off camera flash istD

I took some portraits of my children today using my flash off camera. I tried to do this the same way that I would my film camera. I used the manual setting and used the thyristor on the camera and bounced the flash into an umbrella. I set the camera to manual and used 125 shutter for flash and F11 as my flash indicated it needed for the Fstop. Most of these pictures came out overexposed. Has anyone found a better method using this camera?

Ava,

If you are doing manual flash, make sure you have set the flash to 200ASA, set the *istD to 200, and disabled automatic sensitivity in the custom menu. Then use the *istD as a standard film camera (ie, put on manual, set the aperture using the thumb wheel and fire away).

Obviously, before firing the flash, check in the viewfinder to see that the *istD says it is underexposed - if the meter shows correct or overexposure before firing the flash you are going to have to stop down until you are slightly underexposed (so the flash can fill in the rest).

It is also probably worthwhile setting the white balance to flash, rather than AWB (Auto White Balance). However, you may have to experiment a little before you get the results you want.

The *istD has many different flash modes, when used with dedicated Pentax flashes. The most powerful mode is P-TTL where the *istD will do all the metering from a preflash that measures the exposure of the scene. (These things are outlined in the *istD manual )

Hope that helps,
Matt

Thank you for the advice Matt. I will give it a try with the suggested settings. Right now I have an old Vivitar 283 flash that has always worked well with my Pentax bodies. I will look into the Pentax flashes you mentioned in the future when I am looking for a new one.

The pictures are improving. It is funny, but my Thyristor does not seem to function properly on this camera. Maybe it is broken, but the last time I used it on my K1000 and ME super it worked fine. I ended up having to experiment with moving my lighting around before I could get some properly exposed pictures. Maybe it is time to break down and buy a Pentax dedicated flash!

Expensive dedicated flashguns are all very well, but if you are shooting indoors in a relatively controlled situation you would get much better results with studio flash and the camera set on manual.
It's all a matter of what you want to do, but if you intend to do a lot of indoor portrait photograpy, invest in some secondhand studio gear. It needn't cost much more than dedicated flashguns, and will give you far greater control.
Flash is about lighting the subject, not fancy technology. Very few people really use all the facilities that the expensive flashguns provide.
If you want to play around before making up your mind, buy another basic, but reasonably powerful, non-dedicated flash and a couple of flash triggers. Then experiment with different lighting setups, with the camera on manual. A reflector or two would also be a good investment.
Remember, technique is more important than technology. Expensive kit won't make you a good photographer. That will come fropm experience, experiment, and understanding.

I did lots of experimenting with my K-1000 and ME super in regards to lighting, and I had a setup in my living room that worked well for me. Someday I might try some used studio lights and I am sure that would increase my knowledge and results. The major issue was that the same setup that worked with my other cameras were giving me different results with the istD. I know it is all about relearning what works with this camera, and I guess I am up for trying some new things as well. I am going to start with the dedicated flash and do some experimenting with that. Maybe I will eventually go for the other used studio lighting and experiment with that. It is mostly just to get some nice pictures of the kids for my mom though, so it is not like I am trying to work at a professional level. This is pretty much a hobby which I enjoy.

One thing you may want to try is a Sto-Fen Omnibounce attachment, this is a gadget that costs less than $20 at B and H Photo. It is fitted to the flash head and gives very good diffused lighting. I see photojournalists use it when taking pictures of politicians at a news conference. I tried it and it worked great. It comes in handy when it is not practical to bounce a flash off a wall or a ceiling or use an umbrella reflector with studio lighting etc. It is much more portable than studio lights. Great for candid photos of children while they are out acting like children instead of posing for photos.

Thanks for the suggestion. I'll look into that.