Freezing action using strobes: How to balance flash duration and power for the perfect shot

 

 

If you want to freeze action, strobes are a great way to do so. An important aspect to achieving this goal is to shorten your flash's duration. Some strobes include a high-speed or t-mode which will shorten the flash duration. To ensure that your camera's shutter syncs with the short flash, you need to use a high speed sync mode. By cutting the duration of your flash, you weaken the power of the flash, so it's a balancing act to nail the exposure while shortening the flash as much as possible.

In the video below from The Slanted Lens shows how shortening your flash duration can do to the look of your image. As you can see, it's a balancing act between ambient light, flash power, flash duration and shutter speed.

(Via The Slanted Lens)