role of and position of elbow/forearms together

[pieman]

i'd like a little bit of explanation of the position of the elbows and forearms both at address and as swinging. would i want to keep the forearms/elbows somewhat tight or connected if possible? i feel my left elbow gets away a bit. would this be a power leak and if so, how much is affected by it? i feel as if i don't really get to the low position or a full release--almost as if because my left is flying out a bit on the downswing. would this make 'shaking the sugar' harder to do?
thanks for any tips/suggestions