買おう買おうと思ってたSPEEDLIGHTを購入しました。(少し前の話になりますが。。。） 色々調べてましたが、ニコン純正のSB-700にしました。 サードパーティ製のも値段的にもよかったんですが、そうそう買い替えるんものでもないしちょっとお高いけど純正にしました。 光量などは正直わかってなかったので、ほとんどネットの評判と大きさ、重さ、お値段的に釣り合いの取れるところでたぶん、 やりすぎでない程度をみるとSB700くらいがよいところかなと自分には思いました。(基本持ち運ぶ想定はなく家での室内使いメイン） [amazonjs asin=”B0042X9L6A” locale=”JP” title=”Nikon フラッシュ スピードライト SB-700″]   D750にSB-700つけるとこんな感じ。…

First steps in flash photography

Everything in life can be tiring and tiresome if we don’t have the ability to look at it as if it’s the first time we’ve ever done it. – Eric-Emmanuel Schmitt I have never in my life photographed with real flash before. Sure I have experimented with a build-in flash in my cameras and phones, or to be more accurate, actually been forced to use flash when I could not find a stable alternative to a…

No, it's not a joke.  Press release: http://www.dpreview.com/news/1009/10091509sb700.asp What I consider to be major upgrades from the SB-600:

Commander capable (up to 2 groups).  Now there are four commander options for Nikon (in addition to the popup flash): SB-700, SB-800, SB-900 and SU-800.

Head rotation: 180 degrees to both sides according to Nikon.

Zoom coverage up to 120mm.

SU-4 optical slave mode.  See here.

Other features similar to the SB-900 such as the interface, light distribution pattern, support for gels, overheat protection, etc.

What I consider to be notable missing features:

Power - the press release gives a GN of 38m at 120mm zoom, 100 ISO.  I'm guessing the 35mm zoom is 1 stop weaker, meaning about 27m, which is a bit weaker than Nikon's stated GN for the SB-600  (30m at 35mm zoom, 100 ISO).  The cynic in me thinks this is intentional on Nikon's part to force us to buy more. :)

It was expensive and I told her to buy the $200 one but she got me the brand new SB-700 which is $400, I ain’t mad. It’s a flash and I need it.

Anyway, she basically said it was an experience. When my mom and I use words like experience or interesting it usually means something bad but this was not at all bad in her books.

After watching Zack Arias' One Light 2.0 (actually, I'm just half through) I got so inspired that I, though lacking the proper equipment, tried my newly learned skills on my kid, in the basement. In front of a white bedsheet. Using a Nikon d300 sporting a Nikkor 35mm f/1.8G, a SB-700 flash with a super tiny $2 ebay soft-box.

The results, given the circumstances, were quite inspiring! Now I just need to expand our house with another room. get some flashes. Umbrellas. Softboxes. Assistants. A cool, relaxed, confident personality. And some random stuff.