Disable D5500 built-in flash without disabling wireless trigger to external flash?

corkydoodlehead

New member
Hi all! I'm an amateur newborn photographer, and I got a new camera, external flash, and flash trigger recently - but I'm having trouble getting it all to work together! I'm close but there seems to be one problem I can't solve. I'm hoping someone with more experience can help me out because I'm worried I may have the wrong equipment somewhere...


Flash side:
AlienBees B800 flash
Yongnuo RF603C-II Flash Trigger (set to TRX mode)
Yongnuo LS-PC635 (the cable between the two)


Camera side:
Nikon D5500
Yongnuo RF603C-II Flash Trigger (set to TX mode)


My problem is, I cannot get the AB to trigger without the 5500's built-in flash also triggering. I tried disabling the built-in flash via the 5500 settings - it worked, the flash didn't fire, but neither did the AB.


Any ideas out there?
Thanks!
Nicole
 

Marilynne

Administrator
Staff member
Super Mod
Welcome!

I don't use an external flash, so I can't help. Hopefully some will be along shortly to help you.
 

WayneF

Senior Member
Flash side:
AlienBees B800 flash
Yongnuo RF603C-II Flash Trigger (set to TRX mode)
Yongnuo LS-PC635 (the cable between the two)


Camera side:
Nikon D5500
Yongnuo RF603C-II Flash Trigger (set to TX mode)


My problem is, I cannot get the AB to trigger without the 5500's built-in flash also triggering. I tried disabling the built-in flash via the 5500 settings - it worked, the flash didn't fire, but neither did the AB.

Welcome to the forum Nicole.

I'm not sure of your full meaning. Is one problem that the internal flash is triggering when you don't want it to? That answer would be "Don't use camera Auto mode with the external flash." In Auto mode, the internal flash triggers whenever the camera thinks it's dark enough to need flash, which would be about all the time indoors.

But another problem is that a manual light like the B800 can never work with a a camera in Auto mode, or with Auto ISO. You have to set a specific power level in the manual flash, and it cannot react to any auto change the camera might care to make. Auto ISO mode must also be turned off with a manual flash.

So with manual studio lights, the correct mode is camera Manual mode, to prevent that internal flash, and to prevent the camera from making arbitrary auto changes, and to be able to set the correct camera settings you want to use. Auto ISO must be OFF too (the manual flash cannot respond to it).
Then in camera A,S,P or M modes, the internal flash will never trigger unless you open its door, and then if opened, it will always flash (in A,S,P or M mode).

The B800 has two ways to trigger it. It has an internal optical slave, and will trigger in sync when it sees any other manual flash fire. From your description, I am suspecting this is happening. The radio trigger and sync would not even be needed in that case.

Or, plugging a sync cord into the B800 will disable that optical trigger, and then it triggers only when the sync cord triggers it. The cord might run to the radio trigger receiver, or it might be plugged directly into the camera (if a PC sync port like the Nikon AS-15 were added to the camera hot shoe).

So one way to interpret what you said is the sync cord to the radio receiver is not making connection with the B800 sync jack, and the internal flash must be triggering the optical slave (but which it could not do if a cord is plugged into the B800 correctly). One possibility is that the sync cord used is somehow not making the right connections. I have seen other complaints about that. One very good try would be to replace the triggers sync cord with the sync cord that came with the B800. It should easily plug into the radio trigger, and also work well that way. That certainly would be a way to test for this case.

If necessary, it is easy to test the sync cord and B800 by plugging the cord into the B800, and then with a straight or safety pin, or the end of a paper clip wire, simply short the PC connector end, center pin to its round shell. This is very safe (except it will flash, so aim it away from your eye), and the short is the routine way that the flash is triggered. If that works (if the B800 triggers), then cord and B800 are obviously OK and doing their job.

Or possibly the radio trigger units are not working or are not set up right?
 
Last edited:

corkydoodlehead

New member
Hi! Thank you for helping, and sorry if I was unclear. I don't use Auto, I always use MASP, so that isn't the issue... When the internal flash is enabled, the external flash goes off in sync with the internal flash due to the trigger attached to the shoe above the internal flash. When the internal flash is disabled, neither the internal nor external flash go off.

I am trying to figure out how to disable the internal flash yet trigger the external flash.
 

WayneF

Senior Member
I am trying to figure out how to disable the internal flash yet trigger the external flash.

There is no need to do anything to disable the internal flash. In A,S,P, or M modes, the internal flash is already disabled if the flash door is shut. In A,S,P,M, it will not pop open and flash like it does in Auto mode (or does in the scene modes, which are also Auto). The internal flash is not "auto" unless in Auto mode.

In A,S,P,M modes, if you want to use the internal flash, then you just open its door, and then it will flash with any shutter button, every time. If not wanting to use it, then leave the flash door shut, and it will stay shut. The flash door is the On/Off switch that you seek.

This is from page 95 of the D5500 Reference manual page (much larger and more complete than "User manual", free at Nikon | Download center | D5500 )

fdoor.png

When you say "disable internal flash", I think you mean with the menu under the Flash Compensation button, where it says "Flash Off". That does not just mean the internal flash is off, it means all flash is off, meaning no flash sync trigger at the hot shoe. The hot shoe radio trigger would not receive any trigger signal then either, which would explain a lot in your description. That Off menu will NOT be necessary in A,S,P,M modes if the internal flash door is simply shut, but Flash Off does mean Flash Off.

I always use MASP

FWIW, it really needs to be M mode with the B800 manual flash, or with any external manual flash.

S or P modes can change the f/stop, which the manual flash cannot deal with the camera changing exposure settings.
No Auto ISO either, same reason.

Even A mode can change the shutter to be faster than maximum sync speed (extremely unlikely indoors though).
The camera normally knows about any hot shoe flash it communicates with, and will not mess it up as much if flash is M mode, but camera does not know about presence of a manual external flash.

Manual flash is simply done in camera M mode.

This lets you set aperture to match the flash power level, for your exposure.

M mode also lets you set shutter speed. Flash does not care what shutter speed is (so long as it does not exceed maximum flash sync at 1/200 second). Because flash is much shorter than the shutter speed, the shutter just has to be open to pass it, but shutter speed does not affect the flash exposure.

But flash pictures can be two exposures, from ambient, and from flash. Shutter speed definitely affects ambient, but not flash (which is another control available to you). Ambient is normally insignificant level indoors, which is one reason why flash is used. But you can choose to set shutter speed slow, like 1/60 second, or even slower, to let in more ambient light. Or you can set shutter fast, like 1/200 second, to keep out the ambient light. Lighting ratio so to speak. Photographers choice, which becomes important when understood.

And worse, incandescent ambient is often orange, one good reason to keep it out. A slight bit of warming might be good sometimes, but orange is orange. This is why low ISO is most desirable for flash... high ISO just lets in very much ambient.
 
Last edited:
Top