Help with external mount flash?

Question

i have a digital concepts nikon flash for my nikon D40. i dont have the instructions for it and when i did i didnt understand them. just wondering what the zoom button and mode button changes. when i press the mode button a number changes such as 1/1 1/2 1/8... and i noticed the higher it goes the less of a flash it makes. and when i press the zoom button it changes from 24mm, 28mm, 35mm, 50mm, 70mm, 85mm. i am just wondering what those 2 do besides control how bright the flash is. esp what zoom should i have it on? my lense on my camera is an 18-55mm. any help would be appreciated.

Answer 1

Sometimes you will not want the flash to be the overall light,only to give a bit of "fill in".This would,for example put a highlight in the eyes,or soften off a strong shadow across the face.The mode settings would give you half,or a quarter power.If you wanted to trigger extra flash guns off the camera a 1/8 setting would not give your on camera flash as the main light source,it would only be used as a control for the other lights.

The zoom setting would give you a spread of light to cover the whole picture at different lens zoom settings.This is where it may get hard because makers express their settings in terms of the old 35mm lens focal lengths,you would have to multiply your lens settings by one and a half to allow for the fact that your camera's sensor is smaller than the full 35mm type of sensor.For example with your lens set to 18mm you would use a flash zoom setting of 28mm,while with your lens at 55mm you would use the 85 mm setting,which would give you more light for the long distance telephoto effect.

Answer 2

1/1, 1/2 and 1/8 refer to the output of the flash.  1/1 would be full output, 1/2 would be one half output and 1/8 would be one eight flash output.

As far as the 24 mm to 85 mm settings are concerned, those setting focus the light based upon which focal length you are using when you use the flash... If your lens is set at 35 mm, then the flash setting should match to get the most light on the subject.  50 mm if your lens is at 50 mm.  As you can see your flash does not cover 18 mm, nor does it cover specifically 55 mm, but close at that end of the lens focal length setting.

Nikon's SB600 and SB800 flash units automatically adjust as the zoom lens is adjusted and can cover 14 mm to 85 mm using the auxiliary fresnel lens included within the flash head.

Is this the flash you have?

http://www.amazon.com/Digital-Concepts-F...

Answer 3

the mode button changes the brightness of the flash according to the shudder speed.  the higher the shudder speed, the more light needed.  that's what those first numbers are.  and the numbers on the zoom just tell u how far the lens is zooming.

Answer 4

1/1 is full power flash, 1/2 is half, 1/8 is one eighth  so you can cut the flash down if it's too bright, use just for fill etc.

Zoom should change on it's own as you zoom your lens, adjusts how wide the beam of light will go.

Answer 5

When you are using the flash on the camera, TTL is the way to go.  Your camera and the flash communicate in this mode and you get precisely the light you need to properly expose your subject (at least that is the way it is supposed to work).  This should be your default, and only go to manual mode if you have a situation where TTL doesn't seem to work the way you would like.

The manual settings are handy when you want more light or less light than would normally constitute a normal exposure.  Photographers also use flashes in manual mode when they are positioned off camera, perhaps using two or three flashes to light up a subject.

It appears that the zoom function may not automatically zoom as you change your lenses focal length.  That is strange if it is the case.  You would need to manually zoom your flash if that is true.