Nikon D3200 Flash Problem

[evangel]

Hello

 

I have a Nikon D3200 with very little use, but the flash stopped shooting.

 

Even in forced mode it does not trigger/fire and the picture is dark.

 

I noticed that leaving the machine without battery at night, the next day the flash fires 4 or 5 times but then refuses again.

 

(the display shows icon flash loaded)

 

The technician repairing the machine replaced the flash power board, but the problem continues.

 

Can someone please help?

 

Thank you

[Matthew Currie]

Do you have more than one battery to try? I have a D3200 and it also has intermittently failed to flash. It's not consistent enough to analyze completely, but I suspect that what happens is that the flash ready light appears before the flash is actually ready and that it does not fire if it is not satisfied as to voltage. It's an annoying habit, whatever the cause, and mine always seemed worst on trips where, of course, opportunities for a second shot scurry off into the bushes.

 

One other possibility (again, not entirely tested as the problem is so intermittent) is that when in TTL mode, the computer gets confused, and even when it ought to flash by default, it may not. If you haven't already, try switching from TTL to M, and try firing it in P,S,A or M mode. If it still fails then, you can be sure it's the flash but if it starts working then it's something else.

[evangel]

Hi Matthew

 

I also tried another battery but without success...:(

The technician replaced the flash board but the problem persists...

It's not related with the mode TTL since I tried with the other modes (P, A, M..)

The technician after replacing the flash board said that flash worked for few times and stopped working again...

 

The problem is this:

 

When the battery out for many hours and insert it I was able to use the flash for 4 photos.

- I insert the battery, turn on the machine and go to a dark place.

- In the first shot the flash pops up and works fine.

- then I shot more 2/3 photos with flash

- after that the flash don't work no more... (it's also not bad contact)

 

I thought the problem was solved the first time I leave the battery out the machine during the night.... but not.

 

Now I'm afraid it's a problem on the motherboard, because I do not know if the motherboard has or does not influence on the flash.

 

Many thanks

[steven_p]

I know it's a big inconvenience, but an SB600-800's can be had for low costs nowadays. Have you tried an external flash?

 

Heck, even most of the old Vivitar 285's have a low sync voltage. Using the flash's dial in aperture setting works well in close distance settings.

 

(I bought an old relic that doesn't have a built in pop up flash, & that "boondoggles" my sense of normal every time i use it.)

[mike_halliwell]

Without sounding overly negative, dump it. The 'failed' repair must have cost more than it's worth.

 

Their 2nd hand value is barely existent, so you could buy a direct replacement.

 

However, I reckon it's time for an upgrade.... D5100 is crazy value now.

[Matthew Currie]

One does wonder if it might be better to upgrade. The D3200 is a good competent camera but compared to some newer models it's pretty noisy at high ISO, and you could get the next version D3300 for relatively small money, with almost identical features, but better low light performance and no anti-aliasing filter (a bit sharper), or a D5x00 with a few more features. I went from D3200 to D7100, and the difference is significant.

 

Or, as suggested above, if you use flash a lot, you could find an external flash. I found on my D3200 that any plain auto flash works well in manual mode. It's really quite simple to use, since most such flashes have a chart or display that tells you what settings to use. The D3200, like most Nikons, is not very fussy about trigger voltages and just about anything from the last couple of decades will work. You may be surprised at how well the old style auto flashes work.

[mike_halliwell]

you could find an external flash

This assumes the hotshoe is functioning.

 

Agreed, the basic 'FIRE' command is a straightforward 2 terminal short on the hotshoe, but who knows how it's integrated into the motherboard.

 

Can you borrow a flash and try it mounted on top?

 

Late Addition..

 

Just looked up the official price of the Nikon SB300. Whoa! £120! Crazy stupid price....:mad:

Edited July 11, 2019 by mike_halliwell

[Andrew Garrard]

Got to say I had the same concern about the price of fixing a D3200. I don't like recommending that something be thrown away, and its easy to dismiss someone else's budgetary constraints, but I do think repairs that actually fix this are unlikely to be less than the price of a replacement - KEH currently shows a D3300 under $200, for example. There are worse things than to get one and keep the D3200 for backup.

 

I agree that the SB600 is a nice bit of kit (though I believe some of them are failing over time) if the hotshoe is okay; it has a horrible user interface, but once you're used to it it's okay. It, and especially the SB800, are a bit enormous on the D3200. (Having "upgraded" to a D850 from my D810, and since the D850 doesn't have an integrated flash, I've started carrying around an old Nissin Di28 that I've had since my D700 days and barely used. It's tiny, and a substitute for the integrated flash in an emergency - which means not for my main use of the integrated flash, as a trigger for off-camera flashes. Sadly, even if you found a used one, it won't play with the D3200, I believe - but there may be alternatives.)

 

Good luck! Otherwise... flashlight?

[mike_halliwell]

If you can get a good one, you could do worse..

 

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Viltrox-JY-610N-camera-Speedlite-Camera/dp/B00QT2HSD0/ref=sr_1_5?keywords=small+flash+gun&qid=1562841331&s=gateway&sr=8-5

 

Quality control seems bad, but you never know quite how representative the reviews are.

[ed_farmer]

Look at the SB-400 flash on the used market. Don't keep trying to fix a camera that isn't worth much. I see, based on what is here, no reason to thing that the hot shoe is not working. The problem appears to be in the function of the internal flash circuit.

[evangel]

Hello and thank you for all the tips you gave me.

 

Should have come here to put the doubt before sending the machine to the technician ... now I have to wait :(

 

The problem is that the technician is not finding the problem. He thought it would be the power flash board and after all it is not ...

 

I do not know if the flash shoe works (I didn’t tried and now I do not have the camera with me).

 

I have already asked the technician that if the problem is more complicated, to cancel and give me back the equipment.

 

I'll buy an external flash or get a new body to replace D3200.

 

I have two lenses (18-55 VR and 55-200 VR). Do they work on a D3300 or D5100 body?

 

I have very little experience and had started very recently with my D3200 ...

 

Many thanks

[Andrew Garrard]

Well, so long as the technician doesn't charge you if it doesn't fix it! (The power board would have been a perfectly sensible thing to check.) The technician might be able to quickly check the hotshoe for you before you get the camera back, if you ask nicely and want to plan ahead. An external flash is a nice accessory to have even if the on-camera flash is working. I'll be interested to know if the problem gets diagnosed - it's always useful to learn more so we can give better advice to others.

 

There shouldn't be a problem with the 18-55VR and 55-200VR on the D3300 or D5100 - the only thing in that series to watch out for is that the D3400 and D3500 (successors to the D3300) don't work properly with lenses that aren't "G" (that do have an aperture ring on the lens) - but I believe you're talking about what Nikon calls the "AF-S DX NIKKOR 18-55MM F/3.5-5.6G VR" and "AF-S DX NIKKOR 55-200mm f/4-5.6G ED VR" (which may or may not be "II" if it's the collapsible version), so you're fine with these two lenses, so long as you're not also using anything much older. The D3300 and D5x00 series should be fine regardless (or at least, as capable as the D3200).

 

Sorry you've had a problem if this is your first Nikon body - they're normally reliable bits of kit, so you've been unlucky. Welcome to the Nikon community, and I hope you enjoy shooting! (And do hang out on this forum - we're usually helpful.)

[mike_halliwell]

I see, based on what is here, no reason to thing that the hot shoe is not working

 

As i guess it's the shutter that says GO to the flash, the actual sensor for that won't be on the powerboard.

 

So equally if that same sensor talks to the hotshoe via the motherboard it might not work properly either and only trigger the flash intermittently too...

[2Oceans]

Evangel, Sorry about your problems with the flash on your D3200. I have owned this same camera since 2013, one year after it was introduced. I enjoy using it as much as any of its more gifted siblings. It takes wonderful images that are technically better than the professional D2X I have owned now for 14 years. It may not be worth a lot but I would not get rid of it because the flash doesn't work. It can be used for available light. If the hot shoe works and your on a budget then I would purchase an inexpensive older Nikon flash like the SB-25 or brand new Yongnuo or Neewer flashes. Some of the folks here have used those brands successfully. I have several modern Nikon Brand flashes but carry a 25 year old SB-25 that I use in manual with an equally ancient sync cord and cheap radio triggers everywhere I go . If you need a fully automatic flash then the Yongnuo or Neewer flashes would fill the bill for a lot less than the Nikon brand. And whose to say that the light they produce is not just as good. Your two lenses are fine. Good hunting.

[ed_farmer]

As i guess it's the shutter that says GO to the flash, the actual sensor for that won't be on the powerboard.

 

So equally if that same sensor talks to the hotshoe via the motherboard it might not work properly either and only trigger the flash intermittently too...

 

Yes . . . If I believed that the shutter was the problem, I would agree with you. The fact that the flash fires several times after having the battery removed for some length of time leads me to believe that the problem lies in the flash circuitry itself.

 

But, it's an easy test.

[evangel]

Hi

Thank you very much for all your help.

As soon as I have news about the machine, I'll leave the information here.

The technician asked me to give him some more time (at his responsibility). Lets wait...

 

Let me take this opportunity to ask ask your opinion about this doubt:

I saw that the D5100 has less MP (16mp) than the D3200 (24mp).

Is the D5100 better than the D3200?

[2Oceans]

Evangel, The D5100 is slightly older but is from a Nikon camera line that has more features such as an articulated monitor.

It has lower resolution but besides that there is probably not much difference in the quality of the two cameras sensors.

Two places to compare the two cameras image quality include DXOMARK and DPREVIEW. Those sites do objective testing and not just opinion. Good hunting.

[Matthew Currie]

As an alternative, if you really like the 24 mpx image, and don't need the added features of the D5100, you could look for a D3300, which is nearly identical to the 3200 but has improved high ISO, drops the AA filter, and can use the newer P lenses, which the 3200 cannot. Later 3xoo models seem to maintain the price point by dropping features (the sensor shaker is gone, the rear remote sensor disappears, and at some point so does exposure support for AF lenses that have an aperture ring). Or if you really want the added features, a D5200 has a sensor like yours. I moved from a D3200 to a D7100, and can highly recommend that, though it is, of course, a bit more expensive.

[mike_halliwell]

I managed to pick up a very good deal on a D3200 refurb very soon after release. A customer return probably.

 

I specifically got it for being a dedicated slide scanner as £ per pixel it was an affordable 24Mpix sensor.

 

I then found Nikon had crippled it by being un-tetherable, I should have done my research!

 

Then I sold it on to an architect friend at same cost and moved up to a D5300 with GPS (eats batteries!), folding screen and could be tethered.

 

Looking back on it, the lack of buttons and weirdness regarding the self-timer, I wouldn't buy another entry level Nikon DSLR.

 

I love my buttons, not their menus!

[Andrew Garrard]

The 3x00 series are particularly simplified - the lack of 14-bit lossless raw being the killer for me. But the number of images it'll make a difference for is relatively small, and a very good camera for a very good price 99% of the time will probably make you a lot happier than my Nikon-induced credit card debt makes me.

 

For what it's worth, I'd not lose sleep over the on-camera flash. If the hotshoe works, a separate flash will get you out of trouble if you need it, but the integrated flash is quite limited anyway, and, except arguably for fill flash (which raises colour balance questions), on-camera flash is generally an unflattering look. I use the on-camera flash on my D810 a) in an emergency when I care about what I'm shooting more than a good photo, and b) to trigger other flashes, which the D3x00 series can't do anyway.

 

Even if the internal flash is broken, if the hotshoe works, I'd not rush to replace the D3200. Get a cheap external flash and you can use it with any other camera you get in the future - even if the on-camera flash works, you can still get more creativity by putting the flash on a coily extension cable so you can move it away from the camera. If you want a camera with flash for convenience, I'd still give it a little while - if you're happy with the D3x00 series, stick to it; if you find, after shooting for a while, that you'd really benefit from a tilt-screen, get a D5x00 series. If you find you're really into photography, you might rather save your money for a D7x00 (and if not, you shouldn't waste the money just yet). Yes, you can do more and faster with the more expensive cameras, and people are often unnecessarily scared of them (they're not actually hard to use) - but I'd still wait until you know what you want. I've spent a lot of money with Nikon, but at least I can say that for everything I've bought, I knew why I wanted it!

 

Best of luck, and enjoy the hobby!