Outdoor Flash

Child Painting at Easel

I was the resident photographer at my youngest grandson’s second birthday party. I knew the event would be a backyard affair on a very sunny day in June and that the day would be hot. Dark shadows and bright sun were going to play havoc with the light meter on the camera. It wouldn’t know which to read. I would either lose the background in the light, or the kid’s faces and what they were doing in the shadows.

This is when to use the flash. I turned it on, and turned it down. The last thing I wanted was a white-out flash-blot on a kid’s face or the monster look created by red-eye. The result was just enough extra light in the shadow of his face and activity to bring it out without losing the background and sense of place.