Flash advice

[PeterArboinePhotography]

Hey guys,

I have a question/idea for my flash that i use... being a student and the prices of the canon speedlites being in the region of £300, I currently use an old Vivitar 3500 flash, from the 1980's era, its voltage safe for my canon 40d, and I have been using it for a while, and it has been working great!

I had my first experience in a nightclub taking photos the other day, and whilst most of my pics turned out ok, sometimes it was so dark, I wish I had an AF-assist light to help the camera focus.. as you could guess some people got impatient whilst I was waiting for the camera to try and focus (I was using a fast lens btw, the 50mm 1.8 II), and manual focus was not an option, it was too dark at points!

So i had an idea, to buy a cheap LED keyring torch thingy, hack it and wire it to the side of my flash, so when im using it off camera with the cable (as i often do), i can press the button on the keyring and illuminate the subjects to get the focus... what do you guys think?

here are a couple of images from the night:




full set:

Club Maya, Baker Street 25/09/09 - a set on Flickr

[acedrew]

Sounds like a great idea! I use a Canon ST-E2 wireless controller sometime just for the AF assist lights. it works great! at USD$200 it's a little steep just for an AF light! the Keyring will probably work ok. The true AF lights work by projecting a pattern for the camera to pick up contrast from, but any light will help!

Here are a few shots I took in a club recently: Matt Play 09-19-09 - Perfected Perspectives -- Photography by Andrew Rodgers

Andrew Rodgers
Perfected Perspectives -- Photography by Andrew Rodgers | Andrew Rodgers (acedrew) on Twitter

[PeterArboinePhotography]

Originally Posted by acedrew

Sounds like a great idea! I use a Canon ST-E2 wireless controller sometime just for the AF assist lights. it works great! at USD$200 it's a little steep just for an AF light! the Keyring will probably work ok. The true AF lights work by projecting a pattern for the camera to pick up contrast from, but any light will help!

Here are a few shots I took in a club recently: Matt Play 09-19-09 - Perfected Perspectives -- Photography by Andrew Rodgers

Andrew Rodgers
Perfected Perspectives -- Photography by Andrew Rodgers | Andrew Rodgers (acedrew) on Twitter

those are some great shots andrew! I never did understand the 'flashing' bit of af assist lights, why arent they continuous? Do you reckon an led would throw the focus off?

[OsmosisStudios]

My SB-800 shines a laser-like crosshatch of red beams onto my subject when I shoot clubs. Great for when im not shooting with my eye on the viewfinder: I can still "target" using the crosshatch pattern. Works really quickly and accurately.

[acedrew]

They're meant to be unobtrusive, if you notice, they stay on until the lens locks focus, then shut off. They're only on as long as needed. A continuous light will not be a problem for the focusing system, but in low power flash situation it may show up in the photo. In a club situation, most of the time you're blowing out the ambient with your flash, so you shouldn't have an issue with the little LED showing up in the photos.

Andrew Rodgers
Perfected Perspectives -- Photography by Andrew Rodgers | Andrew Rodgers (acedrew) on Twitter