sb-700 flash..nikon D5100...which trigger?

[ClaudioG]

Hi all..I'm clueless when it comes to flashes..but I am looking to get the sb-700..I believe with my nikon D5100 I need a trigger If I want to use my flash off camera..can anyone recommend a good trigger? I want to be able to place flash in different spots..so not looking for cord. Any help is appreciated..thank you

[dubaiphil]

You don't need a trigger, Claudio.

You can use Nikon CLS to trigger it with your on board flash, with or without the on board flash contributing to your final exposure.

However, there are limitations. You need (generally) line of sight between camera flash and receiver on the SB-700. I say generally because in dark areas where there are tiles on the walls the bounce of the on board flash can still communicate with the SB700 if there is not direct line of sight, but outdoors you'll need a clear view. Talking of outdoors, in bright light a clear line of sight is still potentially not enough as the on board flash communication can be overpowered.

Phottix and various other brands offer 3rd party solutions which don't rely on line of sight. Personally I have Pocketwizards with the zone controller which allows me to set power from my camera's hotshoe for 3 banks of lights in TTL and Manual - very useful but pricey.

[Manfred M]

The advantage of using the Nikon CLS is that the Nikon flashes (even when off camera and when you use multiple flashes) and the camera communicate with each other, so the level of automation / integration is quite high and the camera can manage the off-camera flash for you using the TTL flash metering capabilities. You can remotely adjust your flash(es) output in "Commander" mode, from your camera menu. This is really nice, especially if your flash is in an awkward location; regardless, you don't have to walk around and make manual adjustments.

The moment you go to off-camera flash, using third party units do not provide any integration with the camera and you are going to be shooting either in total manual mode or at least using less sophisticated automation. There are infra-red units out there, but they really offer no advantage versus the built in system in your camera.

Radio triggers are a good way to go as line of sight is not an issue. You will need to get a transceiver for the camera and each remote flash. I use the PocketWizard system and this is the premium solution out there. There are some cheap Chinese knockoffs out there as well. I've heard some good things about the Phottix system, but have no personal experience with it. The only other system I've used is Elinchrom's Skyport, which is really for studio lighting and I don't know if they may a unit to trigger Speedlights. There are others out there as well; Cactus, Skypopper, Yongnuo are a few of the other brands I've heard of.

[dubaiphil]

Yes - CLS gives you that functionality to control flash output remotely, but delving into menus still takes time. The Pocketwizard AC3 controller is fantastic in that respect. No diving into menus, just rotate a dial for each of up to 3 banks of flashes to adjust power in 1/3 stop increments. Expensive but really good for your workflow.

[dubaiphil]

If you do go down the Pocketwizard route, remember one thing. Different markets sell PW's with different frequency ranges. For example I bought mine from the US and shipped them to me. I cannot now buy extra triggers for additional flashes from the local market but have to buy more from the US. Not a biggie, but worth considering.

[Mike Buckley]

I believe with my nikon D5100 I need a trigger If I want to use my flash off camera

You are correct, Claudio. Your camera does not provide the Commander Mode that makes it possible to control the flash when it is not mounted to your camera. I'm sure Phil and Manfred were thinking that that camera does include the Commander. To be clear, your camera includes the CLS that they mentioned but not its Commander mode.

One option is to purchase the Nikon SU-800, which does not have a flash but acts as the Commander that allows your camera to communicate with your off-camera flash. Refer to page 203 of your Reference Manual and page 77 of your Users Manual for a bit (but not much) more pertinent detail.

[Manfred M]

You are correct, Claudio. Your camera does not provide the Commander Mode that makes it possible to control the flash when it is not mounted to your camera. I'm sure Phil and Manfred were thinking that that camera does include the Commander.

Oops - I had not realized that this feature was missing from the D5100. You can still use the external flash as an optical slave unit using the built-in pop up flash as a trigger, but the camera integration will be missing.

In that case Mike is correct; the SU-800 is an option, but I would probably look at either using the "traditional" slave mode on the SB-700 (cheapest) or going to the external radio trigger.

[Mike Buckley]

Oops - I had not realized that this feature was missing from the D5100. You can still use the external flash as an optical slave unit using the built-in pop up flash as a trigger, but the camera integration will be missing.

Is it possible to use my SB-600 remotely, configure the SB-600 on the flash unit itself and fire it by releasing the shutter without firing the built-in flash? In other words, I realize that I wouldn't be able to control the flash unit using the camera menu but would I be able to achieve the same results by configuring the flash unit itself?

[RustBeltRaw]

The moment you go to off-camera flash, using third party units do not provide any integration with the camera and you are going to be shooting either in total manual mode or at least using less sophisticated automation.

Just to clarify, there are radio units that allow TTL metering. PocketWizard's FlexTT5 radios are the most common example. I have a trio, and they're excellent. But there's no free lunch, because they're wicked expensive, and you can't control flashes from the back of the camera without the AC3 controller Phil and Colin mentioned.

There are infra-red units out there, but they really offer no advantage versus the built in system in your camera.

In terms of communication, I agree. But there's a rather infrared/radio hybrid - the RadioPopper PX. It takes the camera's infrared signals, relays them to the remotes by radio, and the remotes then talk to the flash via infrared. They're less expensive (new) than the FlexTT5, but I haven't used them.

Whatever you get, remember that you're buying a system, just like picking a camera lens mount. PocketWizard is still king, but you'll swear at every singly trigger on the market from time to time. Which is why Syl Arena's extra-long TTL cables are popular.

Using manual-only triggers might make life easier, and they're nowhere near as expensive. This is fine if you're shooting in the studio, and it's workable for run-and-gun stuff, but TTL will reduce your workload. Note that most TTL triggers can also work in manual modes.

I will love it if you will answer affirmatively.

Sadly, no. Apparently the SB-600's only sync option is the hot shoe (no optical slave/SU-4 mode).

[Mike Buckley]

Thank you, Lex.

[HenkB]

Pages 37-39 of the D5100 user's manual make no mention of Commander Mode and I have read elsewhere that CLS is supported using another device as commander (SB 700, 800, 900, 910; SU-800). What the SB units I have listed do have is optical triggering (slave mode or, in NikonSpeak, SU-4 mode). As Phil notes, this is essentially line of sight stuff. Still, in normal sized rooms, there is likely to be sufficient reflection to trigger the outboard unit(s) with no contortions necessary. This can work very well and can be used in tandem with radio triggering to allow non SU-4 units (such as my SB600s) into the mix. I will radio trigger the SB-600s which optically trigger the SU-4 units.

For longer throws, all these flashes are flexibly enough articulated that it is almost always possible to aim the flash head just as you might wish and still have the body oriented with the sensor toward the camera. SU-4 mode involves no preflashes so, as the distance will allow, you can put your popup in manual and dial its power down to minimum. To completely remove the popup's direct contribution to the exposure you have a few options. The first, cheapest, and simplest is to put a baffle in front of the popup that will block its light from traveling forward but still allow the flash to be sensed by the slave (think aluminum foil). Nikon also sells a filter that blocks the popup's visible light emissions but allows the IR component through (the SBs monitor IR). A single flash can be set off the camera and used TTL with a dedicated cable. To use one of the SB's as commander off camera you will need to cable it with a dedicated CLS cable. But remember, the only point in using one of these units as commander is to control remotely yet more ALS compatible flashes.

All that said, enamored as I am of manual control (more on the theory of "use it or lose it" than any sense of cultural purity ), I normally use an inexpensive ebay radio trigger (IShoot) almost exclusively, even when controlling only one flash. The units I have seem to be utterly reliable at normal distances.

[dubaiphil]

Ah, my bad. Forgot that the D5*** range doesn't include CLS. One of the important upgrades when moving to the D90/7*** bodies in my opinion.

[Mike Buckley]

Forgot that the D5*** range doesn't include CLS.

It absolutely does include many capabilities of CLS even though it does not include Commander Mode.

[ClaudioG]

thank you all for the great advice. I think best way for me to understand though would be to bring the camera in with me and test it all out to be sure. Thanks again all out