Dirt Cheap Lighting - A Buyer's Guide

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Grizzle

New member
Thanks weebee I was mostly wanting to know if there was a new version of these.. The neewer ones look decent to start with and amazon has some cheap little kits. Thanks again
 
J

Jim Shea

Senior Member
how many of these setups are compatible with Nikons CLS system, new to flash and thought I should get to know and hopefully master the CLS system.
 
cwgrizz

cwgrizz

Senior Member
Challenge Team
chip said:
What would be a good entry level flash w/ ttl for my Nikon d3300?
Click to expand...

Look at Yongnuo flashes. A good starter is a YN568EX. I really like the one I have. Do a search under the Flashes thread for Yongnuo and you will find more information on what is available than you ever wanted to know. Ha!
 
R

RocketCowboy

Senior Member
I've always recommended the Yongnuo stuff (having also owned/currently owned some of that kit), but I'm hearing great things about the Godox kit as well. It's a good time to be learning!
 
Horoscope Fish

Horoscope Fish

Senior Member
Just to keep this thread alive here's the backbone of my current "inexpensive" lighting kit. I made a few bad buying decisions early on when I started using off-camera flash, but the gear in the following list has been serving me well.

That being said, if I was starting all over again knowing what I know now, I'd be looking very, VERY hard at the Godox line of flashes and accessories. I really like the Godox system and what it offers... Just not enough to dump everything I have now to start over with them.

  • One Yongnuo 565EXII, or One 568EX if you really think you're going to need High Speed Synch (HSS); about $80 either way.
  • One Yongnuo 622n wireless "kit" consisting of one 622n-TX transmitter and one Yongnuo 622n transceiver; about $70 for the kit.
  • One Lumopro LP735 3-in-1, 43", compact umbrella; about $30
  • One Phottix Varos Pro Umbrella Holder (size small); about $20
  • One Lumopro 605s light stand; about $50
  • Optional: One Yongnuo 360 LED light-bar; about $80 but you'll need batteries and a battery charger since you don't get either with the YN-360 itself, so I'd tell you to budget about $100 total for the kit. This is a totally optional item but I love mine!
Grand total: $250 or so, depending on where you shop and NOT including the YN-360 light bar ($350 if you do). This sets you up with a single on/off camera flash system that is (Nikon) iTTL compatible and operates wirelessly. Once you get into off-camera flash you probably won't want to use TTL but I'll admit it's nice to have. I currently use a Lumopro lighting bag, model number 5180 (32"), which sells for about $30. You'll probably want to stock up on rechargeable AA batteries, maybe an additional charger as well, so you might want to add those to your budget. Then you'll want gels, more speedlights, additional modifiers...

Thank gawd photography is such a "cheap" hobby!
 
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