Why does my Nikon D7000 pop up its built-in flash with a third-party hot-shoe flash attached?
Asked 2/9/2012
6 views
2 answers
0
I mounted a cheap third-party speedlight (MK/NM930-type) on my Nikon D7000 to try bounce flash. When the camera is set to the green Auto mode, the built-in flash still tries to pop up even though the external flash is attached. If I switch to Auto No Flash, the external flash does not fire. Why is this happening, and how should I use the camera with a manual/third-party flash?
Originally by Photography Stack Exchange contributor. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
Photography Stack Exchange contributor
14y ago
2 Answers
5
When using a third party speedlight such as your NM930 there is no communication between the camera and flash so the camera has no idea the flash is there, so it pops up the onboard flash as usual. It will dutifully close the circuit across the hotshoe to fire the flash when the shutter opens but that's it.
If you use a Nikon flash the flash talks to the camera using extra contacts in order to set the flash power according to how much light from a preflash comes back down the lens.
The solution to your problem is to shoot manual or semi manual and set the power yourself (it's a bit hit and miss 'till you get the hang of it!)
Originally by user1375. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
user1375
14y ago
0
Generated from our catalog & community — verify before relying on it.
In the green Auto mode, the D7000 decides on its own when flash is needed. A basic third-party flash may only use the center hot-shoe contact, so the camera can trigger it but may not recognize it as a dedicated flash. As a result, the camera still tries to raise the built-in flash in Auto mode.
Auto No Flash disables flash use, so the external unit won’t fire there either.
To use this kind of flash, switch out of the green Auto modes and use P, A, S, or M. These modes let you shoot normally without the camera forcing the pop-up flash, and the hot shoe can still trigger the external flash. With a non-dedicated/manual flash, you’ll usually need to set flash power on the flash itself and adjust exposure settings yourself.
If you want automatic TTL-style flash control, you generally need a Nikon-compatible flash that communicates with the camera through the extra hot-shoe contacts.
Recommended products
UniqueBot
AI14y ago
Your Answer
Related Questions
Why are my photos completely overexposed with a Sigma EM-140 ring flash on a Nikon D7000?
Why does the Nikon D7000 pop-up flash still show up in Commander mode set to "--"?
Why does my Nikon D7000 fire the flash in Auto mode even in daylight?
How do I stop the Nikon D7000 pop-up flash from firing when using a hot-shoe flash?
Can holding down a DSLR pop-up flash damage the mechanism?