Whats better Nikon flash or Yongnuo

[vipgraphx]

So Im wanting to get into some creative lighting and looking for some flash for the d750.

I used to have the sb-700 and was thinking about purchasing maybe a sb-700 and sb-500 and perhaps a trigger.

BUT, of course NIKON brand does cost more money.

I was searching Amazon and came across this
Yongnuo Professional Flash Speedlight Flashlight Yongnuo YN 560 III

For $68 bucks I could get a couple of these along with the trigger for less than one sb-700.

My question for all you studio and flash photographers would I be sacrificing lighting or quality by going with

Yongnuo brand?

I would love to get some tips on a lighting setup with off camera flash. Not so sure I am going to get a strobe right now just looking for a few flashes to use and bring along with me.

 

[astroNikon]

I have 2 x SB-800, 1 x SB-700 and a Yongnuo 560ex
I bought the 560 strictly as a cheap BackGround flash. To use with colored gels, etc. in my in-home, basement studio.

I initially was controlling everything off-camera with a Nikon SU-800
I was having a horrid time with the 560. Basically I found out anything farther than 8 feet away the flash was outside the InfraRed range.

Thus I bought YN Radio Triggers. 622Ns and a 622-TX
I love these triggers. Now I can do creative things with them that I wasn't able to before.
But, with the flash I've found out the flash may lose it's intensity after a few quick shots. Thus messing up the planned BG color that I was looking for.

I use the 560ex (supports SU-800s) strictly in Manual and strictly for a background. I've learned just oot take my time on successive shots.

If I was a professional, I'd replace this in a heartbeat with a Nikon SB-700, or even an older SB-600.
Also, if I was a professional I'd more than likely go to strobes too for much more flexible use of modifiers.

The color of light is fine, as is the intensity when it doesn't fall off.
But the low price of Yongnuo's put them in so cheap a territory that they are, if they break you throw them away and buy a new one. The low price is excellent to get into off camera flash.

 

[MOREGONE]

Do we really have to ask which is better?

That said, Yongnuo makes some solid products but they are in no way (except price) superior to the products they copy/reverse engineer.

I am one frugal dude and should have my 2nd Yongnuo flash waiting on the porch for me when I get home, the YN565ex. Alread own the YN-560-II and have no complaints.

 

[Mirrorless Journey]

The Nikon flash is better and can be used on the camera without fear of breaking something. With that said, I have 2 Yong Nuo 460 II and I love them. I use them with a radio transmitter for off-camera lighting. They cost me about 40$ each so if the wind catch the light and it falls down, my heart does not stop over it. They are built quite solid though because I have been using them in many different conditions and they never failed. They don't have many fancy options, but that is actually a good point. They are fast and easy to setup for a shoot and cheaply replaceable.

 

[sm4him]

I think the question shouldn't be "which one is better."

The question is "would the cheaper Yongnuo flash suit YOUR needs just as well as the Nikon?"

I've yet to find anything about my Yongnuo flash that limits me in what I do. For that reason, I'd buy another one before I'd purchase a Nikon brand speedlight.

But if I did a lot of flash photography for a living, I might have a different opinion.

 

[vipgraphx]

I think the question shouldn't be "which one is better."

The question is "would the cheaper Yongnuo flash suit YOUR needs just as well as the Nikon?"

I've yet to find anything about my Yongnuo flash that limits me in what I do. For that reason, I'd buy another one before I'd purchase a Nikon brand speedlight.

But if I did a lot of flash photography for a living, I might have a different opinion.

Yes that would be the better question and what I really had in mind to begin with.

I would like to get into this creative lighting and it would be great to do it cheaper.

I went out tonight and bought a Sb-700 and did a test shot. I can see already that I would really benefit from another if not two more flashes to help with shadows.

I also noticed that sometimes the Sb-700 did not fire and I am not sure if the camera has to face the flash for it to fire off. I remember reading something about this issue and to get remote triggers that would help firing off the flash where ever the flash is located as long as it is in range..
Is this true?

can someone recommend a quality reliable remote trigger.

I think I might just go ahead and purchase those flashes on amazon as they are not expensive at all and I would like to get some remote triggers to go along with them.

The other thing I was hoping to get some advice is, is it better to use a remote trigger rather than the pop up flash? it seems like the pop up flash is not as useful in the creative lighting but only to fire off the other off camera flash. Help?

 

[pixmedic]

we used mostly nikon sb600's and sb700's until the Yongnuo 568EX's came out. (I wanted TTL and HSS)
now we have half a dozen YN568EX's with the YN622n radio triggers and LOVE THEM!
TTL and HSS work flawlessly. I would certainly recommend them to anyone looking for flashes, and I definitely recommend the yongnuo triggers over the horribly overpriced Pocket Wizards (unless you actually NEED 52 channels and 300 meter range)
I cant speak for the other brands, but the yongnuos have performed perfectly for us for weddings and portraits.

YN568EX flash review | Photography Forum

Yongnuo YN-622N trigger review! | Photography Forum

 

[JoeW]

Which one is "better" depends upon your needs and what you shoot. I have 3 YN flashes and 3 Nikon speed lights. I also have two sets of cheap triggers.

First, I like using the Nikon CLS. I haven't purchased any of the YN (I think they're 560 EX models) that claim to work with CLS so I can't verify that. But I love CLS and love being able to use off-camera flashes without having to put on triggers. This is b/c I'll often be in a situation where I'm using ambient light and then decide I need to upgrade the light or go HK or remove some shadow so do suddenly go CLS is a lot easier for me.

Second, the YNs have generally been good. I had one I lost due to battery leakage so the connections corroded. As slaves they've been good. They're reliable and take a beating (I travel with speed lights and flashes a lot). Frankly, I've never used a YN on-camera (say...bouncing light off the ceiling when shooting an event) so I can't speak to how they do with that, I've always use'd em off camera with either a trigger or as a slave.

I think Nikon speed lights are simply better, easier to operate (if you're not just using them as basic slaves), and more versatile. They've held up well (I have an SB-700 that is about 4 years old and just keeps plugging away despite thousands of fires). They've also been very reliable and take a beating (at least 5 times I've had a soft box catch the wind and blow over or I did a lousy job attaching it and it fell off the stand and hit the floor).

If you're looking for a dirt cheap way of putting light on something (or you're looking to get 3-4-5 lights) and you're not especially particularly about the amount of light, then a YN is a good deal. If you are going to be shooting indoors a lot with the speed light in an umbrella or soft box or you need to be able to accurately tweak settings or us iTTL, then I'd go with the Nikon options.

 

[MOREGONE]

Got the YN565ex in the mail yesterday as expected and just what I needed!

TTL and the external battery slot that's the same as the YN560. Did a couple test shots with a small 16x16 softbox and was pleased with the first shots.

I also have the Meike MK-910, a knock off of the SB910 and while I have no specific gripes, I just don't like it that much. Works fine, but for some reason I prefer the Yongnuo's.

I am also a fan of the 622's but have had some hiccups. My first 622TX was a dud and I didn't know it for awhile (certain indicators never lit up, wouldn't work on one of my cameras for some reason) and I have a 622n that likes to send but not receive. Weird. But at $90 a pair, they're awesome!

The pop up flash is great for controlled environments. Anything with distance or outdoors I would always look to triggers.

 

[astroNikon]

The pop up flash is great for controlled environments. Anything with distance or outdoors I would always look to triggers.

And if you are working creatively and use the popup flash to trigger, even with it's output put as low as possible, you still have to take that into consideration for your photo.

I really like the Yongnuo triggers. I haven't had the issue of one TX being a dude, and a N not wanting to receive. I guess for cheap triggers you have to deal with more potential headaches, same with the flashes.

 

[WayneF]

So Im wanting to get into some creative lighting and looking for some flash for the d750.

I used to have the sb-700 and was thinking about purchasing maybe a sb-700 and sb-500 and perhaps a trigger.

BUT, of course NIKON brand does cost more money.

I was searching Amazon and came across this
Yongnuo Professional Flash Speedlight Flashlight Yongnuo YN 560 III

For $68 bucks I could get a couple of these along with the trigger for less than one sb-700.

My question for all you studio and flash photographers would I be sacrificing lighting or quality by going with

Yongnuo brand?

I would love to get some tips on a lighting setup with off camera flash. Not so sure I am going to get a strobe right now just looking for a few flashes to use and bring along with me.

The SB-500 is a poor choice for an off camera flash. Other than with a Nikon commander, it has no menu, it has to use the camera menu, so it would be about useless off camera.

The Yongnuo YN560 would make a good off camera flash, and the III has their built in radio trigger feature, but still ought to consider the YN565EX (at least one of them). Only a few more dollars, and radio trigger can be added for only a few dollars, but then you also have a good TTL hot shoe flash for walk around bounce use, etc. Everyone needs that.

See Review of the Yongnuo YN565EX Speedlight

More power than the SB-700, and the SB-700 price will buy three YN565EX (Amazon).

 

[vipgraphx]

So the Yongnuo YN560 lll has a built in radio trigger? is it iTTl as well?

 

[vipgraphx]

would this be the right flash for the D750


http://www.amazon.com/Yongnuo-YN560...60+III+Manual+Flash+Speedlite+Light+For+nikon

 

[MOREGONE]

So the Yongnuo YN560 lll has a built in radio trigger? is it iTTl as well?

The 560-III has a receiver built in. the 560-TX is a hotshoe device that can control the power out the flashes it is triggering, kinda like an SU800. The 560-IV is a flash has the ability to adjust the output of other 560-IV or -III's. The 560 series do not have any TTL capabilities.

 

[MOREGONE]

would this be the right flash for the D750


http://www.amazon.com/Yongnuo-YN560-TX-Wireless-Controller-Speedlite/dp/B00OH7CFPA/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1414690869&sr=8-1&keywords=Yongnuo YN560-TX LCD Wireless Manual Flash Controller + 2pcs YN-560 III Manual Flash Speedlite Light For nikon

That would be a great start to Off Camera Flash. Just keep in mind, no TTL.