Why I Include Flash When I Take Photos Even at Outdoor Sessions

Why am I just about the only photographer on location carrying around my light stand with an off-camera flash in it?

I wonder the same thing, too! I used to be a “natural light only” photographer, but when I was looking into purchasing lights/flashes for indoors, I discovered a whole new world. Off Camera Flash is PERFECT for outdoor use. I mean, as long as you have the kind that uses a battery instead of a plug.

I found that I have so much more control over the direction and amount of light when I use my flash. It not only makes editing easier/less time consuming for me (which means my clients receive their viewing galleries much faster) but it also makes people’s skin look much better in the images by eliminating color casts from things around us…like green grass and trees.

Let me show you what I’m talking about. The first two images are straight out of my camera with no editing. In this first one, my flash did not go off. I was snapping pics so quickly trying to catch the kids’ best smiles, that sometimes it’s too fast for my flash. See how their skin looks a little muddy – even a bit green? I can fix that when I edit and brighten them up, but it would take me some time to be sure they look great. Multiply that time by each image, and you’d be waiting for what seems like forever to see your portraits.

In this one, the flash went off. Nothing else except I turned the camera to landscape changed. If you didn’t see the image above, would you even know flash was used here? Their skin looks lovely and bright, they stand out from the background, and it only took me a few tweaks to get the best final image that I added to this family’s gallery.

Here is the final image after just a touch of editing some details. Notice how they “pop?”

SO…what would you do if you were me? Take the time and “inconvenience” to carry the extra equipment at on outdoor family photo session that yields a superior image straight from the camera or be a natural light photographer? I know my answer. I hope you learned a little more about why I do what I do. Contact me today so we can discuss your next photo experience.