I understand my new Speedlight 220EX automatically balances foreground and background to be correctly exposed. What I want is a well-exposed foreground with an underexposed background (say, 1, 2 or 3 stops less) to make the main subject stand out. Camera body is a Rebel G. How can I do it?

-- claudio arrighi (claudioarrighi@yahoo.com), February 04, 2002

Answers

For this look, I use M mode and set the correct exposure according to my meter. To make the background darker without impacting flash exposure, I dial in a stop or more (according to taste) of underexposure. The E-TTL flash automatically exposes the subject correctly.

On my EOS 3 I have CF 14-2 set to cancel automatic fill flash reduction so can control flash output without surprises. I'm not sure what happens on a Rebel...

-- Puppy Face (doggieface@aol.com), February 04, 2002.

actually fast synchro will meet your demand.The subject (closer) is illuminated by flash while the background remains dark because it requires longer exposure time.Use 1/90 for your Rebel

-- legnum (legnum212@email.com), February 05, 2002.

Neither the Rebel G and 220EX have FEC, so the best way is to adjust the exposure in manual mode, setting it to a stop or two below the ambient lighting levels. The flash exposure should still light the closer subjects normally.

-- Jim Strutz (j.strutz@gci.net), February 06, 2002.