Nikon D600 For Dummies

Working with Flash

Sometimes, no amount of fiddling with aperture, shutter speed, and ISO produces a bright-enough exposure — in which case, you simply have to add more light. The built-in flash on your camera offers the most convenient solution, but you can also attach an external flash to the camera's hot shoe, labeled in Figure 7-29. When you first take the camera out of the box, the contacts on the shoe are protected by a little cover, as shown in the figure; remove the cover to attach a flash.

Figure 7-29: Press the Flash button to pop up the built-in flash in the P, S, A, and M exposure modes.

How much flash control you have depends on your exposure mode:

• Auto and Scene modes: With one exception (Food Scene mode), these modes feature automatic flash, meaning that the camera controls whether the flash fires. You may be able to choose from a few Flash modes, including Red-Eye Reduction and Flash Off, but other flash controls are roped off.
• P, S, A, and M modes and the Food Scene mode: In these modes, you take total control over flash. If you want to use the built-in flash, press the Flash button, also labeled in Figure 7-29. To go flashfree, just press the top of the flash unit gently down to close it.

  Even in these modes, however, the camera displays a blinking flash (lightning ...