Hi. A grip is an excellent tool if you plan to shoot more than just a couple of pictures. I had one with my D5000 and used it on many different occasions.When I decided I wanted a better, more versitile camera and got my D7000, ther grip was one my first additional purchases. Besides adding more battery (NiMH or AA so you can choose), it also provides "goodies" such as a vertical shutter release, a s solid handle to safely holding your camera.
Yes it does add weight but the advantages outweigh (no pun intended) the downside

You might want to look at the Tamron 18-270 f3.5- 5.6 as a good all-around lens for your 7100. With the rebate, it becomes very affordable and I find the lens quality to be exceptional. There are tons of reviews on this lens and you can always try it at your local camera shop. Plus Tamron has a good rebate on this lens.
I have the SB-700 and it is a fantastic flash. You can look at places like Cameta Camera for a good deal on this this flash and they also have Nikon refurbished units with a 1 yr warranty. Bought both my SB600 and SB700 rebfurbished from them and have not had any problems but did save substantially.
Good luck and good pictures!

After reading all the problems and issues with the Yongnuo (triggering, flash output, etc.) decided to send these back, save up and get the Phottix Odin system. Looks to be > double the price but at least I know it will work.

Thanks to all for your suggestions and did follow your advice but the triggering problems persist and I don't have any confidence in these units. Might work well with Canon, but there's a lot of work Yongnuo needs to do to get these to work consistently with Nikon.

Thanks. Problem is that both flashes (SB600 and SB600) trigger before the shutter is actually open in either remote or pass through. Did a complete reset for both the flashes and the D-7000.
Camera and flash are fine when coupled directly to the hot shoe. Put a 622N in the mix and it all falls apart. Even wrote to Yongnuo and their answer was to buy another camera and see if that fixes the problem!
If I can't get it resolved, will probably just bite the bullet, send the Yongnou stuff back for refund and get the Phottix Odin system. Nice but > 2x the price of the Yongnuo.
I'm flying out this Friday to shoot a friend's wedding in Guadeloupe (beachfront wedding at sunset) so don't want any unplanned glitches. Tried CLS just in case but the infrared coupling is not fantastic outside past 10'.
Any advice is gladly accepted.

Thanks for sharing. Will look at these and see if they offer any clues as to how to fix this.

Right now the camera is set in FP mode. Tried all different settings including S,P,M and A. Results are all the same. Push the shutter button half way and the flash goes off, then the shutter engages.
When I heard from YongNuo, they said it the iTTL and is normal. Clearly, it's not.

Here's the problem that hopefully someone can resolve.
I purchased the Yongnuo 662N transceivers and the 622N TX transmitter. Camera is a D-7000 and my 2 flashes are a SB-600 and SB-700.
When used directly with the D7000 in both normal and Commander mode, there are absolutely no problems.
When I put either flash onto the 622N in passthrough or remote, the unit will fire at full power once before the shutter actually opens (you can see/hear the time difference). The same problem happens when I use the 622n_TX to trigger the 622N. Push the shutter button and both flashes will fire before the shutter opens. Result- any picture taken is black.
I've tried these in iTTL and manual- same result. The D-7000 is set to FP (tried both 150 and 320). Even did a factory reset of the D-7000 just in case that was the problem. Flash on camera is fine. Use a 622N and it all falls apart.
Don't want to have to move up to a Phottix or Pocket Wizard but may have no choice. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated. If not, these go back for a refund.
THANKS

I would suggest you use 1 card for jpeg and the other for RAW. I'd also recommend you get at least 2 32gb cards (preferably 64 gb) since the RAW files eat up space especially if you are going to shoot at max resolution.
Also if you are taking video, the will default to the card in Slot 1 and these are also memory hogs. Don't take anything less that Class 10 SDXC otherwise you'll find the time needed to store your pictures will be too long. There some good deals on eBay for around $40/64 gb cards but try to get a decent brand (Sandisk, Kingston, etc.)
Just make sure you set up the menu to save in both formats. The 7000 gives you some decent options.

We gave our granddaughter a VTech kids camera for her 5th birthday (I think she really wanted my D7000 but that was not going to happen).
We chose that one over the FP camera due to price, size of the viewing screen (VTech is bigger), the ability to add a micro SD card and, most important, the sturdiness of the unit. Plus the VTech has decent video and the built-in editing options are surprisingly good for a $40 camera.

Go to Cameta Camera to see bundle prices. They have all the major brands and their bundles include camera, lenses, fliters memory cards, flash, tripod and case. I've gotten 2 systems from them (D5000 and D7000) and was able to actually call up and specify what I wanted so they made the bundle for me.
You can also ask if they will do a refurb bundle and save a few bucks more. The bodies are guaranteed for 1 yr and you can also get an extended warranty (think they use Mack Photo) for more time.

Having done a number of these both with a club and also on my own, you may want to consider getting a portable generator (at least 1000w constant output) . You need to consider lights for the tent, power for a printer if you are going to do these on site, and anything else that you many want (laptop, etc).
There are cheap ones you can get for ~ $100-150 but these are noisy, smelly, and the voltage can vary. If you are serious, see if you can rent one for the day and see what you think. Then you can always buy a decent one and suggest you look into a 4-cycle model so you don't have to worry about mixing fuel.

Would agree with others about a shoe mount flash. Would suggest you use a flash diffuser with either your built-in flash or shoe mount. Softens the image, gives better shadows, and makes your photos look a lot better.
I like the Lumiquest series as they fold flat in your camera bag (ie great for travel) and come with a lifetime guarantee. Gary Fong makes good products also, however they are more hard plastic and take up a lot of room in the case.
Also, if you are using an 18mm, be careful if you have a hood on it when you use flash. It will attenuate the light around the edges significantly. I bought a collapsible hood (about $5 on eBay) that screws onto my filter. This way, you can fold it flat or open it up when needed.