Photographing with direct, on-camera flash has some nasty side-effects. You'll get harsh shadows, flat lighting, and bad reflections. There are times when it's the only thing you can do. But whenever possible you want to soften your light. One easy way is to bounce the light of your flash off a ceiling or a wall. Bouncing is a great alternative to direct flash when you're looking for softer light, or a more natural look.

Flexibility and Power

When you're buying a flash, look for a unit that has a flexible head. In the best case your flash will not only point up but will also rotate 360 degrees so you can also bounce off a wall to the side or behind you. This will allow you more control over where the light is going, even while the flash is mounted on your camera's hot-shoe.

Before we get into the various bounce tricks, realize that this is most effective indoors. You need something to bounce the light off, so if you're working outside you might have a hard time finding a suitable surface.

Bounce Considerations

A couple things to remember when you're bouncing light. First, a white surface is best. Other colors will not only shift the color of your photo, but they don't reflect as well. A colored or dark surface will suck up a lot of your light, forcing you to lose brightness. Second, a bounce flash takes more power than direct flash as some light is lost in the bounce. Since your flash will be putting out more power when bouncing, your recycle times will be longer than with direct flash.

Ceiling Bounce

The most basic bounce trick is to point your flash at the ceiling over your subject. The light will illuminate a large section of the ceiling and bounce down onto your subject, simulated an overhead softbox.

If your subject is close, point the flash straight up. If they are ahead of you several feet or more, you can angle the flash forward slightly so the light will bounce onto the subject. But be careful you don't lean the flash too far forward or light will leak directly onto your subject and cast shadows.

Remember that the ceiling bounce is top-down light. The effect is similar to a room well-lit with a large bank of flourescent lights. It's nothing glamorous but it looks natural and is a vast improvement over direct flash.

Wall Bounce

The wall bounce is a great alternative to the ceiling bounce. The wall bounce is done by bouncing the light from a wall at your side or even behind you, simulating a softbox directing light onto your subject. The wall bounce is very flexible as by shifting your location you can adjust the light on your subject.

Getting Creative

Once you master the ceiling and wall bounce, you can get even more creative. You can really bounce light off of any surface. The more you look for surfaces to bounce on, the more you'll find. Photographing an event in a large courtyard early in my career, I panicked that there was no place to bounce my flash. Then I realized I was wearing a white t-shirt. I held the camera at waist level and simply bounced the flash off my t-shirt. While the composition was tricky, the lighting looked great.