Nikon flashguns.......

Golgarth

Golgarth

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Karl
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OK, so I came across from my old Sony setup (which included an HVL42AM Sony flashgun) and the one thing I miss with my Nikon kit is a decent flash.

99% of my flash photography was bounced flash, indoors, shooting either my son or my reptiles. I loved the fact that the camera and flash worked in harmony, I turned it on, shot away, and the camera and flash worked out the rest for me. (simple I know, but I'm a simple kinda guy)

Looking for a flash for my D5100 the obvious choice is an SB6/7/8/900 (600 being top choice on price alone)

I have next to no budget what with Christmas coming up and all, but want to know what I am aiming for (price wise) and what the benefits are each way.

Now I have seen the likes of:
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Meike-MK431-TTL-iTTL-LCD-Mini-Flash-Speedlite-Nikon-D5100-D8-/120895367439

Which I do not see (because I do not know) the difference between these and the Nikon variants?

Can anyone help? All I want is something that will just "work". If the SBxxx range are worth the price tag then I guess I will just have to wait and save, but if the likes of the Meike are worthy competitors (and I can save the extra towards new kit) then alls better.....

Cheers in advance guys
 
When I was looking for a flash for my d90 I looked at the nikon options, I wet with a Nissin flash. Equivalent on the sb600 I think. Even does off camera via commander mode.

Cost about £100 I think.

May be worth a look at them

Edit: just looked it up, it's a nissin di622 mark 2. It's £107.99 from amazon.
 
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If you want bounce flash go for the sb600. I saved up and bought a second hand sb800 which cost me about £180.

There are other cheaper flashes which are good like the nissin range.

For cheaper options have a look at the jessops afd range.
 
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SB600 all the way.
 
'600... Or a Nissin...you'll want to bounce it. That's why i avoided the 400, although it does get ok reviews, but is limited with bounce directions
 
I had the nissin and it's okay, but has no HSS option and it's more unreliable exposure wise.
 
I'll add that i paid about 130 off of here for my 600, and for such a small amount of cash in photography terms :) its probably my best value purchase that really helped improve my photos.

Its such an overlooked aspect here imo as a lot go on about expensive glass etc, when decent flash work will make more improvement sometimes....its a learning game all on its own but worth it.

I did buy a Nissin off mbp but they misadvertised and it was for Canon (no issues refunding) then at the same time the 600 came up on here for only about 40 quid more...
 
Ah Dean, yeah, meant to say i do use that a fair bit actually...good point.

Just get the 600 :)
 
When looking at Nissin, there was talk about making sure you get the Mark 2 due to Mark 1 sometimes overexposing, but others here said its a non issue so not sure if it was indeed an issue...
 
It was an issue with mine.
 
Looks like I will be getting an SB600 then, knew it would be the sensible option.

Cheers for the feedback everyone
 
. Ignore I'm just being silly and not reading things properly as usual.
 
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faddius said:
Sorry to jump in Karl, but I'm seeking a bit more elaboration on a very similar subject-

Will the SB600 be powerful enough to use as fill flash outdoors during the day? Without having to get right in the face of my subject. For example in an overcast location, where the natural light will probably cause quite alot of shadows such as woods.

Whilst I appreciate the SB600 is a versatile flashgun and will no doubt out perform the jessops flashgun I currently have, I'm a bit dubious as to whether it will be powerful enough to really help in the situation outlined above without having to get really close and I'm considering whether I should be looking at something more powerful such as the SB900.

Any advice or ideas? I have very limited knowledge when it comes to flash.

Cheers in advance :thumbs:
Click to expand...

I'm no expert but will share my personal experiences. Ive started experimenting with flash a lot more - I've two sb900's and two nissin's. If I had my time again/more money I'd have the sb600 over a nissin as it offers more flexibility with the cls. I've only used three together as I only got the second sb900 last week for a good price on this forum.

If I'm outside I use the sb900 for fill and it works well. It's much more intuitive to use and if you add more later, you can use it as a commander. The following are by no means at all perfect but give you an idea


Field of Dreams by Sir SR, on Flickr


Monster Munch by Sir SR, on Flickr


Carefree by Sir SR, on Flickr


Beware the Clouds by Sir SR, on Flickr

Hope that helps

S
 
OK, so after a bit of digging.....
I found this site:
http://support.nikonusa.com/app/answers/detail/a_id/886/~/d-slr-and-nikon-speedlight-compatibility
and was looking at cheaper Nikon speedlights, would a cheaper SB-26/28/80 not do a decent percentage of the things I want it to do at a fraction of the cost? Really wish I could just go out and buy an SB6/7/8/900 but don't want to spend when I really won't see the difference.


**edit**

The more I read the more I want the "expensive" flashgun, the older ones just aren't worth getting and should stop me progressing in the future.
 
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Just purchased as nissin di866 second hand. so far im very impressed with it.

I started off with the jessops afd 360 only because i got it cheap. It suited my needs at the time. The difference is so noticeable.

The main thing i like so far is that when you tilt and change the angle for bounce this one also also adjusts the zoom on the flash, where as on the afd it never it just reset its self to default 50mm if the flash was moved of 90 degs.

Also i have noticed the recharge time is so much quicker even on used batteries.
The other thing i noticed whilst playing around the other night is that when off camera the front sensor didnt need to be facing the camera like the 360 afd did
to work in commander mode.

But i guess its the saying you get what you pay for!!!!!!
 
Golgarth said:
OK, so after a bit of digging.....
I found this site:
http://support.nikonusa.com/app/answers/detail/a_id/886/~/d-slr-and-nikon-speedlight-compatibility
and was looking at cheaper Nikon speedlights, would a cheaper SB-26/28/80 not do a decent percentage of the things I want it to do at a fraction of the cost? Really wish I could just go out and buy an SB6/7/8/900 but don't want to spend when I really won't see the difference.


**edit**

The more I read the more I want the "expensive" flashgun, the older ones just aren't worth getting and should stop me progressing in the future.
Click to expand...

Your problem with the older SB-26/28/80 flashes is that they're not compatable with your D5100 (according to that list you linked to). Even if they will actually work on the D5100 you won't have iTTL or CLS so every shot is going to be hit and miss.

I would heartedly recomment the Nissin units. I have two Di622 Mk2 and just don't see the difference between results using them and my two SB600 :thumbs:
 
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