Africa Wild

Peter, super lighting and a great example of how to use daylight flash to kill the shadows - if you have the right equipment!

The point I was trying to make is that for an on camera flash, at night you will get maximum range out of the flash with the shutter speed set at or slower than high speed sync and the aperture wide open. In daylight this will give you a horribly overexposed image, more likely no image at all. Dropping the ISO or closing the aperture will reduce the effective range of the flash. Increasing the shutter speed will put the camera into high speed sync mode, reduce the power of the flash, and so will also reduce the effective range.

Your maximum flash range is thus severely constrained by the ambient light, something many amateur photographers (like myself) fail to apreciate.

I agree with your comments on the dangers of using flash at night and the same applies for spotlights. Hopefully we all try to be responsible
on how we do it.

Using Natural early morning Soft sunlight to illuminate Wildlife is so much more satisfying and ethical than the hard light flashed right into the eyes of night drive animals with flash and spotlights...you really need a click on this one as the colours are rich at sunrise

I fully agree. This picture is beautiful, with only the subject illuminated and the rest in the darkness

Lovely

Another pic of softly draped Natures flashlight ..The just rising sun ..no harsh Shadows like those from Camera flashes ...Less than a week now !! getting stoked

FIRST LIGHT

I never ever use Flash on any Carnivore or Nocturnal Animal ...I leave my flash in camp on my early in the morning photography escapades...The Retinas of Lions , Leopards, Owls, Genets , Nightjars , Wild Cats, Caracal, Coursers, Hyena etc etc are 20 000 times more sensitive than humans and I know what I feel like when at say a wedding in the evening and I get a blast of "Fill in Flash' ONLY from the photographer doing their rounds. I literally see spots for at least 15 mins But I am lucky as I am getting a slap up meal in an hours time done by caterers while the Leopard etc has to use his /her Senstive retinas to catch Dinner etc.

There are so many ways to get animals/birds in darker situations (Low Light)
- f2.8 lenses Which I dont have apart from a 24-70 and maybe a 70-200 in the next year
- Higher ISO (Modern Nikon Mirrorless cameras) can shoot 10000 ISO Noise Free and I am sure the other brands can do too
- Highlights and Shadows in P Shop brings out detail. Increase exposure in P Shop and as you do take noise down in After mar Software
- Wait another 10 mins if you really have to ..It brightens up pretty quickly out there
etc etc Make a plan and tread softly out there Vehicle Spot lights are bad enough on Night Drives which I have stopped supporting many years ago. Photographers always say 'I have to get the Shot' and I am only using 1/128th power ..Just do the right thing ..No Flash . My researher Mates in the old Kalahari Days were aghast that I used a flash on a white Faced Owl at the Windmill camp we were at ..Got a serious lecture but I am glad that happened as my Flash these days is only for happy snaps around the campfire when I am in the bush