Greg said to Tony
First you need to realize that most of the cameras you see flashing at
outdoor events do not have a flash capable of reaching the stage with enough
light to accomplish anything. So what is happening? The film that is being
used is fast enough and there is usually quite a large number of stage
lights trained on the stage to take acceptable photographs. So a flash is
not always necessary and will not help much unless you are near the stage.
That said there are two Olympus flash units that comfortably fit on the
OM1n; the T20 and, the almost twice as large, T32. The T20 will give enough
light with an aperture of f8 and 400 iso film to be about 16 ft away while
the T32 with the same f-stop and film will let you be about 26 feet away.
That is when they are in normal auto mode.
The only advantage of using an Olympus flash (or OM dedicated flash) is the
ready light that will appear in the viewfinder. Other flash units will work
on the OM1n as well for less money but usually (unless specifically
dedicated to the OM system) do not include the ready light in the
viewfinder.
Tony Halmarack had said:
>
> I'm taking my wife and daughters to a music festival ........
> Can anyone please advice me on a flash system the will be suitable for
general
> purpose outdoor use please? I imagine it will be used for distances from
close
> up, to some hopefully generous max. A battery that could be recharged from
my
> vehicles electrical system would be useful, but this may be asking a lot.
Greg probably knows more about this than I do. However, he did not mention
the Olympus flash extender which can extend the range of a T32 a bit which
can be useful. However, my experience of trying to use one in an audience
(using TTL/ auto) is that one has to be very careful that the sensor is not
fooled by a light coloured hairdo or clothing in the field of view but much
nearer the photographer than the intended subject.
Finally, for others who might be in a similar situation with another
camera: If it is a 2SP like mine with a green flash ready light, do not
leave the flash switched on for extended periods or the camera batteries
will go flat prematurely. And I do not like changing batteries in a dark
environment - I learned this the hard way when in a party being shown round
spectacular underground caves.
Brian Gray
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