What kind of camera/flash setup do I need to freeze fast motion with flash at night?
Asked 3/21/2016
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I photograph the same fast-moving subject from a fixed camera position, often at night, with the subject fairly close to the camera. My current Nikon D1/D1H works with a strobe via the hot shoe, but the cameras are aging and I need an upgrade.
I thought I needed a shutter speed around 1/3200s, but many newer cameras seem limited by flash sync speed. I’ve read about Auto FP / high-speed sync, but I’m confused about whether that will actually freeze motion.
If the strobe already provides enough light and the ambient light can be kept low, do I really need a camera that syncs at 1/3200s? Or should I be looking for a camera with normal x-sync, a leaf shutter camera, or some other approach?
Originally by Photography Stack Exchange contributor. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
Photography Stack Exchange contributor
10y ago
2 Answers
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You misunderstand Auto FP, which starts just above the cameras maximum sync speed, and allows up to the maximum shutter speed the camera permits (1/8000 second on some models) if with a HSS flash unit. However beware, the HSS flash becomes continuous light for the duration, and maximum power level is reduced to about 20%, so range is limited.
See http://www.scantips.com/lights/flashbasics2b.html about HSS and Auto FP.
But HSS is NOT high speed flash, it merely removes the sync speed requirement. And to be able to do that, instead the HSS flash becomes continuous light, which cannot stop motion like a flash can. HSS flash properties are more like a brief desk lamp illumination, continuous light.
The way high speed flash photography is done is with a regular speedlight flash and mode, which is a very fast flash at normal shutter speeds. The slower sync speed limit is of no concern in dim ambient, when the much faster flash stops the motion. The speedlight can be much faster than any possible shutter speed. See http://www.scantips.com/speed.html
If you need more power than a speedlight, see the Paul C. Buff "Einstein" studio light.
Originally by user38978. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
user38978
10y ago
0
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You probably do not need 1/3200s shutter speed to freeze the motion. In flash photography, motion is usually frozen by the flash duration, not by the mechanical shutter.
If ambient light is low and the strobe is the main light, then a camera with a normal x-sync speed is often enough. Set the shutter at or below the camera’s sync speed, and the short flash burst does the freezing.
High-speed sync / Auto FP is usually not the best solution for this. HSS turns the flash into a rapid, near-continuous light source during the exposure, which greatly reduces power and does not freeze motion as effectively as a normal flash burst.
So the key question is not “which camera does 1/3200s with flash,” but whether your flash duration is short enough and ambient light is dark enough.
If ambient light is still too bright at normal sync speeds, a leaf-shutter camera can sync with flash at much faster shutter speeds and may help. Examples mentioned include leaf-shutter compact cameras such as the Fuji X100 series, Sony RX1 series, Sigma DP series, and Ricoh GR models.
In short: use normal flash if possible; consider leaf shutter only if ambient light is the problem.
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