# Flash question



## lexaniji (May 16, 2013)

Im looking a while for buying a flash.

i found one which fits my interest, only thing im worried about is, Does it have the automatic feature? dx.com/p/meike-mk-410n-3w-5600k-ttl-flash-speedlite-for-nikon-d90-d800-more-black-4-x-aa-167205 ?

kind regards


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## jdsfighter (May 16, 2013)

From looking at it, it is a full manual flash, it does operate as a slave, but it will only allow for manual selection of power. For nikon you'll need something with iTTL capabilities. 

For example: This


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## lexaniji (May 17, 2013)

Arent there any cheaper ones with ittl? And if i go manual. Is it hard to set the flash?


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## David8 (May 17, 2013)

lexaniji said:


> Arent there any cheaper ones with ittl? And if i go manual. Is it hard to set the flash?



I don't think so... But it may mean you miss a shot if the flash is too bright. But isn't that the same with all exposure settings? I'm currently getting my head around manual flash. And $146 for a iTTL flash is pretty good!


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## tirediron (May 17, 2013)

Manual flash is VERY easy to work with, and generally produces more consistant and pleasing results than *TTL after a little bit of practice.  All you need to do is have a good understanding of how to determine exposure using Guide Numbers.


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## lexaniji (May 18, 2013)

I guess Ill start out with a manual flash. Any other things i have to worry about when buying a flash?


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## ecphoto (May 18, 2013)

David8 said:


> lexaniji said:
> 
> 
> > Arent there any cheaper ones with ittl? And if i go manual. Is it hard to set the flash?
> ...



Bower makes a TTL one for $50, but it has no settings adjustments at all.

Sent from mobile


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## lexaniji (May 18, 2013)

I dont mind. I just want a beginner flash. No need to mess with the settings unless it is really easy.


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## lexaniji (May 18, 2013)

Btw. Wil a fisheye adapter for on my 18-200mm VR for my D7000 give me a 180 degrees effect?


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## Designer (May 18, 2013)

For ease of use, it is hard to beat the iTTL.  The flash and camera communicate to produce a good exposure without interference from the photographer.  

If you put a fisheye adapter on your lens, the flash may not cover as wide a field as you would like.


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## lexaniji (May 18, 2013)

I didnt mean to use the fisheye with a Flash. Im just curious if it will give me a full fisheye effect. I guess i will need an 0.21x adapter(18x1,5=27, 27x0,21=5,67mm) for my nikon D7000. But there arent any for 72mm.


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## Derrel (May 18, 2013)

That flash works on a whole bun ch of NIKON models: 
*Compatible Models*Nikon D4X / D4 / D3X / D2 / D800 / D700 / D650 / D7000 / D90 / D3100


Here is a brief review of it: MeiKe Speedlite MK-430, MK-431 review | Lighting Rumours

Sounds like it goes to sleep after 30 seconds of inactivity, and must be awakened by pressing a button on the back of the flash. Or...maybe that's just bad writing, and not bad engineering...hard to tell from the review.


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## Designer (May 18, 2013)

lexaniji said:


> Btw. Wil a fisheye adapter for on my 18-200mm VR for my D7000 give me a 180 degrees effect?



So that is a separate question, then.  It was confusing to me, being in a "flash" thread.  

I think the answer will depend on the angle of the fisheye adapter.  Does it claim to be 180 degrees?


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## lexaniji (May 18, 2013)

I put it here so i didnt had to make a new thread. They claim it has 180 degree coverage. But i dot trust that.


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## Tiberius47 (May 19, 2013)

lexaniji said:


> Arent there any cheaper ones with ittl? And if i go manual. Is it hard to set the flash?



Manual flash is very easy.  However, it's good to have a flash that can do proper TTL with your camera too.

ut I use manual flash nearly all the time.


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## lexaniji (May 19, 2013)

Would this be a reasonable flash with ttl? http://bit.ly/16HlsiB


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## lexaniji (May 21, 2013)

Bumpy bump


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## Gavjenks (May 21, 2013)

Amazon.com: Neewer TT560 Flash Speedlite For Canon/Nikon Digital SLR Cameras: Camera & Photo <--$40 flash with plenty sufficient manual settings and has some sort of built in slave capability, if you expect to often fiddle with your manual settings on each individual flash in your setup.

Amazon.com: Holga Manual Shoe Mount Flash with a GN of 22 meters (72 feet): Camera & Photo <--*$17* flash that is perfectly reliable (I've used a couple in addition to my main flash for some time), and can easily work as a slave flash as well, if you simply hook it up to a cheap radio trigger system like this: Amazon.com: CowboyStudio NPT-04 4 Channel Wireless Trigger for External Speelights with 1 Trigger and 2 Receivers (NPT-04+extra receiver): Electronics Total cost of two slave flashes and radio control for both of them that will sync them up to about 1/300th of a second with your main flash = about *$50*.  Note: you cannot change the power of these holga flashes, but if you're in a studio, you can simply move them further away or hang different numbers of sheets of fabric in front of them, or bounce them, or whatever, to control power.

Not bright enough for you at GN 22?  Hell, _buy six of them_ and still save hundreds and hundreds of dollars.

TTL is vastly overrated.  Technology isn't there yet, and it screws up at least 50% of the time compared to your ability to manually nail it 80% of the time or more if you study flash theory and practice.

Oh also: My holga flashes with $15 worth of radio equipment can trigger successfully through multiple concrete walls like 50 meters away.  By comparison, my several hundred dollar canon flash needs a direct line of sight to communicate with other canons and is stopped by a cardboard box...

Flashes are one of the most dramatically overinflated areas of photography cost-wise, IMO, and brand name flashes use some of the stupidest imaginable technological solutions to what should be blatantly simple problems.


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