Accessories
Zeh Bounce
18/05/11 16:09
In an earlier article entitled, Turn off the Darn Flash!, I go in depth about the reasons for not using the flash indoors, at sporting events, and at plays. One really good reason not to use a built-in flash indoors is that, for it to be effective, it has to be close to the subject. Using the built-in flash indoors often causes red-eye and blown out highlights. That is to say, any thing that is white in the image loses all contrast and instead just becomes a glowing white blob on the image.
An example of using a built-in flash indoors.
ISO 200, 28mm (Prime), f3.5, 1/80s
As you can see from the above snap-shot of my cat, the whites are really bright and there is a loss of contrast around the face. I am already using a pretty large aperture and the shutter speed is pretty slow as well. I could bump up the ISO a bit and try to get the image without a flash but that solution would add grain to the photo.
The same scene taken without the built in flash.
ISO 200, 28mm (Prime), f3.5, 1/80s (Pretty under exposed, wouldn’t you say?)
In this type of situation the light from the flash needs to be softened or diffused. A common trick when using an off-camera flash is to bounce the light from the flash off of a white surface like a wall or ceiling. This is done by aiming the flash in the direction of the wall or ceiling instead of aiming the flash at the subject of the photo. Aiming the flash towards a ceiling or wall has the effect of lighting the scene using reflected light instead of direct light.
This same effect of bouncing the light, to diffuse or soften it, can be accomplished with a built-in flash using a new product from Zeh Photographic. This cost effective piece of kit ($10 US) is called the Zeh Bounce. It is simply a small rectangular piece of foam that is notched so as to fit in front of the built-in flash. The foam piece can then be bent easily to direct light in the direction of a ceiling or wall.
The Zeh Bounce mounted on top of a DSLR.
Photo courtesy of Zeh Photographic.
This piece of kit works and works well.
Another snap-shot of my cat. This time using the Zeh Bounce.
ISO 200, 28mm (Prime), f3.5, 1/80s
Left: non-diffused built in flash image.
Right: image using the Zeh Bounce.
ISO 200, 28mm (Prime), f3.5, 1/80s - both images.
Conclusion:
It is clear that the Zeh Bounce works and works well. At the time of this writing, it is available for Nikon, Canon, Sony, and some Panisonic/Lumix cameras.
The Zeh bounce is not without problems. It does have a slight learning curve since using any type of diffuser will throw off the camera’s automatic exposer settings. I also felt like the Zeh Bounce was going to slide off of my camera and in fact did come off the camera while shooting (I wrote Zeh Photographic about this issue and they are aware of the problem, It only occurs on some Sony Cameras and does not occur on Nikon or Canon DSLR cameras). I corrected this by adding a small strip of hook and loop fastener to the underside of the internal flash housing and then placing the other portion of the hook and loop fastener on the bottom of the Zeh Bounce. The small learning curve and the minor modification are not deal breakers.
Overall Grade: A-
You can purchase the Zeh Bounce @ http://zehbounce.com/
Keep reading to learn how to use the Zeh Bounce.
The following instructions come with the Zeh Bounce:
How I used the Zeh Bounce:
Ideally when shooting in manual mode a photographer will use a light meter or at the very least read the histogram on the camera. Since both of these are advanced techniques I thought I would try using the Zeh Bounce in a less scientific way. The first thing I did was set my camera to Program Mode and made sure the flash was up. I then framed up my photo and pushed the shutter button half way down and held it half way down and took note of the recommended exposure settings, note you could also go ahead and take a photo. The purpose of pushing the shutter button half way down or going ahead and taking a photo is to see what exposure the camera thinks will be needed to take the shot. Note: Many cameras will recommend exposure settings in manual mode. I opted to use the Program mode only because I know that this method will work on every major brand of camera. After seeing what the camera recommends, I then entered the recommended settings into the camera after switching to the manual mode. See your camera’s operating manual for instructions on the use of manual mode. I then went ahead and took the photo. Often this will work without further adjustment of either ISO, shutter speed, aperture or flash compensation. Then I reviewed my photo on the camera’s view screen. I noted that the image was slightly under exposed. So, I made a decision to slow the shutter speed down from a recommended 1/120s to 1/80s. I could have just as easily have opened the aperture a bit more, bumped the ISO up to 400 from 200, or increased the power of my flash via flash compensation. That type of decision is dictated by the subject. In this case, my cat was sitting very still and I did not want to sacrifice picture quality or depth of field for the sake of speed. Had this been a photo of my child playing I may have decided to sacrifice the picture quality a bit, by adjusting the ISO, so as to not blur the image or risk taking an out of focus shot. Such are the trade-offs when taking a photo.
Recap of how I used the Zeh Bounce:
Now, get out there and get to shooting.
-- Enjoy.
An example of using a built-in flash indoors.
ISO 200, 28mm (Prime), f3.5, 1/80s
As you can see from the above snap-shot of my cat, the whites are really bright and there is a loss of contrast around the face. I am already using a pretty large aperture and the shutter speed is pretty slow as well. I could bump up the ISO a bit and try to get the image without a flash but that solution would add grain to the photo.
The same scene taken without the built in flash.
ISO 200, 28mm (Prime), f3.5, 1/80s (Pretty under exposed, wouldn’t you say?)
In this type of situation the light from the flash needs to be softened or diffused. A common trick when using an off-camera flash is to bounce the light from the flash off of a white surface like a wall or ceiling. This is done by aiming the flash in the direction of the wall or ceiling instead of aiming the flash at the subject of the photo. Aiming the flash towards a ceiling or wall has the effect of lighting the scene using reflected light instead of direct light.
This same effect of bouncing the light, to diffuse or soften it, can be accomplished with a built-in flash using a new product from Zeh Photographic. This cost effective piece of kit ($10 US) is called the Zeh Bounce. It is simply a small rectangular piece of foam that is notched so as to fit in front of the built-in flash. The foam piece can then be bent easily to direct light in the direction of a ceiling or wall.
The Zeh Bounce mounted on top of a DSLR.
Photo courtesy of Zeh Photographic.
This piece of kit works and works well.
Another snap-shot of my cat. This time using the Zeh Bounce.
ISO 200, 28mm (Prime), f3.5, 1/80s
Left: non-diffused built in flash image.
Right: image using the Zeh Bounce.
ISO 200, 28mm (Prime), f3.5, 1/80s - both images.
Conclusion:
It is clear that the Zeh Bounce works and works well. At the time of this writing, it is available for Nikon, Canon, Sony, and some Panisonic/Lumix cameras.
The Zeh bounce is not without problems. It does have a slight learning curve since using any type of diffuser will throw off the camera’s automatic exposer settings. I also felt like the Zeh Bounce was going to slide off of my camera and in fact did come off the camera while shooting (I wrote Zeh Photographic about this issue and they are aware of the problem, It only occurs on some Sony Cameras and does not occur on Nikon or Canon DSLR cameras). I corrected this by adding a small strip of hook and loop fastener to the underside of the internal flash housing and then placing the other portion of the hook and loop fastener on the bottom of the Zeh Bounce. The small learning curve and the minor modification are not deal breakers.
Overall Grade: A-
You can purchase the Zeh Bounce @ http://zehbounce.com/
Keep reading to learn how to use the Zeh Bounce.
The following instructions come with the Zeh Bounce:
- The bounce is designed for indoor use and ceilings that are less than 12ft are desirable.
- It is best to run in M-mode, but can be used in AV, TV, or P modes.
- Some compromises may have to be made in ISO, f-stop, or shutter speed to add brightness.
- If your images are still too dark, bump up the flash compensation. (see camera’s owner manual for this function)
How I used the Zeh Bounce:
Ideally when shooting in manual mode a photographer will use a light meter or at the very least read the histogram on the camera. Since both of these are advanced techniques I thought I would try using the Zeh Bounce in a less scientific way. The first thing I did was set my camera to Program Mode and made sure the flash was up. I then framed up my photo and pushed the shutter button half way down and held it half way down and took note of the recommended exposure settings, note you could also go ahead and take a photo. The purpose of pushing the shutter button half way down or going ahead and taking a photo is to see what exposure the camera thinks will be needed to take the shot. Note: Many cameras will recommend exposure settings in manual mode. I opted to use the Program mode only because I know that this method will work on every major brand of camera. After seeing what the camera recommends, I then entered the recommended settings into the camera after switching to the manual mode. See your camera’s operating manual for instructions on the use of manual mode. I then went ahead and took the photo. Often this will work without further adjustment of either ISO, shutter speed, aperture or flash compensation. Then I reviewed my photo on the camera’s view screen. I noted that the image was slightly under exposed. So, I made a decision to slow the shutter speed down from a recommended 1/120s to 1/80s. I could have just as easily have opened the aperture a bit more, bumped the ISO up to 400 from 200, or increased the power of my flash via flash compensation. That type of decision is dictated by the subject. In this case, my cat was sitting very still and I did not want to sacrifice picture quality or depth of field for the sake of speed. Had this been a photo of my child playing I may have decided to sacrifice the picture quality a bit, by adjusting the ISO, so as to not blur the image or risk taking an out of focus shot. Such are the trade-offs when taking a photo.
Recap of how I used the Zeh Bounce:
- Determine needed exposure via light meter or built in camera metering.
- Install the Zeh Bounce.
- Enter recommended settings into the camera’s manual mode.
- Take the photo.
- Review the photo.
- Adjust the ISO, shutter speed, or aperture or flash compensation to correct exposure problems.
Now, get out there and get to shooting.
-- Enjoy.