amehta Loc: Boston

I completely agree that it is better to get the flash "far beyond that", I do exactly that for portraits and other photo shoots. But for event/party photos, I need the flash on the camera for most of the shots.

dat2ra Loc: Sacramento

I have the Boomerang and, IMHO, it is totally the poo! (As in good). I've bought a number of flash brackets, used them, sold them. None seemed Really Right. But this one, with the Bottom bracket will take me to my grave. It is so smooth,,strong......really lovely. $$$ yes, but what else is there better for us to spend our money on besides cool photo gear, right?

Gene51 Loc: Yonkers, NY, now in LSD (LowerSlowerDelaware)

These are some links that may prove useful:

http://neilvn.com/tangents/

http://strobist.blogspot.com/

they will help you separate the grain from the chaff.

This page in particular will support my suggestion that a bracket is not your answer, but bounce flash will get you what you are looking for:

http://neilvn.com/tangents/category/bounce-flash-photography/

There are similar posts in Strobist

http://strobist.blogspot.com/2006/03/lighting-101-bouncing-off-of-walls-and.html

In this thread, the 9th post down, explains the limited benefit of a flash bracket:

http://www.dpreview.com/forums/thread/3169513#forum-post-41005464

To summarize, the principal benefits of a flash bracket is to be able to rotate the flash so that when you shoot with the camera in portrait mode, your flash is still at the top. It will not help much in terms of the quality of light. Bounce will have the most profound effect, and light modifiers like bounce cards and softboxes come next, followed buy flash diffusers and flash-mounted tupperware (Fong and others) last - and only really work if you use them in close proximity (<4 ft).

As far as Stroboframe and others are concerned - they generally satisfy the public perception that you are not a pro if you don't have a heavy, structural-looking support with cables and crap hanging off the flash and camera.

I get the same job done with a simple tiny 8.5 oz folding bracket:

http://www.newtoncamerabrackets.com/default-old4.htm

And I am not fatigued by carrying and using a large bracket at the end of a long event.

loveandpeace Loc: Southeast Iowa

Gene, your comments and advice make the most sense. Thanks for going to the trouble to supply this information.

Gene51 Loc: Yonkers, NY, now in LSD (LowerSlowerDelaware)

Thanks! I've been doing this since 1967, so I have tried and seen quite a few things along the way - some that work, and many that don't. I enjoy sharing my experiences.

dat2ra Loc: Sacramento

Once again, there are as many opinions as photographers. While I agree that bounce flash is most desirable, then boxes, then Tupperware, there are many situations where these just won't work. If you want to avoid photos lit as if they were shot with a cell phone, even getting the flash 1 foot from the lens makes a big difference. And being able to rotate the camera allows for greater flexibility. No right answer, Gene. It's what you prefer and may not work for others. I'll stay with my bracket, and it's not because it makes me look cool--my photos do that.

Gene51 Loc: Yonkers, NY, now in LSD (LowerSlowerDelaware)

I use a small Newton bracket, though I have also used a speedlight on camera in the hotshoe - what I never do is aim a flash at anyone that the camera is pointed at. That light stinks, and it is the reason why the images I take have been described as "refreshingly different." To each his own. Gary Fong sure sells a lot of tupperware, though.

I posted an example - hard to get this look when you do anything other than bounce.

(Download)

Weddingguy Loc: British Columbia - Canada

This is a very nice shot . . . . BUT . . . . cannot be accomplished under all conditions. High, dark, brightly colored ceilings and large churches and reception halls would make this method impossible. In those conditions a good reflector/diffuser would be the second best choice to off camera, multible flashes.

Gene51 Loc: Yonkers, NY, now in LSD (LowerSlowerDelaware)

Thanks. Actually, I was a guest and I did not have my usual gear. I used an on camera flash, there were 30 ft high white ceilings, and I had to use pretty high ISO - 1600 if I recall correctly, and I bounced off a wall that was pretty far away, was either using full power or 1/2 power on the manual flash. I used my hand as a makeshift second bounce, to put some light into the shadows. The "pro" was using a Stroboframe erector set flash bracket and was almost strangled by the cables :)

Anyway, I was not the paid shooter, but about 20 of the 45 shots I took made it into the album, with the comment, "I am so sorry we didn't hire you!"

But, as a rule, I don't look for wedding or event work. Been there, done that. Too much competition from people who pretend they are pros, often using high pricing to validate their worth. Most of the time I bring a camera and lens and a speedlight, just for laughs and giggles. In the past 12 weddings I have attended over the past few years, I was impressed by only one woman who really nailed everything and got it so right. She WAS good. Funny thing, it was the only other time I had seen a wedding shooter use a Newton bracket. Coincidence?

Anyway, no matter what, I never point a speedlight at anyone. If I have to follow around the fat woman with the white dress on and use her as my personal bounce, I will. From time to time , if the venue is smaller, as in a restaurant or small catering hall, I will go in ahead of time and rig up to a dozen speedlights in the same locations as the existing light - inside wall sconces, chandeliers etc - fired with radio triggers and all bounced or diffused. Given the circumstances, I may use a small flash, with a piece of tupperware on it fired at 1/16 power, just for fill if I am in a darker area.

Shooting raw allows my to bounce effectively off of colored walls - easily adjusted in Lightroom or Capture One.

If the situation is completely unfavorable, and I can't get bounce (dark walls, really weird coloring, or a small party in a large room), I will use a large (9"x12") bounce card, on a flash held out at arm's length (a good 3 ft off the camera's axis, move in close and shoot that way. It is still better direct light.

Once again, I do not point a flash at anyone from the cameras point of view - ever. And it works just fine. I can show you 100s of images I have taken this way - with or without a flash bracket.