5050 and D-180 Questions

[fins]

Brand new D-180 owner here. I have searched old posts and am still a little confused on settings for the 5050 and D-180.

Right or Wrong...Here's how I understand things:

If I want to shoot in manual mode (my long term goal but for right now I will probably stick with aperture priority mode) I need to:

1. Install the D180 magnet to turn off the advanced cancel circuitry.
2. Set the D180 to Auto
3. Set the D180 to match the camera aperture (for each shot)
My big questions here are how do I set or what are my options for configuring the flash settings on the 5050?

If I want to shoot in aperature priority mode (where I will start initially) I need to:

1. Insure that the D180 magnet is not installed in order for the advanced cancel circuitry to function.
2. Set the D180 to auto
3. Set the D180 to match the camera aperture (for each shot)
Again my big questions are how do I set or what are my options for configuring the flash settings on the 5050?

Thanks,
Mark

 

[ReyeR]

Close, but just a few minor corrections. Regardless of whether you're shooting in Aperture priority (A) or Manual (M) shooting mode the flash settings on the camera and the magnet on the D-180 will be the same. So, for both A and M modes:

On the C5050

• Select A or M
• Go to the flash menu and set the flash to Slave, Level 1 (OK >> Mode Menu >> Camera tab >> Flash >> Slave >> Level 1)
• Force the flash on by selecting 'Fill-in' ( :lightning symbol) in A or 'Slow' in M
• Install Inon's 'Clear Photo' sticker on the camera's flash

On the D180

• Install the magnet to turn off the Advanced Cancel Circuitary
• Set the D180 to Auto
• Set the D180 to match the camera aperture (for each shot)

Notes:

• By switching the flash to 'Slave' you turn the 'Pre-flash' (and TTL) off, hence you need to install the magnet on the D-180 to turn the advanced cancel circuitary off
• The camera uses much less battery when you use 'Slave' flash. Also the camera's flash recycles very fast so your camera is ready for the next shot almost instantly
• Slave flash is only available in A and M shooting modes

Just one more quick question. Is there, or when would there be an advantage to using the pre-flash and TTL?

With the C5050 and D180 combo? If your preferred shooting mode is A or M, I see no advantage really. Since the D-180 is an 'External Auto' and 'Manual' strobe, the TTL (and pre-flash) functionality of the C5050s flash becomes redundant as all you are looking for is the camera's flash to 'trigger' the D-180 in sync with the camera's shutter.
The only time you will set the C5050s flash to TTL (ie Int + Ext) is if you shoot in P or S mode. In this case the Slave option is not available so you have no choice but to use TTL to 'trigger' the D-180. This applies for all digital cameras that fires a pre-flash before the main flash. You will then need to remove the magnet from the D-180 to turn the 'Advanced Cancel Circuit' ON.

2 more advantages of using 'Slave' flash:

The 'Slave' flash will fire in SuperMacro mode so you will be able to use your strobe in SuperMacro mode
It will even fire in Sequential shooting mode, so if your strobe can keep up you can take several shots in quick succession by keeping the shutter release pressed