flash sync slower than 1/60

[claude_sapp]

I have a D60, and am wondering about the flash sync on the camera. I understand the fastest sync is 1/200, but I am wondering if sync

slower than 1/60 is possible? It seems sync slower than 1/60 is only possible in M and S mode; in P, A, and AUTO sync seems to be

limited to between 1/60 and 1/200.

 

The reason I ask is because, for example, in P mode if I lift the flash to use indoors the shutter is set to 1/60, the aperture to the largest

possible given the focal length chosen on the zoom, and vari-program does not change settings as I turn the dial. Similar happens in A

mode, though I can change the aperture while the shutter stays at 1/60. In both examples the camera says I will grossly underexpose, yet

if I take a photo the exposure seems to be spot on.

 

Is the camera just trying to protect me from taking a blurry image by limiting my slowest shutter speed to 1/60? If so, I wish it would not.

The only setting related to adjusting slow shutter speeds I could find in the menu system was related to auto ISO, nothing to do with flash

sync.

 

Perhaps the answer is just to use M or S mode when I want to shoot slower than 1/60 with flash.

[Ed_Ingold]

Check your manual.

 

The camera is trying to protect you from blurry pictures or mixed white balance when ambient light is bright enough to compete with the flash. The minimum shutter speed is adjustable as a menu item in other Nikon DSLRs. You may also have the option of "Slow Flash", in which the exposure is adjusted for ambient light and the flash is simply used as fill.

[claude_sapp]

I have read the manual. Many times. Perhaps it was not clear in the manual, and that is why I am asking here.

 

"Slow" as the chosen flash mode in A or P mode is the answer.

 

My large format gear does not have a slow sync setting, so I have a learning curve with my first digital camera.

[lex_jenkins]

No problem using any shutter speed slower than maximum sync speed, Claude. Virtually any focal plane shutter camera can handle this. It's an excellent way to balance flash and ambient light.

 

Not sure about the D60 but my D2H has adjustable defaults for minimum default slow sync speeds. I usually choose 1/30, which is about as slow as I can handhold steadily any more. This works with all auto exposure modes. With manual mode you can choose any shutter speed you need.

 

The other sync options - slow, rear sync, etc. - have their advantages, but also add certain complications.

[ShunCheung]

You can sync with as slow a shutter speed as you want; there is no lower limit (on the slow/long end).

I would avoid using the P exposure mode with flash, though, as the camera will limit the shutter speed you can use with the P mode. Instead, use the manual M mode with flash because it is an important technique to use flash with a slow shutter speed so that the background, which may be leargely out of the flash range, can also get sufficient exposure. The the so called "dragging the shutter" is a common technique for wedding and event photographers.

[jose_angel]

Also, you can use this very slow speeds with "rear courtain sync flash" mode to have a dynamic look (... I don`t know if this is "dragging the shutter"...?) The background looks blurred or moved but the action is frozen when the flash is fired. The ammount of blur or movement of the background highlights is controlled with a more or less slow speed (excessive highlight lines are unpleasant to my taste).

[richard_driscoll]

Yes, in P and A modes the camera is limiting the lowest speed to 1/60 second to guard against blurring due to

camera shake when the flash is not the sole source of illumination. When it is the sole source the flash is too

brief for burring to be a problem anyway.

 

As you guessed you can get around this by using slow sync in P or A mode or by using S or M mode where you can

choose any speed up to 1/200.

 

If you know what you are doing I don't see why you can't leave slow sync set all the time if you want too.

 

On some Nikons you can choose the slowest speed used for flash in A and P modes but on the D40,D40x and D60 it is

fixed at 1/60 when you aren't using slow sync.

[joseph_smith3]

I just downloaded the manual for the D 60. Here is what I have concluded from reading the manual:

Slow synch and rear curtain synch are available on the D 60. Either is available in P or A modes. In S or M modes, of the two synchs, rear curatin or slow synch, only rear curtain synch is available. I did not see anything in the manual that limits the shutter speed to 1/60 of a sec in any mode if slow synch or rear curtain synch had been selected in a proper mode. See D 60 manual pages 65-66.

 

Also refer to pages 151-153 of the manual for more info and rules especially if you are using an auxiliary flash.

 

My practice with all of my Nikon cameras, film and digital, has been to use Aperture priority mode, and slow synch or rear curtain synch, depending on what I am shooting. I have always obtained excellent flash images either using full flash, Standard TTL (TTL) or fill flash, (TTL BL). However, other prefer to use M mode which also works. There are many ways to get to the same ending point. The key is to understand how all of it comes together and come up with a system that means something to you that you understand and will use to get the results you need and like.

 

Joe Smith

[claude_sapp]

Thanks for all the helpful answers. Now the manual is making more sense to me. Coming from the large format world,

there really is no such thing as sync speeds, slow synch, rear crutain, etc. My old Metz flash in manual mode will sync

with all my large format lenses at all speeds. I have had to learn all the terminology related to focal plane shutters to

make sense of the flash settings on the D60. This thread helps.

 

Some good info above. Slow setting seems to be what I was looking for, and it is available in P or A. I do not think the

D60 has adjustable defaults like the D2H has. Such a setting is what I assumed would be buried in the settings

somewhere, but it seems not to be part of the D60 feature set. That is OK, there are workarounds as mentioned in this

thread.

 

AUTO and P mode seem almost useless to me. I am feeling most comfortable with M mode using my Pentax

spotmeter, and then A mode seems pretty useful letting the camera meter decide a few things for me.

 

I ordered an SB-800 to learn more about flash. It has many more buttons and features than my old Metz, which only has

an on off switch that is stuck in the on position, so really it has no buttons! I am sure the SB-800 will lead to more

questions...