The built-in flash will automatically pop up in most of the Basic Zone shooting modes (Full Auto, Creative Auto, Portrait, Close-up, and Night Portrait) if the camera senses that there isn’t sufficient light for your scene. In the Creative Zone modes (P, Av, Tv, and so on), you’ll need to push the Flash button, located on the front of your camera, to activate it.
SHUTTER SPEEDS
Manual Callout The light produced from the built-in flash on your 60D can only reach certain distances, but this distance is dependent on your aperture and ISO speed combination. For a detailed chart that lists the effective range of your built-in flash, please turn to page 131 in your user’s manual.
The standard flash synchronization speed for your camera is between 1/60 and 1/250 of a second. If you set the shutter speed faster than 1/250 of a second, it will be too fast to catch all the light produced from the flash. In fact, you’ll find that your camera won’t let you go beyond 1/250 of a second when the pop-up flash is activated. The key to great flash photography is controlling the shutter speed. The longer your shutter is open, the more ambient light you can let into your image. If you are photographing a person during a sunset and drop your shutter speed low enough to capture the light behind them, you can add beautiful colors to the background. Using different shutter speeds with a flash makes it possible to create some fun and creative shots as well (see Chapter 10, “Advanced Techniques”). Let’s take a look at how each of the camera modes affects the shutter speed when using your flash. s Program (P): The shutter speed is automatically set between 1/60 and 1/250 of a second. The only adjustment you can make in this mode is to your exposure compensation by using the Quick Control dial to change the f-stop. s Shutter Priority (Tv): You can adjust the shutter speed to as fast as 1/250 of a second all the way down to 30 seconds. The lens aperture will adjust accordingly, but typically at long exposures the lens will be set to its largest aperture. s Aperture Priority (Av): This mode has three custom settings for adjusting the shutter speed when using the flash, depending on your needs. The default setting is Auto, which will set your shutter speed and is the recommended setting to start off with. (This setting can be changed in the 60D’s menu in the Custom Functions tab, and is the seventh option under the C.Fn I: Exposure menu item.)
CHAPTER 7: MOOD LIGHTING
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