Nikon SB600 Speed Light

[sharkman]

I just purchased the SB600 speed light for my Nikon D70. I am not that experienced with flash photography so I am looking for some helpful suggestions and hints to improve my skills.

Thanks for the help in advance everyone.
Wayne

[jwhitten]

Wayne,

I'm not an expert, but I also own a D70 and the SB600. It's a great combo. If you are not accustomed to using flash, leave the camera in program mode and line up objects small and large, near and far and photograph them from differnt angles. From above, from level with and from ground level. Use the diffuser for some of your shots and compare the differences (be sure to remember which shots you used it on). Watch where the shadows fall - especially on the walls behind your subjects. Shadows on walls behind your subjects can be very distracting. You might also try bouncing light off off the ceiling or adjacent walls and observing the results. Knowing what to expect will help you when you actually shoot photos that matter. Digital is great since you can take hundreds of pictures to learn your equipment without having to pay for developing.

Try shooting in manual mode as well and set your flash to different output levels to get a feel for it.

And don't forget that the built in flash is great for macro shots even on sunny days since you can shoot at 1/500 sec which stops a lot of motion including camera shake.

[sharkman]

thanks for your comments, I appreciate the insights into flash photography.

Wayne