Fill flash with long lenses and the Better Beamer

canuck257

Senior Member
I'm looking for feedback on using this combination. I believe Kevin H used it at the Circle B meet. What were the advantages in shutter speed/exposure settings used and what improvements did you see?
 

Fred Kingston

Senior Member
A friend has one. It was sort of a disappointment... it's really flimsy plastic... that's not a lens on there, more like a piece of plastic film...
 

RobV

Senior Member
It looks like one of those plastic lenses that people used to put in the back window of their RV.

1232986635000_427602.jpg

https://www.bhphotovideo.com/bnh/co...ap=y&m=Y&c3api=1876,92051677562,&Q=&A=details
 
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cbg

Senior Member
I'm looking for feedback on using this combination. I believe Kevin H used it at the Circle B meet. What were the advantages in shutter speed/exposure settings used and what improvements did you see?

I'm still really learning what it's effects are. Since the fresnel lens is a magnifier, it will give a longer reach with the flash. I haven't had a lot of time in the last week or so to get out with it. One I get a better feel for it, I'll post my thoughts. The one thing I did notice at the M&G with it, was that I could reduce the flash power on birds that were close and just get what was need for fill light.
 

WayneF

Senior Member
I dont have, and have never used a Better Beamer. But the big problem with flash for birders is that a flash simply won't reach as far as a long lens will, for the bird in yonder far tree. A regular full powered flash at even 200 mm has a Guide Number of maybe GN 190 (feet). That means a bird at 60 feet needs 190/60 = f/3.1 (normal flash level, fill flash would need less light). The same picture view with a 300mm lens would be down about 1 stop at its greater distance, suitable for fill, except it still requires the f/3.1. But the 300 mm or 400 mm lens used for birding typically won't do f/3.1. You'd think higher ISO should help, but that increases the ambient light too, requiring stopping the lens down even more (since shutter speed ls limited by maximum sync requirements).

So the Better Beamer is just a fresnel lens that concentrates the spreading light from the flash into a tighter more concentrated beam, intensifying its light in that smaller area, to have a longer reach with a long lens. The only specs that their web site offers is "for lenses 300 mm and longer" and "increases light 2 2/3 f/stop". BIRDS AS ART.com

I would imagine any problem would be with accurately aiming it to be same as the lens aim. Guessing that pictures of the front of house from across the street in dim light should help to check the aim.
 
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spb_stan

Senior Member
A Fresnel lens is usually just cast plastic but that is how if can be made affordable. It has very small lens sections cast into the surface in concentric rings to focus the light in a parallel beam instead of the natural spread of light at a distance. They can be tricky because the narrow beam, not spreading as you are used to, means it is only effective with narrow field of views, and severe fall off to to the sides. Most would be effective with small birds with 200mm fl but for larger subjects like deer or bear, 300 mm might the widest field of view that is fully illuminated. 3 stops improvement is certain possible on a small subject. They are useless for wide subjects, unless you just need a face highlighted for example. With such a tighter beam, alignment on your camera is critical. Test shots are needed for the distance you are expecting the subject to appear at.

Edit: IF you know the range where your subject is expected, the simple answer is to set out a speed light or two close to the area, manually zoomed wide. There are low cost alternatives to Pocket Wizards flash controllers with 300 foot range. I use the Yongnuo YN-622n Tx transmitter and YN-622N Transceivers and they have worked flawlessly.
 
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Ironwood

Senior Member
I have had a Better Beamer for a while now. I use it at 600mm on my Tamron 150-600. I get a benefit from the flash out at least 40 meters.
I got the best results using 1/200 - 1/250th shutter speed.
My dislike, is the reflection in the eyes of the bird or animal. I can post some sample images if anyone is interested.

I know someone who uses one with his D4 and 600f4 Nikon, some of his Owl shots are outstanding.
 

spb_stan

Senior Member
Using the flash off axis the lens with remote flash controller will reduce or eliminate the light re-radiation from the eyes. That is not always practical for solo shooting, but you can get a similar but less effective reflection using a Circular Polarizing filter. If shooting nesting or feeding animals or birds, a remote flash prefocused on the nest or feeding spot, watering hole etc helps a lot.
 

STM

Senior Member
I have had a Better Beamer for a while now. I use it at 600mm on my Tamron 150-600. I get a benefit from the flash out at least 40 meters.
I got the best results using 1/200 - 1/250th shutter speed.
My dislike, is the reflection in the eyes of the bird or animal. I can post some sample images if anyone is interested.

I know someone who uses one with his D4 and 600f4 Nikon, some of his Owl shots are outstanding.

Are you talking about a catchlight or "red-eye"?
 

Ironwood

Senior Member
Are you talking about a catchlight or "red-eye"?

I guess you might call it red-eye.
This was shot in semi darkness, so the effect is more extreme than if the flash is used for a bit of fill lighting.
The bird was about 30 meters from the camera from memory, the image is cropped.
DSC_0889.jpg
 
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Ironwood

Senior Member
Here are a few other photos I took with the Better Beamer.
The settings are all different because I was experimenting, trying to learn what it could do.
I didnt really stick with it long enough to become good at using it. One day I will have another try with it, it has got potential.

DSC_1274 - Version 2.jpg


DSC_1311 - Version 2.jpg


DSC_1493 - Version 3.jpg
 

Vixen

Senior Member
So I'm just going down this route myself. I have a spot in my garden that is in shade and late afternoon when the birds come to drink, without flash it's hard to do better than ISO 2000 and 1/40 shutter...way too slow for birds

So I'm currently experimenting... and not doing very well :confused:
 

Ironwood

Senior Member
Hi Vixen, I have had a BB for a while now. I had a lot of disappointment with mine early on, I was trying to make it do all the work. I still dont have much luck getting great photos with it if the light is too low. I live in a valley with lots of trees, so even in the middle of the day, I am trying to shoot birds in the shade.

I get my best results if I use it for fill-light on the bird or butterfly etc rather than trying to light the whole scene. Ideally, I set the camera on 1/200th shutter, f8, and vary the iso to get the correct exposure ( or slightly underexposed ) for the background, then set the flash on anywhere from 1/16 to 1/4 to get some fill light on the subject. It has taken me a lot of practice to start getting some decent results , I now use it most of the time I go for a walkaround with the long lens.

One other thing is to make sure you have it aligned to your lens, if it is shooting a bit high or low, you wont get the most benefit from it. I shoot mine at a brick wall to make sure its aligned before I set off on my walk. Zoom your lens out to the shortest focal length and fire it at the wall, check the photo on the back screen, the flash should be lighting the centre of the frame, if it is, once you zoom out it will light the entire frame.
 

Vixen

Senior Member
Thanks Brad, I'll try that with the brick wall

I actually didn't do too badly today as it happens. Still plenty of room for improvement but better than I thought I'd done. I

think I had flash at 1/2, so I'll try it back at 1/4 tomorrow and see how that goes.

017_7938_web.jpg

017_7929_web.jpg

Hi Vixen, I have had a BB for a while now. I had a lot of disappointment with mine early on, I was trying to make it do all the work. I still dont have much luck getting great photos with it if the light is too low. I live in a valley with lots of trees, so even in the middle of the day, I am trying to shoot birds in the shade.

I get my best results if I use it for fill-light on the bird or butterfly etc rather than trying to light the whole scene. Ideally, I set the camera on 1/200th shutter, f8, and vary the iso to get the correct exposure ( or slightly underexposed ) for the background, then set the flash on anywhere from 1/16 to 1/4 to get some fill light on the subject. It has taken me a lot of practice to start getting some decent results , I now use it most of the time I go for a walkaround with the long lens.

One other thing is to make sure you have it aligned to your lens, if it is shooting a bit high or low, you wont get the most benefit from it. I shoot mine at a brick wall to make sure its aligned before I set off on my walk. Zoom your lens out to the shortest focal length and fire it at the wall, check the photo on the back screen, the flash should be lighting the centre of the frame, if it is, once you zoom out it will light the entire frame.
 

Ironwood

Senior Member
Heres one I took recently, the trees in the background were lit by the afternoon sun which was behind me, but the Kookaburra was shaded by the tree I was standing under. I exposed for the trees in the background and used the beamer to put some fill light on the Kooka.
DSC_1314-1.jpg

Without the beamer this shot wouldnt have been really possible, I would have had to overexpose the background, and raise the iso to get the bird exposed, the image probably wouldnt have been useable.

Heres another recent one using the beamer...
DSC_2393.jpg

I also posted this shot here- https://nikonites.com/wild-life/40045-post-your-better-beamer-shots.html#axzz4sS4h5kax
 

Vixen

Senior Member
OK....getting better at this.... I like it, although I still rely on autofocus for birds so really low light means the camera struggles to focus, but even so, my settings prior to getting the better beamer would have been ISO 2000, f 6.3 & 1/40 - 1/60 if I was lucky


017_8185_web.jpg
 
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