Setting up wirelessly

[eNZee]

OMG can i just first start off by saying that im incredibly overwhelmed and confused using my sb600.
ive had it for a bit now and have figured out how to use it on camera to my likings.
now i want to venture out and try doing it wirelessly.
i have a d90 and a sb600 and i want to take the flash off the camera.
what now??? how do i set it up so i can use it offcamera.
please help!

thanks guys,
EnZe

[RexK_Cozumel]

If you want to use the nikon CLS system you need to setup your flash unit to remote mode. then set your D90 pop up flash to commander mode. Then just click away.

Or you can set up the flash using wireless triggers and recievers but then you lose TTL unless you are using the new pocketwizards or radio poppers.

[eNZee]

how does the pop up flash work with it? if it fires wont i get an undesirable lighting on my subject.

i havent done any of this so my questions might sound really retarded.

btw: what are poketwizards and radiopoppers?

[inkista]

You can set the popup flash output to "--", which will minimize the light coming from camera. If you're really disturbed by that small amount of light, I think there's a snap-on filter you can get to go over it that will filter off the visible light and still let the infrared signal through, but I'm a Canon shooter, and most of this is completely arcane knowledge to me.

PocketWizards are the gold standard professional radio trigger. Not all PocketWizards can do iTTL/CLS, but they just came out with a set this year that can. RadioPoppers are a funky little company that came out of nowhere two years ago; they sell radio triggers (the RadioPopper PX) that can bridge the infrared CLS signals over radio.

The reason you'd want radio over infrared is that infrared signalling requires line of sight and has a limited range. It's like your TV remote. If anything is blocking the sensor from the transmitter so that it can't "see" the signal, you're screwed. Radio goes through walls, it doesn't get wiped out by bright sunlight, and it's multidirectional. CLS on its own typically works great indoors, but becomes much less reliable outside.

The nice part of CLS, though, is that you retain iTTL and high-speed synch, and all those other flash goodies that rely on the extra pins in the foot/hotshoe other than the one that signals "fire". The cheaper radio triggers, like the regular PocketWizards, RadioPopper JrX., Cybersyncs, or Cactus V4s can only yell "fire".

If you really want to get into off-camera lighting, go lose yourself for a few months in the Strobist. Personally, I found it to be a huge amount of information overload, and started out with Planet Neil and on-camera lighting instead.

[OsmosisStudios]

Originally Posted by inkista

You can set the popup flash output to "--", which will minimize the light coming from camera. If you're really disturbed by that small amount of light, I think there's a snap-on filter you can get to go over it that will filter off the visible light and still let the infrared signal through, but I'm a Canon shooter, and most of this is completely arcane knowledge to me.

Nikon SG3-IR pop-up flash blocker. Slides into the hotshoe and a panel folds down in front of the flash. IR signal still gets out but no light. I've got one but rarely use it: I dont see too much light in my photos from the popup.

[eNZee]

thanks guys
great tips.
im going to go try that

@ inkista - thats for the explanations on poketwizards and radiopoppers. im going to look more into those.

[eNZee]

Originally Posted by OsmosisStudios

Nikon SG3-IR pop-up flash blocker. Slides into the hotshoe and a panel folds down in front of the flash. IR signal still gets out but no light. I've got one but rarely use it: I dont see too much light in my photos from the popup.

osmosis - where to get the sg3-ir??? i looked on the henrys webpage and im not getting anything. does blacks have it???

[elvenprincessjo]

I am glad you ask so many questions. A lot of your questions are similar to mine, so I don't even have to ask them! Lol. ^_^

[ARKreations]

Originally Posted by eNZee

osmosis - where to get the sg3-ir??? i looked on the henrys webpage and im not getting anything. does blacks have it???

Try B&H Photo

[eNZee]

Originally Posted by elvenprincessjo

I am glad you ask so many questions. A lot of your questions are similar to mine, so I don't even have to ask them! Lol. ^_^

yeah i find myself in that situation too. im glad that my questions can help others as well.

Originally Posted by krossk

Try B&H Photo

thanks - ill check it out.