Built in flash success!

After getting some advice here on using the built in flash indoors, I was inspired to do some playing last night. I set some items on our entry way table and started shooting. First, I took some with the flash normally and got washed out pictures with harsh shadows. I then was inspired to take a piece of white paper and hold it in front of the flash at about a 45 degree angle to reflect the flash upwards and not letting any light directly fall on my subject. That worked but the pics came out all brown/orange tint probably due to the color of our walls (sahara sand, but our ceiling is white). So, replicating the conditions for taking the pictures, I used a white piece of paper and manually set the white balance and I got what looked to me like a good picture. I took these in my living room at around 9:00pm. They were lit by a halogen lamp on the left of them and the entry way lights to the right so it wasn't very bright in there. The first two were taken with 1/30 and F2.2, the last one was 1/15 F2.2, to try and brighten it up some, but it still looks a little dark.

I think you have done pretty well with an internal flash. If you have Photoshop, have a play with the images using the eye droppers in levels and curves. I think what will help is getting the white balance correct. Get a grey card and put it in the photo and use that to balance the images. Take a shot then remove it and retake the shot. It is good to play with the white balance, it can show you interesting things. I think the the second and third photos are a little underexposed looking at the histogram of each photo in photoshop/adjust/levels.

Photoshop is on my wish list with a bunh of otherthings. right now all our picture hadling/editting is done in, gasp, kodak easy share software! Thanks!

I went back and did some mroe experimenting. I've been trying to make due with what I have on hand, and belive it or not I took this one using a kleenex as a flash diffuser! It took some playing with the white balance like you said, and the exposure but I think it looks good. Soft shadows and good lighting. Same conditions as the others, at night etc.

What do you think?

(I realized after the fact that my wife hasn't removed the price tags off of the fake plants yet! :))