SB-910 mucking around.

[Scott Murray]

Yeah, I am confused what it is too, esp seems unnatural if the flash was aimed up. If you could bounce, I assume it was not direct sunlight. And it is from the front anyway, not from above.

But a hot shoe flash is a few inches higher than the lens, and so direct flash does always make a shadow, yes mostly behind, but also "under" the subject due to those few inches of height. For example with the diffusion dome, see the sixth picture (diffusion dome) at Flash Fundamentals - What hot shoe flashes do . There, the bounce from above filled and lightened that direct spill shadow (instead of the intended other way around), but the spill is same as direct flash.

The bounce card shadow normally is not as dark and visible as direct spill from the dome, and is more than enough, especially to add catchlights in eyes (your second picture). We don't have to pull the bounce card all the way out.

Basically all the lighting in these photos was done via flash, the bulb lights outside are dull at best and there was no sunlight (2am'ish). Also the Bounce card was not used.