Five Different Ways Of Connecting External Flash To Nikon D7000

Nikon D7000 comes with a built-in flash which does pretty good job most of the time; specially when your subject is close, and you just need to fill the light. The power of the built-in flash is not enough to use it as a main source of light and this is when external flash comes handy. Nikon's every new DSLRs support external flash units but in addition, Nikon D7000 gives some extra options to connect external flash unit. Basically you have five different ways to connect an external flash unit to your Nikon D7000.

Nikon SC-29 TTL coiled remote cord

1. Mount on the accessory shoe: You can connect your flash unit to D7000 by sliding a compatible flash units into the accessory shoe, also called hot shoe. When you slide your flash unit to hot shoe, D7000 automatically detects Nikon speedlights and you can control it's function using camera menu options.

Nikon AS-10 TTL Multi-Flash adapter

2. Connect to the accessory shoe with a cable: Instead of mounting your flash directly into accessory shoe, you can also use Nikon standard cables; Nikon SC-28 or SC-29 TTL coiled remote cords to connect flash units with Nikon DSLRs. These coiled remote cords have an accessory shoe on one end of nine-foot cable to accept flash, and a foot that slides into the camera accessory shoe on the other end, providing a link that is the same as mounting flash directly sliding into hot shoe. But using these cables gives you flexibility of placing flash units into different orientations than being fixed on top of the camera. It is useful when you want to experiment with direction of lights using wired connection between flash units and camera.

Nikon SC-26:27 TTL Multi-Flash Sync cord

3. Connect using Multi-Flash cables: You can also use Nikon SC-27 or SC-26 TTL Multi-Flash Sync Cords to connect TTL flash units to each other or through the AS-10 TTL Multi-Flash adapter or SC-28 TTL remote cord for multi-flash operation. You may want to use this with older NIkon Flash units as it doesn't support i-TTL or D-TTL operation.

Nikon AS-15 Sync Terminal Adapter

4. Connect to a PC/X connector: Nikon D7000 doesn't have built-in PC sync connector, but Nikon offers an optional adapter, Nikon AS-15 Sync Terminal Adapter, that clips into hot shoe and provides a PC/X connector which can be used with studio strobes. These adapters are useful when they are combined with a voltage limiter so that you don't need to worry about frying your camera with an older flash units that has a triggering voltage that's too high.

Note: According to B&H online store, AS-15 Sync Terminal Adapter doesn't provide high-voltage sync protection, and is not recommended for flash units that have more than 6v.

5. Connect using Wireless technology: Nikon D7000 has a commander mode option which lets you trigger most of the Nikon speedlight units wirelessly. Using commander mode, these speedlights can be triggered by another master flash in commander mode or by the RU-800 infrared device. You can also use third party wireless device such as RadioPopper JrX or PocketWizards wireless flash triggers which are pretty much dominant in the market.

What I Saw In Skyline Drive, Virginia

I always wanted to capture the colors of autumn. I am fascinated by the pictures of beautiful trees with combination of green, yellow and red leaves. Every fall season, the colorful display of leaves gives me the energy to get out of my comfort zone and capture those natural moments. But, because of work schedule, my fall trip was on hold for a long time. Finally, I couldn't wait any longer and decided to make a short trip to park nearby and capture the beauty of the season. This is probably one of my best shot in Skyline Drive. I really like how trees from both side coming close towards each other and the road is leading us from the center.

Skyline Drive, VA

Focal Length : 65mm     Exposure : f/5.6     Shutter : 1/40 sec     ISO : 200

On a sunny Tuesday afternoon, I took leave from work and headed to Skyline Drive in Virginia. The Drive is a 105-mile road that runs the entire length of the Shenandoah National Park in the Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia, generally along the ridges of the mountains. The scenic drive is particularly popular in the fall when the leaves are changing colors. According to Wikipedia, each year, over two million people visit the Skyline Drive, which has been designated a National Scenic Byway.

Skyline Drive Fall Colors

Focal Length : 18mm     Exposure : f/3.5     Shutter : 1/40 sec     ISO : 200

The weather was so perfect that I didn't notice almost 90 miles of driving from my home. As soon as I reached the park, I saw an amazingly harmonious blend of nature and human development. Inside the park, you can't drive faster than 35 miles per hour due to curves on the road, wildlife crossings, and walking or cycling tourists. While driving, you can see stopped vehicles whose occupants are either enjoying the wildlife or viewing the valley from overlooks. As a driving precaution, you have to be extra careful about roads which take winding paths along the mountaintops where deer, bear and other wildlife crossing the road may appear without warning. If you go there during the peak of the season, you will be amazed by the colors.

Skyline Drive Scenic Drive

Focal Length : 40mm     Exposure : f/5     Shutter : 1/160 sec     ISO : 200

When you get the $15 dollar visitor ticket (it can be used an unlimited number of times throughout one week) at the entrance,  you will also get maps and information about the National Park. There are nearly seventy-five overlooks throughout the drive, which offers some of the most spectacular views of the surrounding valleys. I didn't have much time to drive through all the overlooks but each one I visited was fantastic. The park is also famous for hiking and camping on its many trails and biking and horseback riding, on the roads.

Please feel free to share your moments if you have been there and tell us what did you feel about the park.

Sunset Photography Tips

This post is written by Guest Contributor, Janet Ochs Lowenbach. If you are also interested in writing a guest blog, please reach out using the form in the Contact page.

The setting sun is one of the glories of the day and possibly the best memory of a vacation. But it takes some skill to produce photos that stand out from the crowd. First off, decide what you will include in your shot. Go to the site an hour ahead (you might want to look up the time of sunset earlier in the day), and walk around. See what scenes you might want to include and what objects you might want to place in the foreground of the shot for interest. (Silhouettes in the foreground are a valuable compositional device.) Plan to bring a tripod.

You might even go over the possible exposures in your mind. (It is best to use the smallest possible aperture is to increase depth of field.) Even though the sun is going down, it is important not to look directly at it when it is too bright. A rule of thumb I use is to hold my fist up to the horizon; I can shoot when the sun is below that. Frankly I have also looked directly at the sun when it is higher, but I am here to tell you I have read enough to know that is a very dangerous thing for your eyes and the camera itself. IT ISN'T WORTH IT! It is particularly important to never look directly at the sun through a long lens, which magnifies the light.

Begin taking the shots a half hour or so ahead of the event– the clouds take on wonderful colors before and after sunset. There is something exciting too about photographing the sun continuously as it dips below the horizon.

Sunset at Bailey Island

Plan to shoot at a variety of focal lengths –sometimes a wide panorama is best; sometimes you will want to narrow the field.

Sometimes the lack of contrast makes it hard to focus when the camera is on automatic; sometimes the shot won’t work at all and sometimes the camera misfocuses, but you won’t notice the fuzz until later. So make sure you take a fair number of shots on manual focus!

Remember the rule of thirds, and keep the major elements of your shots off center.

Make sure you experiment. You may choose aperture priority to make sure you have adequate depth of field. I like to experiment by shooting on manual (bracketing), once I have chosen the basic exposure from program priority.  Manual shooting makes you familiar with the exposures that work in various settings. I like to see the effects of more or less exposure (or even flash in the foreground) on the clouds as they are lit up by the dying of the light.

Here are some other sunset shots I took this summer in Bailey Island, a beautifully isolated spot on Casco Bay, an hour from Portland.

I suggest you to go out and try yourself. You might make a few mistakes but that is how you learn and grow. Best of luck!