RSS FeedGee Please will be back Shortly
Dear Gee Please readers and subscribers, sorry for yet another long stretch of break in the Gee Please updates. We have been reorganizing our staff, from writers, editors, testers and guest writers list.
Rest assured that with these changes, Gee please will be more current and streamlined. Check out the list of upcoming contents on this site after the jump.
We are also making some server-side updates and still doing it as we speak. We are also redesigning a bit of the whole appearance of the site to make it more reader-friendly. We employed some changes in the internal pages to make it easier to scroll and read. Including easier follow of comment replies from the staff.
THE NEW LOGO
On our list of coming contents are:
- A review of the Nissin Di866
- Field Test of the Nissin Di866
- Review of Kimstore Gadget Shop
- First Look on Nokia 5800 Xpress Music
- First Look on SAMSUNG Star
- NOKIA 5800XM Review
- SAMSUNG Star Review
- Shield for your gadgets
- Basic Lighting Tutorial using the Nissin Line-up
We are also looking for additional contributing writers, if you have articles to share, do share it with us by using our contact form.
If you’re a Merchant and you want your products tested as well, we can also do that per your request and arrangement.
To our readers, if you need us to review something, please dont hesitate to send your suggestions to Gee Please and well make sure to put it on the queue for review and testing.
Thank you for continuing to support Gee Please!
The Tricky Flash Sync
What is the Flash Sync? How do I use it? And how do I achieve a high-speed sync?
These are a few questions you ponder about after getting your first ever external flash. First let’s clarify the meaning of “Sync”. Sync is actually a shortcut of synchronization, and synchronization is the way two objects function, move, execute at the same time in it’s simplest sense.
Now Flash Sync is all to do about the Flash Shutter. The Shutter is like your eyelids. It closes and opens much like your eyelids does. However for the Flash Shutter, the wider it is open and the longer it stays open, the more light is captured by the camera sensor. Basically, the camera sensor only sees light, that is why photography in it’s simplest description is a means of capturing light. If the shutter is blinking fast, which is a fast shutter, the sharper the image and the quicker your camera sensor captures the image while sacrificing the amount of light it captures as well.
Therefore, slow-shutter speeds are good for low-light conditions, making fast moving objects blurred, making running water from streams and waterfalls appear silky-smooth and taking night photographs and especially useful on time-lapse photography.
Fast-shutter speeds is good for fast targets to make them appear like you stopped time, or freeze the moment. Good for pictures of sports, racing, active kids and the like. However, you need ample amounts of light to get proper exposure at fast-shutter speeds. You can hand-hold your camera and take sharper images. For slow-shutters, a tripod is absolutely needed.
This answers your questions about high-speed sync and flash sync. It is the relation of your camera shutter with your your camera flash.
The shutter of your camera has its own rating for maximum speed which you can use the flash. Thus your camera also has a limit as to how fast the shutter curtains (eyelids) can be made to move. At higher speeds, a second shutter curtain which is rarely noticed also move to increase the speed capacity of the camera.
The secondary shutter is released before the first curtain has finished moving. This will appear like your camera sensor is shooting through moving strips.
Thus the higher the shutter speed, the thinner the strip is. This affects your flash reliability to properly expose or light up your subject. If the flash fires while the curtains are about to close, the the proper flash exposure is not taken. Thus the timing between the flash and the shutter, which is your sync speed, is essential. They must thus work in harmony.
Fast Sync, notice how the action and the crowd is captured
Slow Sync, notice that the crowd is now blurred by panning the shot.
The maximum shutter speed where the camera sensor is properly exposed when it is wide open is called the “Flash Sync” or “X-Sync” speed. It usually ranges at about 1/200 - 1/500sec. However this varies depending on the SLR/Camera.
Your external flash needs to cope with this value. That is why your reliable on-camera flash fails at higher sync speeds or your camera won’t allow you to shoot at higher sync speeds at all. Most external flash has a “High-Speed Sync” mode, allowing your camera to use any shutter speed. Notice that without your external flash attached to your camera, the camera shutter speed option is limited. Your external flash does this nifty little trick to synchronize with your camera shutter. Your naked eyes cannot see this, but to achieve high-speed sync flash, your dedicated external flash fires a series of several flashes as opposed to what your eyes can see which is a single fire of your flash. This is timed to match the period where your camera sensor is exposed. This multiple fire at high-speed sync reduces the intensity of your flash considerably, so most high-speed sync shots is done best for fill-flash at close range.
Whats with the Grey?
Getting the right color temperature, white balance and the true feel of a photograph is difficult to achieve even for seasoned photographers. Auto White Balance is a hit and miss affair, any PRO photographer you ask will tell you to set your white balance (WB) manually yourself. There are many ways to do this, and one effective method is to use a Photographic Grey card.
A Grey Card is used as a baseline of the level of White Balance the camera should apply. It balances the color of your photos much better. It is letting your camera choose a better exposure level to match the current lighting situation.
One of the best Grey Card is the “Douglas Card”, I am trying to look for the newer version, but there is none available in my area. The Douglas Card is from Douglas Photographic. The Latest version is called the Douglas Mark II. It offers better color balance in many kinds of lighting conditions. At around 20USD, the Douglas Mark II or Mark 2 contains no artificial brighteners which could distort your dSLR’s’ exposure readings.
Douglas grey card
Nissin Di866 First Look
I have a wind of the news of the to be released Flagship Flashgun from Nissin, specially made for Nikon users. The All new Nissin Di866. At around 300USD and maybe adjusted lower in the future this is a to be waited on Flashgun from Nissin.
The Di866 Professional Speedlight features an external auto-exposure sensor with eight f-stops from f/2 to f/22 with compensation potential. It has additional features specially designed for professional dSLR users. The recycling time is around 3.5s and supposed to offer up to 150 full-power flashes per set of batteries.
The flash is supposed to synchronize to sync speeds higher than 1/250s. Additional features of a fill in sub-flash, activated by the main flash while bounced. It has self-changeable TTL light level feature and can be allegedly fired wireless by Nikon DSLR’s cameras. Nissin Di866 firmware can be updated via a built-in USB port, finally a flash with a USB port.
Nissin Di866
Supposed Features:
- Exclusive for Nikon Digital SLR’s Cameras
- The Di866 Professional Speedlight features an external auto-exposure sensor with eight f-stops from f/2 to f/22 with compensation potential
- Self changeable TTL light production level feature and can be fired by wireless means from Nikon DSLR’s cameras
- The unit is designed for use with DSLRs and boasts many features particularly designed for professional and advanced photographers
- It has recycling time of 3.5s and be able to offer up to 150 full-power flashes per set of batteries.
- It features a fill in sub-flash, which is activated while the main flash is bounced
- The flash synchronizes to high board up speeds of above 1/250s
- Its firmware can be updated via an incorporated USB port
Specifications:
| G.No | - Main flash 60(ISO 100, m) or 84(ISO 200, m) at 105mm lens angle coverage - Sub flash 12(ISO 100, m) or 17(ISO 200, m) for 35mm lens angle coverage |
| Compatibility | Nikon digital SLR cameras and Coolpix hotshoe cameras |
| Power Source | - Battery magazine - 4 x LR6, (Lithium, NiMH and Oxiride are usable) - Power Pack - Nissin Power Pack Pro 300 (NiMH exclusive battery cluster) |
| Recycling time | - 3.5 sec. by Battery Magazine with 4 x NiMH - 0.5 sec. by Nissin Power Pack Pro 300 |
| Number of flashes | - 150 full power flashes per set of NiMH batteries - 300 full power flashes by Nissin Power Pack Pro 300 |
| Camera Synch. | - TTL hotshoe (on camera flash) - PC cord service connector (off camera flash) - Wireless TTL, and Slave synchronization (off camera flash) |
Tay Hua Trading Review
I have been scouring the web for some new light stands as the ones I have are rusty and old. Those set I decided, is ready to retire as they have served two owners already; My Cousin who used it to light up his artwork, then me whom he decided to sell it to.
Anyway, I was assuming that I would easily find affordable yet quality light stands online. For a month I was trying to find those light stands I wanted, but most of what I found are included on studio sets or packaged as a kit with some of the things I did not need.
For a while I was almost fixed on getting these strobist sets/kit which included a soft box, or an umbrella. Then one day, I was reading through the archives of a strobist topic that mentioned a reliable shop in Manila who was established long before I can say my A-B-C’s.
It was Tay Hua Trading Corporation. I asked around about them on some web forums I am in, then I figured that in this time and age, they must already have a website. I found out they did at www.tayhua.com. I then started to go thorough their listings, I tried to look for a search function on their website, but there was none. I resorted to build my own widget to scan through their site and look for, as you might have guessed, “light stands”.
Tay Hua Trading
I first found the “Kits”, they also have strobist kits which included a strobist softbox and a strobist umbrella kit with some options to upgrade, like adding radio triggers with the package or changing the size and types of stands or umbrella. After reading through these kits, I found out they also sell the items individually.
It took me a week to decide which one I would purchase. Then I decided to contact them through the e-mail address they provided on the site. At first I tried on Yahoo Messenger, waited for a while but it is constantly offline. So instead I e-mailed them. A few hours later, I got a response. Few more queries, and Tay Hua’s e-mail reply is fairly fast. I found out some of the kits are out of stock and then I finally knew who was responding to me. It was actually Sir Ackerly Chua of Tay Hua himself.
Mr. Chua is pretty responsive and amicable. He suggested some items to me and asked for my planned usage of the items. He suggest what he thinks is the best option and added some tips here and there. You can seldom find a merchant who is willing to discuss how your ordered items can be useful and suggest things to make the desired result of your purchase plan, a success.
I decided to make my own Kit. After a few exchanges and tips from Mr. Chua, I finalized my order and asked for the invoice. He gave me the invoice with some discounts on the items, then he gave me details on how to pay for the items, and informed me that If I could pay that day before three in the afternoon, he could ship the items immediately.
Before I finalized my order, Sir Chua had to be specific about the shipping expense which the buyer covers. He was open to any courier suggestions you may have and I opted for LBC. Although LBC is a bit expensive, at least they deliver quicker based on my experience.
Sir Chua had my proposed orders weighed and shipping was then calculated with LBC. He then e-mailed me the shipping charge. After I agreed with the total fees, he gave me his mobile number and banking details. After lunch I went to the bank and sent the payment to Sir Chua’s account. I then sms’ed him to confirm that payment was done, he readily replied an informed me that he will send the tracking number after he has shipped the items.
Later that afternoon, I received the e-mail of the tracking number and we thanked each other for the successful transaction. I mentioned that I’ll let him know when the package arrives. To my surprise, Sir Chua later mentioned that he changed my light stands to a better model as opposed to the ones I ordered for the same price. I bought a couple of other accessories for the light stands, aside from the light stands themselves. This item upgrade came as a surprise.
About three in the afternoon the next day, my package arrived from LBC. It was well-packed and all items are plastic wrapped individually, it was also boxed pretty tight. Packaging was superb and items quality is A-plus. It’s only been a week that I have been toying with the new stuff. I’m sure to order more things from Tay Hua in the future because of this positive experience. I hope they hire a better web developer for their website though, to make it more user-friendly. I was just wondering, where my Free Tripod is At? Lol!
So are you ready to order at Tay Hua? I highly recommend them; tell Sir Chua you found the info on this site.
Wait for my review of the individual items I ordered on future posts.
Congratulations Tay Hua Trading for achieving the Gee Please Gold Standard.
If you have any feedback for Tay Hua Trading, don’t hesitate to leave your comments below.
Camera Cleaning Essentials
Whether you are using a point and shoot or a high-end dSLR, these cleaning essentials must not be missed. Conventional Microfiber cloths are not really friendly to your lens and camera surface, because if a debris is trapped within it’s folds, then it would scratch any surface it comes in contact with. However I am not totally putting down any anti-static and micro fiber cloths in general, I just want to let you know of the fact that what I mentioned above could happen. So if you are using one now, be careful when using it.
What I would suggest however you use is the Lenspen, it is a fairly nifty little device. It uses carbon technology to clean glass surface, the way people before use newspapers to clean you windshield or window glass is the same principle. However, it is synthesized and combined to a new pen lookind device. An added bonus is at it tails end (the lenspens’) is a brush that could gently pull out any debris first before cleaning with it’s patented carbon tip. However before using the lenspen, the first thing you should do is blow up the dust and debris off your device, and the Lenspen can’t do that, nor your mouth could. So you need my next tip, The Rocket Air Blower.
Lenspen LP-1
Sounds like it came from NASA right? What I am pertaining to is the Giottos Rocket Air Blower. It’s rubber component and design including the air inlet is specifically engineered for supreme air blowing performance(pardon the pun). Yes it blows the hell out of dust and debris. It has an inlet valve at the bottom (one-way valve) that takes clean, filtered air in from the bottom so you can blow out a clean air at the tip. So no debris being accindentally blown in to your device. Just to be sfe, before use, try to blow it a couple of times before pointing to the surface to be blown. Aren’t you tired with all the blowing already?
So keep in mind, in your arsenal, you need a lenspen and a blower. No go clean your stuff!
Giottos Rocket Air Blower
.
LumoPro, Yong Nuo and Cactus
Still Looking for the most affordable Flash/Strobe for your strobist setup, you already are familiar with the Nissin Di622 right? Since I already reviewed it here before. I’d like to review a couple more affordable alternatives, but I can’t get my hands on them yet. So this is just a primer of the new sets of flashes. They are all ranging below the USD150 price line and seems to be a good alternative for your flash needs. The review at The Strobist Blog is updated every time they get new info on these set of flashes, so I trust that there reviews should be the first hand look on these new set of flashes.
Affordable Flashes
LumoPro 120 (around USD130), Yong Nuo YN460(USD50 below) and Cactus KF36 (USD100 below). The Complete Review and updated feedbacks from first-hand users are located at the Strobist Blog.
.
GP Gold Achievers
GIZMODO- JooJoo Tablet Gets New Interface With Updated Home Screen, Navigation and Keyboards [Jooojoo] March 11, 2010
- Intel's 6-Core Gulftown Gets Tested, Blows Us Away [CPUs] March 11, 2010
- Apple iBooks' Many Ebook Categories Include "Erotica" [Unconfirmed] March 11, 2010
- I Would Be Happy With Just Half an Infinity Bath [Bath] March 11, 2010
- Heavy Rain: A Peek Into the Future of Movies and Games [Entertain Me] March 11, 2010
- Emergency Vehicle Gadget Overload Will Kill/Save Us All [Trends] March 11, 2010
- The Barnes & Noble eReader iPad App Is On the Way (But Will Apple Maim It?) [Apple] March 11, 2010
- Chatroulette Map Shows You Where These Creeps Live [Chatroulette] March 11, 2010
- Pink Floyd Wins Legal Battle to Only Sell Full Albums Online [Downloads] March 11, 2010
- Where Next for the Manned Space Program? [Space] March 11, 2010
Recent Comments
- Chris Administrator Gee, Please...: Hi Worried. Yes, most Nissin Di866 depending on where you bought it from has some...
- Chris Administrator Gee, Please...: Hi Ricky, Not unless your Metz Manual flash is set to trigger at TTL, then it...
- worried: i just bought mine last saturday, to shot for my brother’s wedding… it was very noisy...
- Ricky: Hi, firstly, good job on this informative review. I’m looking for a 2nd slave flash for my Pentax...
- Chris Administrator Gee, Please...: Hi Sorry for the long wait, as you can see we haven’t updated the site yet,...
- Migs: Sir! I have two questions. 1) I have a Canon 430EX II, planning to buy Di622 which will serve as my slave....
- Jack: Hi, I just bought a Nissin Di622. When I try yesterday the unit with my Canon 7d as slave the di622 work but...
- Chris Administrator Gee, Please...: @Michael: It will work off-camera via ttl triggering. @Long: The red glass...
- benting: hello newbie here. which do you think is a best buy? two nissin di622 or 1 nikon sb-600? and i really...
- long: my red glass have broken and scattered to pieces…do i need to buy a new flashlight or can change the red...
