TTL or Manual

Just wondering how many are using TTL and how many are using manual. If you post a reply in addition to taking the poll, it might be useful to know:

- Camera brand / model

- Housing brand

- Strobe(s) brand / model

Love TTL for macro it works great for me and with the Ikelite housing it's easy with the dial to control the strobe.

Nikon D80

Ikelite housing

Ikelite DS-125 Strobe

the poll should be more specified. are we talking macro or WA? i use TTL for macro and manual for WA.

serge

Just wondering how many are using TTL and how many are using manual. If you post a reply in addition to taking the poll, it might be useful to know:

 

- Camera brand / model

- Housing brand

- Strobe(s) brand / model

I am using a Nikon D70 in a Sea & Sea housing with a pair of YS90s. TTL is achieved through using a S&S TTL converter II.

I did shoot manual for a while after converting to digital as I had no option! Where I prefer the ttl is for a grabbed shot. Whilst bracketing always made sure I could get the shot I wanted with manual, that was only really an option where the creature would hang around.

I do turn the ttl off for most scenic shots though.

Daniel

Using TTL for Macro and some W/A; but manual for CFWA

D-200, Subal,Inon-240, S&S TTL

the poll should be more specified. are we talking macro or WA? i use TTL for macro and manual for WA.

 

serge

Hi,

thanks for your comments; I made it super-simplistic on purpose since there are so many situations where someone may / may not use TTL.

I have noticed when people talk about buying a new camera, housing and strobe, a lot of "weight" is accorded to whether or not the setup can do TTL. It's my guess (I could be wrong) that most people end up using the strobe manually because the sensors inside a camera can be "fooled" too easily by shadows and bright lights in the background. If I see a shot I *really* want, I do 3-4 exposures with a different flash value on each one.

JP

i am using manual but am moving to ttl because i am sick of missing the quick shot (grab shot) because my strobes have the wrong power and the other reason is because it makes stalking an animal easier, if your flash power doesn''t adjust as you stalk something,creep closer, by the time you are at the optimum distance your strobe are wrong and tweaking them will spook the subject.

regards

Jez

basically get ttl, if you don''t like it you swsitch to manual,easy

Fuji S2Pro

Subal

Subtronic

Full TTL

Nikon D200

Sea & Sea

Subtronic

Manual Only

The difference? None noticed!

...but I did practice for 30 years with film first so maybe I just know when it's set right - and I shoot in RAW.

Nikon D80

S&S Dx-D80

S&S YS250 Pro

Nikon D50

S&S Dx-D50

S&S YS90-auto

100% manual for both wide angle and macro

Andree

Nikon D200

Subal

S&S YS-90's

Don't have a lot of choice in the matter really. Used to use TTL a lot with film but now perfer manual.

I shoot manual and TTL at the same time with D200 in Hugyfot housing with factory installed HW iTTL-converter and dual Inon Z240 strobes – Manual+TTL. In practice it means I dial the value I want on the strobe manually. If I should set a too powerful value, TTL steps in and adjusts the light for correct exposure. So I can underexpose slightly (or a lot) on purpose but the system saves me from overexposure...

cheers

Nikon D200

Subal

S&S YS-90's

 

Don't have a lot of choice in the matter really. Used to use TTL a lot with film but now perfer manual.

I'm the same way -- I had a nikonos ttl film setup, but I ended up doing most shots on manual anyway. Nice to have TTL as an option, but just knowing your flash power, f-stop and shutter speeds for different situations seems just as fast/good.

JP

Im glad I came across this post. I new to this forum, but have been researching quite a bit about some underwater gear. I have an Ikelite housing with daul Sea and Sea YS-250's on there way. Im going to be foreced to shoot manual since Ike housing and Sea&Sea strobes wont allow for TTL. I will be shooting WA. Money wasn't really an issue so I decided on the two YS-250's over the YS110's, is this pretty much just over kill?

Never used TTL underwater.

Great topic! I've had this question on my mind recently. As a rookie, I had a hardwired TTL strobe on my olympus SP-350. It really did a nice job with fish pics but had a tendency to blow out small stuff unless I had it diffused.

I added a 2nd manual strobe later but have had trouble firing it off the TTL strobes housing (no connection).

Long story short, I've been thinking about going fully manual. However the idea of missing that quick shot still has me wondering how much that will bother me, if at all.

Idem as general standard, TTL for macro, Manual for WA. Some times Manual for Macro also, so I guess it depends...

TTL for Macro.

For WA, it depends. TTL unless it doesn't come out how I want it, then TTL with compensation dialed in.

Canon 5d

Ike Housing

Ike DS-125 strobes.

I usually leave flash exposure comp at -1/2 shooting macro.

I also shoot TTL more most of my macro photography, but recently have gone to manual for wa shots.

Canon 400D XTi

Ikelite housing

Ikelite DS-125 stobe

I have Heinrich's converter but had trouble with it over exposing or not firing quickly (for macro) so have gone back to manual. (probably operator error)

D200

Aquatica Housing

2xInon D2000

Heinrich TTL

Do any of the TTL converters offer flash compensation control so that we can dial down the strobe? The D200 I use on land has that ability on board the camera to provide flash compensation control to the pop up flash or and external strobe for flash fill but the D2X I dive with does not because it was intended to be used with a Nikon SB800 that provides flash compensation adjustment controls on the flash itself. I think that TTL could be more useful if there is flash compensation control. I currently shoot with manual strobe control in all formats. Thanks.

vr Andy