Photography has come a long way in the past decade. With transition into digital photography, innovative techniques have been unearthed, and work that once looked impossible is now created easily.
Surely, the world has witnessed a tremendous advancement in digital sensors in the photography arena, but the leaf shutter technology still rules the heart and soul of any photographer. This is even more correct in the case of professionals who often use a leaf shutter with an external flash.
What is a leaf shutter?
In brief, leaf shutters are standard camera shutters (lenses) that work like an aperture rather than conventional shutters (lenses). Instead of closing from left to right, they close within themselves. These shutters are a series of metal blades, referred to as leaves, which open and close to expose a photo.
You can find both single leaf shutters as well as multi-leaf shutters. Disposable cameras usually have a single leaf shutter, whereas multi-leaf shutters can be found in other types of cameras.
Advantages of using the leaf shutter technology in flash photography
Just like any other technique, the leaf shutter presents a series of advantages to any photo shooting enthusiast. Whether you are an amateur or professional, you can reap some of the striking benefits with these lenses. Here is a list of popular advantages of this innovative technology.
Clarity
Although most of the modern cameras present acceptable clarity, they are far away from the quality delivered by leaf shutter lenses. Even established photographers are not in a position to shoot pictures of desired images in sunlight with many high-end cameras.
An amateur enthusiast may not capture clear pictures while learning the curve of the field. This is where the leaf shutter steps in to help out. While it comes with a relatively high price, you can shoot clear, appealing pictures with this lens.
No black frame
Many folks prefer to use strobes for faster sync speeds. If you have used strobe lights earlier and shot faster than 1/2000, you might have noticed that a part of the frame is black. You may wonder whether it is some kind of limitations with the strobe. However, this is not the case. What you are actually seeing is a part of your physical shutter.
You can overcome this problem with a leaf shutter. These shutters close within themselves and leave no room for black frames, and the end result is amazing photos without any black corners or frames.
Takes care of light
In the world of flash photography, the quality of light is way more important than the quantity of light. It is always better to have a well exposure subject in light compared to a well-exposed subject in an ugly light. When you shoot pictures in sunlight, the picture quality is greatly hampered by the sun. If not controlled, you will end up shooting ugly looking pictures.
You can resolve the issue with the leaf shutter lens. It lowers the ambient light to a desirable level. There is no need for you to use large sized strobes to overpower the sun. You may use a quick shutter instead for the purpose. It is an ideal solution for handling sunlight. You depend on less strobe power using the same effort to get the same exposure.
Distortion-free images
One of the biggest challenges faced by any photographer is distortion of images. If you shoot pictures with an external flash using other shutters, those shutters are likely to suffer from what is called as rolling shutter, which causes moving objects to appear to lean in the shot image. When this happens, the image quality is compromised. However, this is never an issue with a leaf shutter. Since leaf shutters open from the center outward, there is no distortion of moving objects.
Less noisy
While noise is not an important parameter in shooting images, it can affect the quality of images being shot. Suppose you are picturing high-resolution images in a wildlife with flash photography. Obviously, you may want to shoot photos in a quiet manner. Any noise can disturb your concentration and may deter the object (if the object is an animal or other lively creature) from its place.
When this happens, the quality of photos will not be clear. A leaf shutter is noise-free and lets you concentrate on shooting photos of desired objects without any disturbance. Also, in the absence of any noise, you can capture photos from varying angles that can enhance the picture quality to a great extent.
Sharpness
Leaf shutter lenses are designed to be sharp and made for high performance. It is easy to pull out amazing details with these highly accurate lenses. Also, you can make tight crops look like full frame images.
The biggest perk of using leaf shutters is you could shoot wide open apertures like f/2.8 without worrying about chromatic aberration. No matter whether the images are large or small, you can shoot quality pictures with utmost soft corners. This is something unique and special in flash photography, which is just not an option even with high-end camera lenses today.
Wider range
Most of the camera lenses have limits with respect to the range of photos being captured. If you are shooting distant images, you may need a lens such as a leaf shutter that will cover a wider range. No matter the distance and range, a leaf shutter lens let you picture high-quality photos with utmost clarity and sharpness even in the afternoon when the sun is right over your head.
While many brands are now offering lenses with wide range capabilities, none can match the range feature of leaf shutters.
Bottom line
The above discussion clearly highlights the importance of the leaf shutter technique with an external flash. Utmost clarity, sharpness, distortion-free images, less noisy, etc are some of the amazing perks of using this cutting-edge technique. This is why a lot of professionals employ this technique even today.
If you wish to take your photo shooting capabilities to a new level, consider using the leaf shutter with an external flash. With proper usage and creativity, you could surpass your competitors and move ahead in your photography tenure.