Paul C. Buff, Inc. Technical Forum

I purchased the ABR800 about a year ago and have yet to really put it to use with my D7000 because of the time involved trying to get the settings on my camera where they need to be to get a decent picture. Can anyone give me some basic setting info to set my D7000 to for use with this Ring Flash? I typically will try and use my Nikon 85mm f/1.4 G lens or my Nikon 50mm f/1.4 G lens.

Thanks for any input.

Respectfully,

Wylderice

Generally speaking, a good place to start is the lowest ISO available on your camera. The x-sync on that camera is 1/250, so set it there or slower.

From this point, aperture and flash output are the remaining variables. If you know what aperture you want to use, set it, then adjust the flash power to match. Be mindful that you may or may not be able to increase or decrease the flash output for all available aperture/distance variables.

Since apertures and distances vary and flash power will vary based aperture and distance, there is not a single recommended setting. However, you can use the chart on this page to see the expected output at different power settings. http://www.paulcbuff.com/output-ringflash.php (you will need to choose a modifier, either the reflector or the MoonUnit. Only the MU30 is listed, but MU56 figures should only be slightly lower, depending on the diffuser panel used).

I'll add something since I own a D7000.

For some reason, mine got on "Rear Curtain Sync" (little R shown in the upper menu, or shows as Rear int he LCD screen image output menu) which was maybe off the default. I had to press in the "lighting bolt" flash button on the front and turn one of the main dial to get it back into normal mode. What it did was delay the flash via the wireless trippers so it fired too late and I got squat. Maybe Nikon's flash would have fared better, but wireless and delay times made things black.

Drove me mad for a while as to why the delay.

Mack

All camera menus will drive you crazy :roll:

One other common setting on Nikon cameras is Auto ISO Sensitivity Control. This is different than Auto ISO, and can kick in even if ISO is manually set, so make sure it is off. Pg 103 of the English manual explains this.

Thank you very much for the very insightful info. I am going to spend some time this evening with your comments, my camera and the ring flash. I actually have 3 D7000s and will dedicate one to the ring flash if I can get it working like I think it should be working. I added a Sekonic L478DR to my challenges not too long ago and it has me totally upside down so I put it away to work on the ring flash then I will pick it back up and try to figure out how to work it in to my shoots to save me time getting things set up.

I will let you know what the outcome is when I work through your suggestions. Very much appreciated.

Respectfully,

Marshall