Yongnuo YN685 issue with Z50

Hi everyone,

I’m having a problem with my Nikon Z50 and YN685 flash. The flash does fire when shutter is pressed. The issue is when in Manual mode on the camera, as I adjust shutter speed and aperture, the image in the viewfinder gets too dark to properly focus. It is as if the camera is not recognizing the flash is being used. In Aperture Priority, Shutter Priority, Program, and Auto modes, the viewfinder does not darken and the flash still fires. Maybe it is an incompatibility issue between them or settings on camera causing it? Anyone with a similar experience?

The monitor/EVF shows the picture based on your settings with standard settings and can't predict the amount of exposure from the flash.

You have to set the option to not show the effect of the settings in live view

WWeber said:

The monitor/EVF shows the picture based on your settings with standard settings and can't predict the amount of exposure from the flash.

You have to set the option to not show the effect of the settings in live view

Click to expand...

With a Nikon Speedlight this setting (#D7) is automatically turned off if a Nikon speedlight is mounted in the hot shoe and turned on.

On the Z50 the setting is also disabled if the built in flash is popped up.

The YN685 and Z50 may not be doing the electronic handshaking required for this to happen automatically.

Thank you for the info. I’m very new to the mirrorless game. Still trying to get used to EVF vs OVF. If I switch to a Nikon Speedlight for seamless compatibility, any recommendations on which model?

Thanks again!

K81 said:

Thank you for the info. I’m very new to the mirrorless game. Still trying to get used to EVF vs OVF. If I switch to a Nikon Speedlight for seamless compatibility, any recommendations on which model?

Thanks again!

Click to expand...

SB-500 is ideal if you can find one. Nikon recently announced discontinuation though and suspension of the much bigger, expensive, SB-5000. The SB-500 seems almost impossible to find used but occasionally show up. I just got a used one from B&H.

I have an SB-700 which fine on my D7100 and Z5 but still too big I think for the Z50 unless you are mounting on a tripod. It feels unbalanced to me.

The long discontinued SB-400 is what I use on my Z50. I have had it since 2007. Its fully compatible with the Z50's in camera flash control. It makes for a great fill flash unit. The flash head tilts up and down but not left and right. No remote capability. You can find these used.

The less powerful and smaller SB-300 is still in production and also fully compatible. Back-ordered but you can find them used. No remote capability. Mostly useful for fill flash with a bit more power than the on camera flash.

Any point in looking at the SB-600? If not, I'll wait until I find a SB-500. Later, I may eventually go full frame with the Z5, but for the Z50, I'll probably go with either of the two speedlights you recommended.

you have to turn off live view. It works the same as Sony mirrorless cameras live view.

Your camera is making realtime changes as you change settings, so you have to tell the camera to operate as if its a DSLR, then you wont see any changes to the exposure on the screen as you change settings. Then your flash should work fine. The live view is good for natural light or working with constant, RGB lights..so you can see what your gooing to get before taking the shot.