Like most digital SLR cameras, the Canon Rebel T6, or Eos 1300D, has a built-in flash and also a hot shoe for an external flash. The built-in flash is great for casual photography, perhaps of family or friends. It has a GN (guide number) of 90, which means it’s effective at a distance of about 2-3 meters at normal settings (ISO 100, f4). The advantage of the built-in flash is that, being built into the camera, it is always with you and automatically engages in producing the best exposure, using the camera’s ETTL (Evaluative Through The Lens) system, which means the camera shares its exposure settings with the flash so the image looks good. This is particularly useful if you are using flash to fill in. The other advantage is that if you’re using the basic modes (auto through night portrait), the camera will decide if flash is required, so you don’t have to think about it.

There’s also an option to make the flash fire even if the camera thinks you don’t need it. The options you can change are limited compared to the external flash, but a useful option is front curtain or rear curtain, because this will have an effect on how action pictures are taken. if the flash is set to first curtain, the flash will fire when the shutter is released. If the flash is set to rear curtain, it will fire just before the shutter closes. This may not seem important, but if you’re shooting fast-moving subjects, firing the flash first will make the subject appear to move backwards (because the flash freezes the subject and then there’s ghostly motion as the subject moves forward). ). If the flash fires at the end of the shot, the ghosting occurs first and the flash freezes the subject, making the subject appear to be moving forward.

You can also change the exposure compensation settings and the ETTL by choosing between evaluative or average. In this case, Evaluative will set the flash based on the light of the subject, while Average will set the flash based on an average of all the light in the frame. Because the flash uses ETTL, it knows the lens setting, so it will either concentrate the light from the flash if the lens is extended (50 -100mm) or scatter the light if the lens has a wide focal length (24mm, for instance).

There are more creative options for external flash, although that depends to some extent on the flash gun you have.

With both, you have the option of changing the flash sync to either front (1st) curtain or rear (2nd) curtain. The front curtain fires the flash when the shutter opens, and the rear curtain fires the flash just as the shutter closes. If the subject is stationary, this won’t matter much, but if the subject is moving, when the flash fires it will affect the impression of movement in the image. External flash options can also offer high-speed sync, which allows you to take pictures in bright light with a shallow depth of field. With both flash options, you get Flash Exposure Bracketing (FEB), which lets you group your shots: take the same image with different flash intensity, then choose the one you prefer.

If the external flash has ETTL settings, it will also respond to the lens zoom setting. This is very useful as if the lens is on a wide setting then the flash will try to spread its light over a wide area, whereas if the lens is on a long setting then the flash will narrow the beam to try to get more distance. In many cases, the external flash will also function as a slave flash, meaning you can position the flash away from the camera and it can be triggered by the camera’s built-in flash.

The Canon 1300D, or Rebel T6, is a great camera for learning how to use flash in your photography. Clock this video here or visit my website for more information.