Better Point-and-Shoot Shots with an External Flash

Last weekend, one of our friends celebrated their daughter's birthday party.  On this kind of occasion, I don't usually bring a DSLR anymore - I feel it is a little too much when we're not the celebrants.  Instead, I brought our trusty Lumix LX5 (reviewed here).  However, to get the best image quality out of the LX5, I paired it with an external flash, the Yongnuo YN-560EX (reviewed here).

Yes, the 560EX is a manual not TTL flash.  (I don't have a dedicated TTL flash for the Lumix LX5.)  However, using a manual flash while shooting run-and-gun is actually easier than it sounds.  (See: Therapy for TTL Addiction: How to Use Manual Flash).

In this post, I'll discuss my thought process in setting the flash and ambient exposures.

Chasing Butterflies with the LX5

A couple of weeks ago, I had the opportunity to take a tour of a preserve in order to watch the El Segundo Blue Butterfly, an endangered species found only in a small area of the dunes of El Segundo, California.

Lumix LX5 for Lighting Lunatics

You probably know that the aspect of my photos that I'm most passionate about is the lighting.  My passion for lighting carries over even when I'm shooting with a point and shoot camera.  Of course, looking for good ambient lighting is an option with any camera, but as much as possible I want to have maximum control over lighting by using a flash.  This obsession with lighting is why I love the Lumix LX5.  This hands-on review of the LX5 will focus on its use with an external flash, both on-camera and off-camera, and even with AlienBees!