Using Outdoor Fill Flash to Blur Backgrounds with High Speed Sync

Hi-speed flash sync allows you to use both a very short depth of field and add fill flash at the same time for your outdoor portraits. By making distracting backgrounds go out of focus, your attention is directed more to your subject for more beautiful results.

[RickMentore]

Joe, this is most helpful for armatures photographers like myself. Just wish I had seen this before I bought my current flash trigger. Thanks!

[jasonbodden]

No real point in blurring the background to soup every time you shoot. Your subject is still very much the main focus at something like f/4 or even 6.3. Knowing the background is blurred leaves is absolutely fine. That blur was enough for me. Not having some kind of context with the background begs the question why you're even outdoors shooting then. You may as well do it in studio. You explained this well, though, except where you say you can't do it without HSS (using ND filters is a great alternative a lot of the time. Done it several times with total success, and yes, at times with f/1.4).

[keuyp]

If you normally set your flash exposure to F/5.6 you can set your aperture to F/1.4 when using a ND 1.2 Filter - 4/f Stop Neutral Density Filter the exposure will not change, Therefore the light level in the viewfinder will be exactly the same it will not be dimmer.

[barkyvonschnauzer]

what flash holder did you use with your umbrella set up?

[vbrooklyn]

couldnt you have simply used an neutral density filter?

[jpphotographyzii]

Sir d3400 off camera flash increase our shutter 1/2000 used godox tt860 x1i trigger

[Thomas_Geist]

Every hear of a neutral density filter? Much less to carry around. HSS is to separate the subject by darkening the background on a bright day.

[jlsc]

Never use TTL, it's not consistant. I have had it go bright and dark many times and thought I had bracketing on. Stopped using it and I have had no problem since.

[b]

Godox S-Type Speedlite Bracket for Elinchrom

[keithbarrett]

1.4 is a very shallow DOF - talking a 6 inch DOF

[GoneToHelenBach]

The last two shots in front of the house, you didn't focus on the nearest eye. I know this was about the use of HSS to allow for the use of wide apertures but damn, that's a bad mistake!
It's okay to make mistakes but surely you should correct them before putting the video together.