The YN-460 in slave mode on a light stand made a great fill flash

Some of you may remember the article a while back about the portable lighting setup my professional wedding photographer buddy at imagesforever.net uses. A few of you might have become depressed when adding up the price tag you realized that rig came to over $1,800.00 USD.

Ouch.

Many of you can’t afford that, many more won’t need that much lighting power at this stage of your career. So, I set out to come up with a functional and flexible lighting kit on a budget of just $250.00 USD.

Obviously there will be trade offs to move the price point that far. Instead of wireless zone controller that can change remote flash settings on the fly, you’ll have to walk over and change the slave power manually. In fact, there’s not wireless radio anything in my budget kit, preferring instead to go the old-fashioned route with a cord. Primitive but effective.

Here are the components I selected, though please note the prices don’t include shipping, handling or VAT.

Yongnuo YN-467 ($84.95)

I like the YN-467 because it’s compatible with my Canon’s e-TTL metering system. It’s a decent flash with a lot of power. There are some issues with build quality, like the battery compartment door, but outside that it’s been a decent performer for a budget flash.

The YN-467 on a monopod because the bracket didn't get here in time

Yongnuo YN-460 ($47.97)

I went with the YN-460 instead of another YN-467 to save some cash. The YN-460 has slave mode that allows you to use it as a remote flash without the wireless trigger. You’re limited to line-of-sight, but I’ve used it successfully behind foreground objects and it fires just fine.

Pixel TTL Compatible Sync Cord ($18.75)

Again, I went with the cord instead of a dumb wireless system because it allows me to use my key light with my camera’s TTL system and the only flash I have to set the power manually is my fill.

Two bounce diffusers from eBay ($1.95 each)  Nothing special here, they get the job done.

Stroboframe Quick Flip 350 ($35.95)

A good entry level bracket which, unfortunately, didn’t get here in time for the pictures, so I used the main flash on my monopod instead.

PBL Heavy Duty Light Stands (one pair, $52.99)

So, how did it all work? Judge for yourself. It could use a few tweaks, but not bad for $250. You can always upgrade individual components if you have the money.

Lighting entire rooms was no problem

Not bad results for a budget of $250

I used the slave behind the subject to create that outline highlight look that's all the rage right now

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