I am looking for a TTL flash compatible with my Nikon D3400. I am going to use it with a Tamron 70-300 (this one, to be precise) (which I have not bought yet) and with the 18-55 kit lens. I don’t have such a high budget; I found a Neewer 750 II on Amazon for around 60€ but I’m not sure at all about the compatibility, so I’m asking here.
How can I tell if the flash is compatible with my camera?
The first thing you want to do is to check that the pins on the foot of the flash match the contacts on the hotshoe of your camera. They need to match in both the number of pins and placement so that the pins will touch the contacts exactly. Most sellers will show a picture of the foot of the flash. See also:
Secondly, you'll want to read through the specs of the flash to see how compatible it might be. If the flash is not OEM (original equipment manufacturer; that is the same brand as your camera), it may be compatible with most, but not all of the features an OEM flash can perform, and you'll want to see what might be missing from the list. The main features you're probably looking for are TTL (Through-The-Lens metering based power automation) and HSS (high-speed sync AKA FP or focal plane sync, which lets you use a shutter speed faster than your camera body's sync speed, if your camera body can perform HSS; the D3x00 and D5x00 Nikon bodies cannot.)
See also: What features should one look for when selecting a flash?
Thirdly, you'll probably want to google to see if there are issues with your specific model combination, particularly if either the flash or the camera body is brand new with new flash features. Sometimes the camera company makes changes to the hotshoe/flash communication protocol and while the OEM flashes will still work, 3rd-party flashes which were reverse-engineered off older camera bodies may have issues. Getting a 3rd-party flash with firmware upgrade capability might help with these types of issues. Be aware, however, that it's unlikely someone may have the exact same combination of gear, and that you may just have to buy and try to see; so choosing a retailer with a good return policy may be the only thing you can do.
Last, but not least, in the case of Neewer, understand that Neewer doesn't actually make any flashes. They rebrand flashes from a number of other Chinese brands, such as Yongnuo, Godox, Jinbei, Triopo, and Meike. If you're doing research, it's sometimes simpler to do so with the "base" brand model, rather than the Neewer one, if you can discover what it is.
The Neewer VK750 II is very compatible with the Nikon DSLRs (iTTL, in the last ten years), including the D3400.
This Neewer VK750 model appears to be a relabeled Meike MK-951.
It is a good choice and a good flash, however, it is not one of the fully powered flashes (like Yongnuo for example), but it is comparable to the power level of a Nikon SB-700 flash. Just meaning, its power is a little lower level than some. The Neewer manual prints the wrong guide number chart for it, they claim a fully powered level GN 58 (meters, 105 mm) when the Meike MK-951 says GN 42 for same. Actual tests support the Meike numbers. See for example, my site at https://www.scantips.com/lights/3flashes.html . And a review of the VK750 is at https://www.scantips.com/lights/vk750.html there.
It does not support HSS, but neither does the Nikon D3400 camera itself, so you don't need it in the flash. It will do everything the D3400 can do.
Here's a link to Neewer's website. I did a search for the VK750 ii and this was the only flash shown: https://neewer.com/?s=vk750 Apparently, Neewer has given this Nikon-compatible flash its own unique model number as the one for Canon has its own unique model number.
Generally, this is how you can determine if a flash is for your Nikon:
Since each camera brand uses an unique configuration of pins on the hot shoe, if the flash in question is for Nikon, it therefore must have the same number of pins and in the same configuration. The exception to this is a flash with a single pin located in the center. This is the pin used by the camera to send a signal to the flash to fire. Most of the time a single-pin flash will work with most cameras. However, one needs to ensure that the voltage in the flash's foot is compatible with your camera.
When buying a flash by 3rd parties, the box will indicate which brand of camera it's compatible with. In your case, the box for the flash will have the words "for Nikon" or "Nikon" or just an "N" written somewhere.
When in doubt, buy from a reputable retailer such as bhphotovideo.com or Adorama.com which are the two largest camera stores in the US. On their websites, they will clearly indicate which brand of camera the flash is compatible with. Note that Nikon has only one hot shoe on their DSLRs. There is no DSLR that requires a different type of flash, so just as long as the flash is compatible with Nikon, it'll work.
