# Remote Flash Triggers/Flash Suggestions: Nikon



## ryanrichmond (Feb 22, 2019)

*I am in the market for some flashes that I can pop remotely. 
I would also like some suggestions on remote triggers. Maybe a package deal?*

I want to remotely control up to 4 flashes (probably more like 2 but the option for up to 4 would be cool)
I don't care if I have to set power levels manually. It's not a big deal to me to press a button on the flash.

I'm not entirely sure of a budget but let's say $200 for everything. I already have stands and shoot-through umbrellas

Any help would be greatly appreciated.


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## Nwcid (Feb 22, 2019)

It is unlikely to do it in your budget.  Check out the Godox/Flashpoint systems they are likely your best bet.

The controller for up to 5 groups of lights is about $70.

After that battery powered, manual speed lights start about $60 and the price goes up to about $1000 for TTL/HHS LION 600w strobe.

This is just over 2x your listed budget, however it gets you a solid start and are items that you will continue to use as you grow, https://www.adorama.com/fplfsmzl2ca3.html?origterm=flashpoint+2x+zoom+lion+kit&searchredirect=true


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## Derrel (Feb 22, 2019)

ryanrichmond said:


> *I am in the market for some flashes that I can pop remotely.
> I would also like some suggestions on remote triggers. Maybe a package deal?*
> 
> I want to remotely control up to 4 flashes (probably more like 2 but the option for up to 4 would be cool)
> ...




Four flashes and a control system for all four flashes for $200 or less? Seems optimistic.


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## smoke665 (Feb 22, 2019)

Depends on what you want to do. If you just want to fire multiple speed lights you can pickup a wireless trigger and 4 receivers on eBay Neewer Wireless FM Flash Speedlite Trigger Set ( 1 Transmitter & 4 Receivers) 808023465475 | eBay they work great. If you want to add remote control of the flash, you'll easily spend more then your budget.


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## ac12 (Feb 22, 2019)

IMHO, the only way you can meet your $200 budget is to buy used and shop well.
These will be older shoe flashes, not current TTL flashes.  Power would be set by a dial or lever, not a button.  There isn't a computer inside the flash.  Zoom is manual or non-existant. 
Ideally you want matching flashes, so the controls are identical.
Batteries and charger(s) are separate, and could easily add up to another $100, especially if you get a GOOD 8 cell charger.


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## ryanrichmond (Feb 22, 2019)

smoke665 said:


> Depends on what you want to do. If you just want to fire multiple speed lights you can pickup a wireless trigger and 4 receivers on eBay Neewer Wireless FM Flash Speedlite Trigger Set ( 1 Transmitter & 4 Receivers) 808023465475 | eBay they work great. If you want to add remote control of the flash, you'll easily spend more then your budget.



Boom. Thanks.


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## Braineack (Feb 23, 2019)

smoke665 said:


> Depends on what you want to do. If you just want to fire multiple speed lights you can pickup a wireless trigger and 4 receivers on eBay Neewer Wireless FM Flash Speedlite Trigger Set ( 1 Transmitter & 4 Receivers) 808023465475 | eBay they work great. If you want to add remote control of the flash, you'll easily spend more then your budget.



ew so much stuff to lose/break/fail/tinker with.

so many decent flashes on the market with built in radio ttl triggers... that you can fully control from the camera.


I highly recommend looking into the GODOX/Flashpoint stuffs.


Zoom R2 manual flashes are $65 each.  the PRO trigger is $70.

for the $200 budget, you could get two flashes and the trigger...


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## ryanrichmond (Feb 23, 2019)

What’s your opinion on the Yongnuo YN560 IV/ trigger package for $185

(2) YN560IV’s and a YN560TX transmitter


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## Braineack (Feb 23, 2019)

The best part of the godox/flashpoint stuff is that their studio lights are on the same radio system.  I can control my three strobes and 4 Speedlites, individually, from the same controller. 

The new pro2 controller has Bluetooth which has made it nice to adjust power from wherever I want.  (Helpful when metering). -- and they are supposed to update the firmware for camera controls as well...

Youngnou had fallen behind the curve imho.


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## JonA_CT (Feb 23, 2019)

ryanrichmond said:


> What’s your opinion on the Yongnuo YN560 IV/ trigger package for $185
> 
> (2) YN560IV’s and a YN560TX transmitter



I’ve had both. I agree that the Flashpoint system makes more sense. 

I have a Nikon Flashpoint R2 and trigger I don’t need. I’d give you a good deal on them if you wanted to get a system started...send me a message if you’re interested.


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## smoke665 (Feb 23, 2019)

Braineack said:


> ew so much stuff to lose/break/fail/tinker with.
> 
> so many decent flashes on the market with built in radio ttl triggers... that you can fully control from the camera.



The OP didn't specify camera or speedlights currently owned, nor did he express an interest in remotely setting the lights or other wise controlling. He wanted something to fire the flash. The triggers I sent the link to work with any camera with a hot shoe or pc connection, they work with any speedlight or Monolight, they're easy to set up (match the dip switches), and are tough.   Some cameras will not fire an external flash, especially those without an onboard popup.  Also TTL can get complicated, fussy and expensive if you have to match a specific speedlight to work with your camera. I keep a set in my travel bag to work speedlights off camera when I'm out and don't want a lot of weight (3 yrs and still going strong).


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## adamhiram (Feb 23, 2019)

This article provides a pretty good explanation of why Godox is the front runner when it comes to cheap flashes these days.  For the record, I use a couple of $65 Godox speed lights with the $70 wireless trigger.  Same product sold as Flashpoint through Adorama.
Why Godox is succeeding where Yongnuo failed - DIY Photography


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## Braineack (Feb 23, 2019)

smoke665 said:


> Braineack said:
> 
> 
> > ew so much stuff to lose/break/fail/tinker with.
> ...




But you can't even control the flash power, and need an extra pair batteries for each.


Hard pass.


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## smoke665 (Feb 23, 2019)

Braineack said:


> smoke665 said:
> 
> 
> > Braineack said:
> ...



Guess you missed this in the OP _"I don't care if I have to set power levels manually. It's not a big deal to me to press a button on the flash"_


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## Braineack (Feb 23, 2019)

No I saw it.

I'll never go back to simple triggers or ones not built into the flash unit. They are such a pita comparatively and much less to deal with, lose, or fail.


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## ac12 (Feb 23, 2019)

pros and cons to both.

A flash with remote functions eliminates the logistical hassle of a separate remote.  
But if the built in remote fails, does it kill the flash also?  If it does not kill the flash, to use the flash in a remote setup would require a separate remote.  IOW, how reliable is the built in remote?

A separate remote is another item, but if it fails, it does not affect the flash, you just replace the remote.
This was the situation many years ago when Chinese remotes were being popularized with the Strobist movement.   Those remotes were NOT 100% reliable.  But compared to a PW, they were cheap enough that if/when they failed, you threw it away and used your spare.


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## smoke665 (Feb 23, 2019)

Braineack said:


> No I saw it.
> 
> I'll never go back to simple triggers or ones not built into the flash unit. They are such a pita comparatively and much less to deal with, lose, or fail.



It depends on the application. Again, not all cameras are capable of wirelessly firing a remote flash. The simple trigger is universal it doesn't care. In studio I use a PB Cyber Commander capable of full control of power to multiple lighting groups, memorized setups, even has a built in light meter, but it's also about 3-4 times his budget. Sometimes you just don't need that much.


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## ryanrichmond (Feb 24, 2019)

You’ve all been very helpful and i greatly appreciate the info and opinions you’ve all provided.

I’m going to check out the GODOX/Flaspoint option. It seems reasonably priced and a better build than a lot of cheaper options but also not so high quality that I’m spending my entire paycheck on a couple of lights with triggers. 

Thanks for steering me away from Yongnuo. I’m sure they’re decent enough but I’ve always been open to better options within my budget.
We all want the best bang for our buck.


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## Braineack (Feb 24, 2019)

smoke665 said:


> It depends on the application. Again, not all cameras are capable of wirelessly firing a remote flash.



he has a D610 and I believe doesn't already own flashes.



> Sometimes you just don't need that much.



That's why I was trying to steer the OP into a modern setup that's not very expensive.

I'm just through my experience through my journey into flash photography;'I have about 9-10 various triggers/cables leftover from that I no longer use from manual simple triggers from when I first started, to triggers/controllers that let me set power from the controller.

Now I simply have one controller and never have to worry about batteries and extra triggers again -- for any of my flashes.  But no built in light meter yet on my system   It's still a bit of a hassle on the R2 system.


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## smoke665 (Feb 24, 2019)

@Braineack I missed the camera brand. The direction you steered him in is good. Like I said I still use these little cheap triggers when I'm out. They're small enough to drop in your pocket, paid for themselves many times over. For studio the Bee's don't play nice with other controllers, but the Cyber Commander is great. The receivers are a/c powered.


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## ryanrichmond (Feb 24, 2019)

Braineack said:


> smoke665 said:
> 
> 
> > I highly recommend looking into the GODOX/Flash stuffs.
> ...


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## JonA_CT (Feb 24, 2019)

ryanrichmond said:


> Braineack said:
> 
> 
> > smoke665 said:
> ...



The ones that are $110 are iTTL. The ones without that are cheaper.


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## adamhiram (Feb 24, 2019)

Flashpoint Zoom R2 manual flash - no TTL and runs on AA batteries:
https://www.adorama.com/fplfsmzm.html

Here’s the same thing from Godox - same as the Flashpoint version, but without Adorama’s warranty:
GodoxTT600 Thinklite Flash


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## JonA_CT (Feb 24, 2019)

Adorama is offer a “free gift” of the trigger with that version of the R2 right now. Great deal if anyone is looking to dive in.


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## Braineack (Feb 24, 2019)

lol it let me put 3 flashes in the cart AND select (3) remotes.

but that is a good way to get (3) of the flashes and a controller.


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## ryanrichmond (Feb 25, 2019)

I went ahead and ordered 2 myself. 
I told myself I wouldn't order from Adorama again after what happened with camera debacle but a good deal is a good deal.


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## JonA_CT (Feb 25, 2019)

I picked one up this morning with transmitter for $58.50. Either their margins are crazy, or they are trying to get rid of them for some reason.


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## Braineack (Feb 25, 2019)

Probably have a lot of stock of the non-pro controllers, especially since the pro markii recently released.   Pretty sure the price of the flash unit itself has always been ~$65.


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## JonA_CT (Feb 25, 2019)

Braineack said:


> Probably have a lot of stock of the non-pro controllers, especially since the pro markii recently released.   Pretty sure the price of the flash unit itself has always been ~$65.



Good deal. TTL sucks when you start using modifiers anyways. If I'm going to adjust EC, I can adjust the flash power, haha. I don't mind the controller, FWIW. It's obviously not as slick as the pro controller, but it's not terrible to use either. Then again...I'm a light (hah!) user, and wouldn't ever have more than 2-3 speedlights going at a time.


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## Braineack (Feb 25, 2019)

I own one of the R2 TTL Zoom flashes, for my on-camera flash; I own (3) Manual Zooms for anything else i may need them for.


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## adamhiram (Feb 25, 2019)

JonA_CT said:


> It's obviously not as slick as the pro controller, but it's not terrible to use either.


Anything is better than having to make adjustments on the flash itself once it is inside of a modifier or positioned 7' in the air!  I would still go with the Pro controller if I was paying for it (I did), but you can't argue with free.


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## ryanrichmond (Feb 27, 2019)

So apparently Adorama told me I’m not allowed to order with them anymore.

This is all because they made a fraudulent charge to my card back on February 1 without my authorization and when I complained about it, they flagged my account as “high risk”

Their words were “you’re just going to have to shop with another merchant”

I only just found this out when i called to check the status of my flash order. I received no email to indicate there was a problem


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## Braineack (Feb 27, 2019)

wtf, that's crazy.


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## Dave442 (Feb 27, 2019)

ryanrichmond said:


> What’s your opinion on the Yongnuo YN560 IV/ trigger package for $185
> 
> (2) YN560IV’s and a YN560TX transmitter



I own this exact set. It replaced my broken SB-600 that I used with the Nikon Commander system. The YN560IV's have worked great with the transmitter. I like making the power level adjustments from the transmitter and having the receives built into the flash heads. I also have the JCC FB-1 (II) packs that holds 8 AA's and plugs into the YN560IV (comes with a holder that can be velcro'ed to the stand). 
These days I would consider the Godox as they can also mix in strobes and also get the HSS back that I had with the Nikon SB-600. But, the YN kit works fine and is simple to set up and operate.


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