Nikon D3000 on/off camera flash HEEEEEELP PLEEEASE!

[Daley_wilson]

Hi everyone hope your all well.

ill simply cut to the chase and apologize for any repeat thread topic i may mention , but ultimately im in a pickle!

basically i own a Nikon D3000, and i simply love this Camera (as basic as it may be)

given the location i live which is undoubtedly stunning, naturally i chose to photograph the beautiful landscapes that it offers.
however, i really want to break into portrait photography and after many hours researching and digging my self around and deeper into the world wide web i find my self in a bigger state of confusion than i started.

so here is my question.

what are my options for on and off camera flashes?
all threads i have read have just turned my head into mush and i feel i really need somebody to pick me up and show me the way, (tell me exactly what i need basically).

so if anybody out there could possibly help me out and spare five minutes to explain in layman terms id be massively grateful.

thanks guys in advance

 

[Designer]

Basically two kinds of flash:

Speedlights which are battery-powered portable flash. They can be brand-specific, such as Canon, Nikon, etc., or you can purchase third-party brands for less money. They can be fired mounted in the hotshoe, or off-camera by a cable, white light trigger, or by a radio frequency trigger.

The other kind is called studio strobes, which are generally more powerful, and can be powered by household power or battery packs. They are triggered in mostly the same way as the speed lights.

Either kind has plusses and minuses, and they all can be modified with separate modifiers to spread or concentrate the light as needed.

 

[Derrel]

Yongnuo: inexpensive, third-party flash units.

Nikon: more-expensive, Nikon-made flash units, like the SB-600 or SB-700, would be my suggestions for a D3000.

For indoor, or formal, or 'serious' PORTRAITURE, which I kind of like to do, I personally think that NO speedlight flash is anywhere as good as a studio flash unit. In the UK and Europe, I would say look at the 150-Watt-second Genesis monolights as the place to start. Monolights contain the flash tube and the flash capacitors in one, unified light which goes on a stand. THe thing that helps beginners is that monolights have modeling lamps which are on, and which cast continuous light that throws shadows, so you can literally SEE what the placement of the light does, which gives the beginning portrait artist a CONTINUOUS, always-visible feedback loop.

Being able to literally SEE what the light placement does to the subject and the background, is of huge help to the beginner. Yes, speedlight flashes can be adapted to umbrellas and softboxes, but you are basically shooting "blind". That's okay for the more-experienced shooter, but it really does the beginner no favors whatsoever in terms of getting proper light placement.

 

[tirediron]

Help us narrow things down a bit... first and foremost, what is your budget? "Basic" lighting can cost anywhere from $50 to $50,000! What sort of portraits (fashion, beauty, family, etc) do you want to shoot, and do you intend to shoot location or studio or both?

 

[lennon33x]

Help us narrow things down a bit... first and foremost, what is your budget? "Basic" lighting can cost anywhere from $50 to $50,000! What sort of portraits (fashion, beauty, family, etc) do you want to shoot, and do you intend to shoot location or studio or both?

This...a billion times over.

 

[AniTakesPhotos]

I chose a refurbished Nikon SB-700 over a third party flash for my first purchase simply because there several books written about this exact flash that I could learn more easily from (same layout, features, compatible products). Any additional speedlights I buy will likely be from Yongnuo.

Derrel's post has me thinking about another purchase though

 

[WayneF]

what are my options for on and off camera flashes?
all threads i have read have just turned my head into mush and i feel i really need somebody to pick me up and show me the way, (tell me exactly what i need basically).

Your First decisions (to know what you are doing) are:

TTL or Manual flash mode?
How will they be triggered?
What modifiers do you want to use? (umbrellas, softboxes, etc).
Do you need portable battery operation, or wall socket AC power?

Studio lights (can be cheap junk, or good permanent units): AC powered (usually with a fan for cooling), higher power capability, and most will accept any modifier easily (umbrellas, softboxes, grids, etc). i.e., designed for the studio job. These all will be Manual flash mode (so you will also need a flash light meter). A few can run on optional battery units (AC converter from a large battery - Not all studio lights can operate on battery units).

160 watt second units can be plenty of power for portraits. Lots of people like 320 watt seconds, but they just have to turn them down more (which makes them be somewhat red color, which can be corrected). Full powered speedlights are about 75 watt seconds equivalent. Doubling watt seconds is one stop of aperture for proper exposure.

Speedlights: Have much less power capacity, have much longer recycle times, and really, can only use umbrellas (some may want to argue with that, but a speedlight fresnel lens only makes a bright spot on a softbox fabric - light does come out, but not in softbox style. ) Not a thing wrong with umbrellas though. Speedlights are AA battery powered (portable), which can be a hassle in a studio situation. Portrait lights are generally up "close as possible" anyway (for softness), so speedlghts in umbrellas can work well for portraits, but you will always feel limited. It is a good way to start however. Since it is Manual flash mode anyway, then inexpensive $60 Youngnuo or Neewer manual flash units are good as any (to start, with speedlights). Again, you will want a flash meter for multiple manual lights.

Some cases of speedlights can be TTL operation for a couple of remote units, but for that, you need Nikon Commander and Commander-compatible flashes. A commander can be added to the camera without one, but you still don't have FV Lock, which you sorely need for portraits. Instead of buying a Commander, put the money towards a upgrade to a camera with Commander.

Triggering: Manual lights (all studio lights, or speedlights in Manual flash mode) can be triggered in one of three ways (or combinations of these):

1. PC Sync cord (inexpensive accessory can be added to speedlights without this)
2. Optical slaves (ideal - all studio lights include these, and some speedlights do, and there are inexpensive accessories). It is SB-700 SU-4 mode.
3. Radio triggers - Radio is overkill in the studio. Maybe one to replace a PC sync cord to the near light, but optical slave works great in the studio.

Again, all of those three methods are Manual flash only (OK, there are a very few radio TTL alternatives, fairly pricy, and fairly limited).

Remote TTL triggering is wireless Commander only, and is really only for two lights. Hairlight or background light become problems (requiring individual control of four lights, in different modes, and often TTL can only control two lights individually - or in case of SB-700 commander, all groups must be in same mode).

OTOH, Manual flash is extremely versatile in the studio, you can do anything you can imagine. Once you set them up for your session, they stay fixed for the session. And optical slaves work great in the studio.

Maybe for a fast first look, skim 45 degree Portrait Lighting Setup