External Flash!!

[NoFlashPhotography]

Okay. So I shoot skateboarding and usually with skateboarding flash makes the pictures look a lot. I use my Pop-up flash on my d50 and it looks pretty nice. My friend is also a skateboard photographer and he has 2 flashes and 2 tripods set up on each side of the skater and his photos look amazing. Do I need a flash? What would you recommend. Cheap and good?

And my screen name has nothing to do with preference it's just a funny thing... Those signs that say No Flash Photography and what not.

[Bob Nichol]

What brand and kind of flash does your friend use? I have two Nikon umbrella kits http://www.henrys.ca/12371-NIKON-LIG...IT-W-CASE.aspx that I use with an SB-800 and SB-600 but this may not be powerful enough for your purposes and you may have to go to studio strobes. For example http://www.henrys.ca/12880-BOWENS-GE...-KIT-2009.aspx

[NoFlashPhotography]

Originally Posted by Bob Nichol

What brand and kind of flash does your friend use? I have two Nikon umbrella kits http://www.henrys.ca/12371-NIKON-LIG...IT-W-CASE.aspx that I use with an SB-800 and SB-600 but this may not be powerful enough for your purposes and you may have to go to studio strobes. For example http://www.henrys.ca/12880-BOWENS-GE...-KIT-2009.aspx

Nope he doesn't have studio strobes. Hes got 2 Nikon SB-600's with no diffusers or anything.

[pbjunkiee]

work on your lens situation first

[dr_spock]

How much are you willing to spend on flashes?

[NoFlashPhotography]

Originally Posted by dr_spock

How much are you willing to spend on flashes?

like $100.

[NoFlashPhotography]

What do you think of the Vivitar DF283. It's $83 on amazon?

[Bob Nichol]

With a guide number of 42m your lens would have to be at f/4 to get coverage at 10 meters. It doesn't say at what ISO the guide number refers to though. The guide number changes with the ISO. The flash also has to be purchased for a specific camera brand as well such as Canon, Nikon, Olympus, etc so as to work properly with the camera's TTL metering system.
http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/search...tialSearch=yes Check out the reviews.

[JimC]

Originally Posted by NoFlashPhotography

I only need it to reach like 10 meters but its the brightness and burst i need.

What do you mean by "and burst"?

You may end up needing to wait a few seconds (or even up to 7 seconds according to it's specs) between each shot with a full power flash (although battery type can influence cycle times); and it sounds like you'd be at the edge of it's max range from 10 meters away.

That GN of 42 Meters is an ISO 100 rating from what I can see of it's specs here:

http://www.vivitar.com/products#Prof...Specifications

But, it's also assuming you have the zoom head in the 85mm position (it's a manual zoom head).

So, at ISO 100, as Bob mentioned, you'd need to be at f/4 to get a flash range of around 10 meters; and that would mean a full power flash burst (so, expect a long recycle time before you can take another shot). Range may be a bit less at a shorter zoom head position.

If you zoom in towards the longer end of your 18-55mm, you'd have a widest available aperture of f/5.6. So, that would bring the maximum range down to 7.5 meters. Increasing ISO speed to ISO 200 would bring it back up to a bit over 10 Meters. But, you'd still have a full power flash burst at that range (meaning a long recycle time between photos).

To determine flash range, you need to divide the GN by your aperture at ISO 100. Then, each time you double your ISO speed, range increases by 1.4x.

So, at ISO 100 and f/5.6 (the widest available aperture of your 18-55mm lens when zoomed in much), you'd have a maximum range of 7.5 Meters (GN of 42 divided by 5.6 = 7.5 Meters). Doubling your ISO speed to ISO 200 would bring the range up to 10.5 Meters (7.5 x 1.4 = 10.5).

I wouldn't expect to take a burst of photos with that flash using a full power flash burst from 10 meters away. You'll probably have to wait for it to recharge it's capacitor between photos. Increasing ISO speed more can help (so it can use a shorter flash burst, which may let you get off more than one photo).

But, don't expect miracles if you're trying to get off multiple shots in a burst from 10 meters away, unless you increase ISO speed significantly with that flash and lens combo (if the flash design allows it, and you'd need to try it to find out).

IOW, you'll probably need to be at around ISO 800 to get off a couple of shots in a burst from 10 meters away when zoomed in much with an 18-55mm kit lens.

[NoFlashPhotography]

Originally Posted by JimC

What do you mean by "and burst"?

You may end up needing to wait a few seconds (or even up to 7 seconds according to it's specs) between each shot with a full power flash (although battery type can influence cycle times); and it sounds like you'd be at the edge of it's max range from 10 meters away.

That GN of 42 Meters is an ISO 100 rating from what I can see of it's specs here:

http://www.vivitar.com/products#Prof...Specifications

But, it's also assuming you have the zoom head in the 85mm position (it's a manual zoom head).

So, at ISO 100, as Bob mentioned, you'd need to be at f/4 to get a flash range of around 10 meters; and that would mean a full power flash burst (so, expect a long recycle time before you can take another shot). Range may be a bit less at a shorter zoom head position.

If you zoom in towards the longer end of your 18-55mm, you'd have a widest available aperture of f/5.6. So, that would bring the maximum range down to 7.5 meters. Increasing ISO speed to ISO 200 would bring it back up to a bit over 10 Meters. But, you'd still have a full power flash burst at that range (meaning a long recycle time between photos).

To determine flash range, you need to divide the GN by your aperture at ISO 100. Then, each time you double your ISO speed, range increases by 1.4x.

So, at ISO 100 and f/5.6 (the widest available aperture of your 18-55mm lens when zoomed in much), you'd have a maximum range of 7.5 Meters (GN of 42 divided by 5.6 = 7.5 Meters). Doubling your ISO speed to ISO 200 would bring the range up to 10.5 Meters (7.5 x 1.4 = 10.5).

I wouldn't expect to take a burst of photos with that flash using a full power flash burst from 10 meters away. You'll probably have to wait for it to recharge it's capacitor between photos. Increasing ISO speed more can help (so it can use a shorter flash burst, which may let you get off more than one photo).

But, don't expect miracles if you're trying to get off multiple shots in a burst from 10 meters away, unless you increase ISO speed significantly with that flash and lens combo (depending on the flash design, and you'd need to try it to find out).

I shoot skateboarding soo... Would you recommend just saving up and getting an SB600 for my d50?