>jhonave, I for one, agree with using the SC cord to start.
>
>I use the SC-17 cord, available cheap from KEH. I noticed the
>SC-17 and SC-29 function identically on a D7000. The SC-17 is
>1/3 or less cost from KEH.
>
>The reason I recommend the SC cord is simple. There are many
>facets to learning off camera flash. Getting some shutter time
>with fewer variables makes the time to the first great pic
>much shorter.

The SC cord is intended to be used with a bracket. It was never intended for taking the flash off-camera on say a light stand without precautions.

I recommend NOT using TTL-BL mode with an SC cord. TTL-BL mode adds fill to a properly exposed ambient image, and it depends on many things to function properly. One is that it uses the distance as reported by the lens to set the power. This means that the flash must always be positioned so that it is the same distance to the subject as the camera.

Of course, TTL-BL should only be used when in bright ambient light, and with the camera meter zeroed, but that is true whether in the hot shoe or on an SC cord.

Regular TTL mode works exactly like when the flash is mounted in the hot shoe, and that is the mode I recommend when using an SC cord.

>I learned OCF with a D7000, SC-17 and a SB-600. If I had gone
>straight to CLS with that SB-600, I would have eliminated OCF
>as an interest, fast!! There is no intuitive way to learn CLS
>with the SB-600.

Be careful with the term 'CLS'. CLS does NOT mean wireless. Nikon Wireless is AWL (Advanced Wireless Lighting), and it is a subset of CLS. In fact, some CLS flashes, like the SB-400, do not work wirelessly.

>Did I mention the elimination of annoying pre-flashes?

There is still a preflash with an SC cord. It is called the Monitor Preflash, and that is used to set its power. In fact, this monitor preflash is the hallmark functioning of CLS.

Russ
Retired Professional Photographer
Nikonian Moderator
Russell MacDonald Photography
Nikon CLS Practical Guide