true than with flash photography. It can be intimidating and even challenging at first. But, eventually, you'll know just what to do and how to do it. Give yourself some grace, and take your time and practice, practice, practice!