Which flash should I take on a night boat cruise: Nikon SB-400 or Yongnuo YN-465?
Asked 9/2/2011
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I’m shooting on a night boat cruise with a Nikon D7000 and can only carry one flash. My lens options are the Nikkor 35mm f/1.8 and 16-85mm f/3.5-5.6. The two flash choices are a Nikon SB-400 and a Yongnuo YN-465.
The SB-400 is smaller, but less flexible for bounce and positioning. The YN-465 is more powerful, rotates for bounce, and includes a bounce card, but its AF-assist light is weaker in very low light.
For this kind of event, which flash makes more sense? I’d also appreciate basic tips for using flash indoors on the boat and for portraits outside with a dark city background.
Originally by Photography Stack Exchange contributor. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
Photography Stack Exchange contributor
14y ago
2 Answers
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I'd suggest to take the YongNuo, you might still be able to bounce from boat walls or sails. Since I doubt you'll have much time to set up and meter your shots, go with the TTL mode. Hopefully the fast maximum aperture of your prime can compensate for the weak AF assist light.
There might be some lights on the boat providing a little ambient light, so take a CTS or CTO gel with you, if you have it. It helps you avoid photos where different light sources are of different colour.
And of course, turn off the flash for landscape shots.
Originally by user4390. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
user4390
14y ago
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Take the Yongnuo YN-465.
For this situation, the bigger, more powerful, more flexible flash is the better choice. On a boat at night, extra power and the ability to rotate/bounce the head are more useful than the SB-400’s compact size. You may be able to bounce from interior walls, ceilings, or other nearby surfaces, and the added flexibility helps a lot.
Use TTL flash mode for event shooting, since you likely won’t have time to meter and set every shot manually. Your 35mm f/1.8 can also help offset the weaker AF-assist by letting in more light for focusing.
If the boat has warm ambient lighting, a CTO/CTS gel on the flash can help match the flash to the scene and avoid mixed-color lighting.
For people indoors: try bounced flash when possible for softer light. For portraits outside with the city behind them: use flash for the subject and expose for some ambient background light so the skyline doesn’t go completely black. For pure cityscape/landscape shots: turn the flash off.
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