TTL Flash question

[sol33]

Hi,

after reading the manual I noticed that to use Minolta's TTL flash feature I have to put the camera into automatic exposure mode which will fix the shutter speed at 60. This means I can control the background exposure only by modifying the lens aperture. And in many low light situations this will leave the background just black, even at maximum lens aperture.

Is there any way around this? Of course, I can use the flash with manual exposure, but then the flash will work like any basic flash without TTL.

 

[PaulDalex]

From the manual I understand the same thing. If I were in the same situation I would give up TTL. Maybe, Paleoboy will post a better solution. I am curious too.
Cheers
Paul

 

[Palaeoboy]

And in many low light situations this will leave the background just black, even at maximum lens aperture.

Flash blackout at the limits of the flash range are a fact of flash photography however the problem is less so with the CLE due to its flash synch speed being so slow in comparison with more modern synch speeds like 250th of second which always black the background at night. With a 60th of a second you find that more ambient light seeps in and combines with the flash light to create a more natural and progressive light fall off than the stark black wall you get with a higher synch speed. So in fact with the CLE the problem you raise is less of a problem than most other TTL flash cameras. Thats the advantage of slow synch speeds. The disadvantage is doing daylight fill flash outside in strong light to eliminate shadows etc where you need a fast shutter speed to cope with the brighter ambient light of the day.

If you still want to alter exposure however with TTL flash for whatever reason you can do so by altering the film speed on the camera. This tricks the flash and the cameras TTL system into thinking it has a faster or slower film and adjusts its exposure accordingly. This can be helpful to tweak for different films which have a slightly different reflectivity off the film plane than others

 

[PaulDalex]

Palaeoboy,
I think sol33 has a very far backgound and wants a VERY SLOW synch to get it exposed properly. To trick the camera means that the foregrpung might result overexposed.
In this whole question I think there is an overvaluation of TTL. I make a lot of use of non-TTL flash (e.g. Fuji GS690) with excellent results. Who said that TTL is a must for a perfect flash photo?
Cheers
Paul

 

[Palaeoboy]

I think sol33 has a very far backgound and wants a VERY SLOW synch to get it exposed properly.

I interpret sol33's post a bit differently, I dont see him mention the word far or very slow synch just that he was concerned about black backgrounds in general. To which 60th is considered quite slow in TTL flash setups. Any slower and you will risk blurrng the background illuminated by ambient light due to camera shake.

 

[sol33]

Pistach is right, I usually use rather slow film (100ISO) with slow shutter speeds to capture more ambient light. This way I get a more natural look even if the background is blurred a bit by camera shake and motion. This is a personal preference of mine and it does imply manual exposure control. For the automatic exposure mode a fixed shutter speed obviously makes the most sense. I just wish I could have a TTL flash with manual exposure control!

I think I have two options: (a) to use a faster film to capture more ambient light and extend the range of the flash or (b) to use another flash with a photo cell and automatic mode. With (b) I would loose the accuracy of TTL exposure and the ability to freely chose the aperture, but it's probably good enough for my purposes. So I guess this is what I will do.

Thanks for your input!
sol33