Nikon TTL or TTL-BL

sazerac

I have been reading the Tangent Photography Techniques on flash and your new book. In the Nikon world, when use discuss TTL as a choice are you referring to TTL or TTL-BL. I may have missed it somewhere but it seems that you do not differentiate as to which one should be used.

Thanks for putting together all this information.

Sazerac

Zenon

I'm no Nikon expert but I helped a friend who purchased a SB900. BL believe is for bright backgrounds like a person who is standing in front of big window or reflective backgrounds. Just thought I'd post to see if I go it right     

Trev

Yep, correct Zenon, it's supposed to help counter bright backgrounds (BL = Back Lighting/Lit) so that the flash power output is greater and not influenced by the bright background where it would close down.

However, depends also on the camera body as to how much influence this setting may/may not have.

I have mine in that mode all the time. Set to TTL-BL-FP (FP = focal plane so flash can go immediately into high speed sync without fiddling in menus also)

Here is a helpful LINK to your question that Neil did.

Zenon

Jeez I just realized I wrote "defective" not "reflective" backgrounds. It was a good lesson about flash photography. My friend hates flash which goes back to the old days where you had to use the guide numbers. I'm still not sure how much he trusts TTL. I didn't even know how to turn it on but within ½ hour we had his cam on manual and taking nice bounced shots. It is the process and you have to trust it. The rest is just learning how your flash works and it's bells and whistles.         

I was the same. I knew my Canon flash worked but did not know why. That was the scary part - repeatability. Once you get past the two exposures in one stuff, etc then it all falls together. I remember putting my cam on manual and scratching my head because the light meter is all the way to the left LOL.