Photography in a day: flash with speedlight

About this course

The course examines how flash affects photographic images, including action freezing, digital noise, contrast and colour. Participants practise on-camera, bounced, fill-in, mixed ambient and off-camera flash techniques, working in pairs and small groups in the studio and nearby outdoor surroundings. Teaching combines short talks, demonstrations, workshops, individual assistance and practical exercises. The course covers the limitations of built-in flash before moving on to speedlight control and different ways of triggering and positioning flash.

What you'll learn

• Operate a speedlight in automatic, semi-automatic and manual modes
• Use on-camera flash for indoor and outdoor photography
• Apply bounced flash to improve indoor images
• Use fill-in flash and combine flash with ambient light to alter contrast
• Trigger and use an off-camera flash

Is this course right for you?

This intermediate course is intended for photographers who can already operate their camera in automatic, semi-automatic and manual modes and understand ISO, aperture, shutter speed and white balance. Participants should be prepared to follow written and verbal instructions, contribute to group discussion and carry out simple measurements and calculations.

• Requires a camera with manual functions
• Designed for DSLR, mirrorless or bridge-camera users rather than camera-phone users
• Includes paired and small-group exercises
• Requires participation in demonstrations, discussion and practical work

Before you go

• Bring a camera with full manual control if available; camera phones are not suitable.
• Bring a flash gun if available.
• Digital SLR and mirrorless cameras, tripods, lenses and flash guns are available to use during class hours.
• A notebook and pen may be useful.