High flash-sync speed... is it worth it?

[Baaaark]

If someone is eventually hoping to do mainly portrait photography, would the advantages of the Nikons (some) having a 1/500 flash sync be enough to adopt Nikon over Sony, Olympus, Pentax or Canon?

I REALLY REALLY REALLY don't want to start a Nikon vs. Canon debate. But I am wanting to get the best camera I can get to pursue this. And its looking like an old-school D70 or Canon 20D. The only reason I'm not that open to the other three is the in-body stabilization. I want it in the lens.

I do want to be able to autofocus with the 50mm 1.8. So that limits my options. The Canon seems super nice, but so does a Nikon. And for now I just want to barely step into the DSLR market spending as little as I can on a body, get a few lenses and a few flashes, and then later on upgrade the body. So I wanna go used.

Anyway, please don't turn this into a Nikon vs. Canon bit. I just want to know if there are any features the one has over the other (like the flash-sync speed) that give a one-up over the competition.

 

[tsaraleksi]

The D70 also has a base ISO of 200, so it's a wash.

Also, the 20D is a nicer camera than the D70 in a wide variety of ways, simply owing to the fact that it was a step up in the line.

 

[Baaaark]

The D70 also has a base ISO of 200, so it's a wash.

AARRGH!!! I wish so bad there was just one camera that was everything I am looking for!

The Nikon flashes seem less expensive. And I know I want to do the poor strobist lighting, so that's very important. With Cactus Triggers, I really don't know if one company's flash system is any better or worse (or less money) than the other.

BTW if you can't tell, I have buying paralysis. I never make big purchases cause I hate doing it. I fear commitment...lol.

 

[tsaraleksi]

The cheaper Nikon flashes you're talking about are the old manual flashes, I assume... you can use these for strobist stuff regardless of what camera you buy. To be honest, the sync speed thing is not as huge of a deal as people seem to make it out to be, it is just one stop, after all.

 

[Big Mike]

Using a flash sync speed of 1/500 vs 1/250 is not really a big difference, and it's probably something that few photographers would even thing about, let alone use.

If you are wanting to do the strobist thing, it's much cheaper to do it with generic or older flashes...so don't look at the prices of a Canon 430EX or a Nikon SB600. Sure, if you can afford them, I would certainly recommend a good 'dedicated' flash, but they are not necessary for strobist style.
Check this out: Strobist Starving Student SC1 Lighting Kit

 

[Village Idiot]

The D70 also has a base ISO of 200, so it's a wash.

AARRGH!!! I wish so bad there was just one camera that was everything I am looking for!

The Nikon flashes seem less expensive. And I know I want to do the poor strobist lighting, so that's very important. With Cactus Triggers, I really don't know if one company's flash system is any better or worse (or less money) than the other.

BTW if you can't tell, I have buying paralysis. I never make big purchases cause I hate doing it. I fear commitment...lol.

Hey bud, secret. Older Nikons with the CCD like the D50, D70, and D40 (not the D40x, iirc) really don't have a flash sync speed. You can shoot well over 1/500 because once they reach a certain shutter speed, they electronically turn on and off rather than using the shutter for exposure.

Then again, your high ISO grain with be a lot worse than with a camera with a CMOS sensor.

 

[KmH]

......With Cactus Triggers, I really don't know if one company's flash system is any better or worse (or less money) than the other.......

With Cactus triggers any camera companies flash system is irrelevant. You can use any brand of flash you want.

A popular off camera, radio triggered flash is the Vivitar 285HV. It's has good power and is about $90 a copy.

 

[Baaaark]

/woot!