Pinenutz 1

Greetings!
I have a Conon EOS70D and was shooting photos of the moon.
On flash setting (I was experimenting and know that I can't light up the moon with a flash)
the flash fluttered and crackled, but wouldn't fire.
My theory is, this happens because the flash wasn't synchronized the shutter speed and aperture.
Can anyone confirm or dispute my theory?
Any other ideas, please?

Winslowe

If I was a flash and someone tried to fire me for a shot of the moon, I'd flutter and crackle too!

FJT Loc: Delaware

If you're using an older flash there might be a compatibility problem with a newer camera due to the difference in voltage at the hot shoe.
In any case sputtering and crackling are not normal and could damage your camera.

Pinenutz 1

Thank you for the input.
The flash is the built-in on the camera itself that is sputtering and crackling.

BebuLamar

does it do it when taking picture normally (not the moon)?

Pinenutz 1

It seems to happen only when I'm photographing at night.
I had the same issue photographing the Tufa at Mono Lake last year.

jerryc41 Loc: Catskill Mts of NY

That's a strange one. If the flash pops up, it should fire. Let's see if any 70D owners comment.

"On: The flash fires regardless of the lighting conditions. You may hear this flash mode referred to as force flash because the camera is forced to trigger the flash even if its exposure-brain says there’s plenty of ambient light. This flash mode is sometimes also called fill flash because it’s designed to fill in shadows that can occur even in bright light. Whatever you call it, this option causes the flash to pop up as soon as you press the shutter button halfway. The flash will fire for subsequent shots until you change the flash mode to Auto or Off."

http://www.dummies.com/photography/cameras/canon-camera/how-to-choose-flash-modes-on-a-canon-eos-70d/

rmalarz Loc: Tempe, Arizona

It may be a simple situation of the spirit is willing but the flash is weak.
--Bob

Pinenutz 1

New thought:
I'll check the battery charge.
Maybe it's too low to fire the flash.
Thank you!

MikieLBS Loc: "Southeast of Disorder"

Your camera should be set for a relatively fast shutter speed(sunny 16) for the moon. I use a flash for moon shots often and, no, I'm not trying to light up the moon but hilighting the closer objects in the background. Do you know what settings you are using when you hear the flash crackle?

Pinenutz 1

Don't remember what setting because I was shooting in different modes all night.

amfoto1 Loc: San Jose, Calif. USA

Was "Focus Assist" enabled?

I bet it was. When that's on, the flash emits a series of rapid, brief flashes.... sort of sounds like what you described.

Focus Assist only works about 10 or 15 feet.... a wee bit closer than the moon! Probably the reason the flash wouldn't actually fire (I assume the shutter wouldn't trip either) is because the camera "thought" focus wasn't being achieved, so was preventing both exposure and flash firing. Turning off Focus Assist should allow the flash to fire and shutter to operate normally.

By the way, an accessory, external flash works much better than the built-in. They are far more powerful (though obviously still won't illuminate the moon), has it's own separate power supply (so recycles a lot faster and won't rapidly drain the camera's battery), and many have wider coverage when using wide angle lens. If put on a flash bracket (and connected with an off-camera shoe cord), an accessory flash also will significantly reduce redeye and ugly shadow problems (neither of which are issues shooting the moon).

Many accessory flashes also can provide Focus Assist, but they do so in a lot less obnoxious manner. Instead of the rapid series of bright white "strobing" that the built-in flashes do, most accessory flashes project a much more subtle, near-infrared grid for the AF system to lock onto in low light conditions. The reach of this is similarly limited to 10 or 15... maybe 20 feet tops.

jerryc41 Loc: Catskill Mts of NY

Ugh!

Pinenutz 1

That makes total sense. I had the "Auto Focus" on.
Would that make it do the same thing?

amfoto1 Loc: San Jose, Calif. USA

No... Not really.

Focus Assist is a separate feature, in addition to auto focus.

However, turning AF off... instead using manual focus... would probably temporarily cancel Focus Assist too, since it's only ever needed for AF.

Or Focus Assist can be enabled or disabled in the camera's menu.

If using the Flash icon "scene mode", on the exposure mode dial, that might automatically enable Focus Assist. The various scene modes automatically force a lot of things, far more than simply controlling exposure. They also set the autofocus to certain modes, limit the type of image files you can save, restrict other things such as ISO, shutter speeds or aperture.

I don't really know for sure whether the Flash mode setting turns on Focus Assist or not. I never use that or any of the other scene modes, because the last thing I'd ever want is my camera overriding my settings! (In fact, some Canon DSLRs I use don't even have scene modes.)