Many photographers almost flinch when you talk about using flash. The reason for this reaction is that many photographers find it very difficult to get good photos using flash. Using flash need not be that complicated as modern flash units has made it easier than ever before to take control of light in any given situation. You need to think of flash as an ally and not as an enemy. In this section you will find some handy tips and advice on how to use flash.Not Just for Darkness  This portrait was shot in broad daylight using two flash units.
Different Types of Flash Units Many dSLRs and, more or less, all pocket cameras come with a built-in flash unit. A built-in flash unit is very good for beginners, but you need to realise that a built-in flash has many limitations. So, if you want to have the best possible control of artificial light in your images, we highly recommend that you invest in an external flash unit. This type of flash unit is much more versatile, precise, and in most cases, much more powerful than any built-in unit. In the following you will find examples of how and why external flash units are better.
 There are many types of flash units. External units, however, give you more possibilities.
TTL You can use modern flash units for a wide range of purposes. Whether you are doing portrait photography, action photography, reportage photography, macro photography, underwater photography, product photography... well for almost any kind of photography you will be able to benefit in some way from using flash. In the old days, using a flash was rather difficult as you had to adjust it manually. This meant that you very often accidentally overexposed or underexposed your subject. Today, however, flash units are equipped with well functioning technology that ‘talks’ with the camera/lens about how much light should be emitted, how it should be emitted, and for how long. This communication is called TTL, an abbreviation of “through the lens”. In short, the principle of TTL is that the flash emits an extremely fast pre-flash that the camera uses in order to calculate how much extra light is needed in the photo. The entire process is 100 % automatic and consequently easy to use.
 TTL technology has made flash photography great fun.
A shadow falling on an element in the background, such as, for instance, a wall behind the main subject is called a harsh or deep shadow. As the name indicates a harsh shadow does not exactly improve a photo and you should do everything you can to avoid them. There is really only one solution to the problem, there are however different ways to approach this solution. Regardless of the method you choose the hard light emitted by the flash unit needs to be softened (diffused). Using direct light is rarely the way to get good results because the light falling on the subject will be very harsh and cold (bluish). When you take photos of someone he or she will in some cases turn out all blue in the face, and the background will appear much too dark. Using direct light will furthermore create unwanted effects such as reflections from skin, teeth, and spectacles, it may also cause red eye. Take a look at the two photos below. The photo to the left is suffering from harsh shadows and undesirable reflections.
 Many flash units come equipped with a matte plastic cap that is easy to put on or take off. This plastic cap has the effect of spreading the emitted light and making it more diffuse than direct light from the flash unit. Using this plastic cap is a cheap, quick, and efficient way of avoiding problems with undesirable deep shadows. It is, however, not the most efficient way.
One of the major advantages of using external flash units is that the head of the flash can generally be turned up and/or to the side, allowing you to avoid that the light is projected directly at the subject. You can, for instance, project light towards the ceiling from where it will be reflected at your subject. Reflected light is much more diffuse and much better suited for portraits than direct light. However, you need to take into consideration the colour of the ceiling or the walls when using this method. The reflected light will pick up the colour of the surface it is reflected off. This method is called “bouncing”, and it is very effective. Modern flash units communicate with the camera in order to determine the amount of light needed for a particular subject (TTL auto mode) making it extremely easy to bounce light of other surfaces.
Wireless Flash Another interesting fact about external flash units is that many of them are wireless. This means that you can remove your flash unit from your camera and place it wherever you want to. This technology allows you to create interesting photos because it gives you much more freedom to decide which direction you want the light to come from.
 For this shot we used two wireless flash units in order to light the subject from a different angle.
You can place your flash above, under, behind, or next to the subject, wherever you like actually. Where the flash unit is best placed naturally depends on the subject. Light coming from an alternative angle will however often result in much more interesting photos. You also have the option of holding your wireless unit in your hand and shooting your photos with light coming from many different directions. Slow flash gives the photographer some exciting possibilities for working creatively. The moment you depress the shutter the camera will initially expose in accordance with the light available, just before the shutter mechanism stops exposure the flash is then activated. The parts of the subject hit by light from the flash will appear frozen. Thus, slow flash allows the photographer to convey a sense of motion in the background, while the main subject remains razor sharp. Using slow flash takes a little practice, but it is a method everyone can learn through hands-on experience.  This photo was shut using a relatively slow shutter speed followed by slow flash.
Fill In Your flash is also a good creative tool for shooting outdoors. It is a widespread misunderstanding that you should only use flash when it is dark. Using flash in daylight can be just as useful. You can, for instance, use the flash to fill-in dark areas in a portrait. Using flash this way you can also light people shot in backlight who would otherwise only be visible as dark silhouettes.
 This couple is lighted with fill in light from a flash unit. The actual metering was however based on the background.
Let the camera do the metering automatically. If the camera does not automatically choose to use flash you must force it to fire the flash (this function is described in more detail in the camera/flash manual). If your flash allows it, we recommend that you adjust it to emit just a tiny bit less light than suggested by the automatic metering. This will ensure that the natural light will still be dominant in the photo.
When you have read about how to use flash the next step would be to read about taking photos of people. You may also want to read about the nature of light.
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