[ryanyboy]

Hi folks,

I've just posted this little problem on the Nikon Cafe forum but I thought I'd post it here as well as I know many of you are old-hands with Nikon gear.

I have come across a problem with my d700 and SB-900 flash. What I'm trying to do is set the built in flash to commander mode thus making the sb-900 fire wirelessly. Now I understand that I can do this without the built in flash from firing - right?

But, it doesn't matter what I do the built in flash continues to fire even though I've set it to comander mode with the "--" option selected.

Can anyone please tell me what I'm doing wrong or have I misunterstood the whole process?

Thanks in advance.

Ryan

[Litch]

Hi There,

Yes the Built-in flash will fire, in so sending info to the remote SB900, but it doesn't effect the final captured image. Only the light from the SB900 will be captured.

It's the same for my D80 and SB800's set to remote.

Litch

[puddleduck]

Hi

The flash will always fire, but it doesn't contribute to exposure (much)

You can manually reduce the power, but it will still need to flash to trigger your SB-900.

-Andy

[ryanyboy]

Thanks fellas. I think what I've been seeing is the pre-flashes that you both describe. It's just that they are so close together (obviously) that they seem simultaneous.

Thanks for clearing it all up. I'm determined to really get into strobism in 2009 and I think/hope/pray that the Nikon CLS will give me better results and more freedom than the Canon flash system which I'm far more used to.

Thanks again

Ryan

[Bristol Pete]

Originally Posted by ryanyboy

Thanks fellas. I think what I've been seeing is the pre-flashes that you both describe. It's just that they are so close together (obviously) that they seem simultaneous.

Thanks for clearing it all up. I'm determined to really get into strobism in 2009 and I think/hope/pray that the Nikon CLS will give me better results and more freedom than the Canon flash system which I'm far more used to.

Thanks again

Ryan

I think that they are pretty similar. CLS has some more control but both modes offer clever ittl thinking and filling based on what you take away. Nice one mate. Good luck - takes it to another level.

[ryanyboy]

Originally Posted by Bristol Pete

I think that they are pretty similar. CLS has some more control but both modes offer clever ittl thinking and filling based on what you take away. Nice one mate. Good luck - takes it to another level.

Hey - flash master Petey Pete!!

I wondered if you might be able to help here. Here's one for you:-

For my second/third flash units - More SB-900's or SB-800's or even SB-600's??

Just been looking at the prices of each unit and there's about £50 between the 800 and 900 but the 600 is about £140 cheaper than the 900.

I suppose it comes down to the flashes' features and power but perhaps you could shed some light. And if you have any left I might be able to take them off your hands

Ryan

[Bristol Pete]

Far from a flash master!

The SB800 has been discontinued so any stock now would be a good buy. The 600 makes a good secondary flash. I used two as side lights and had no issues what so ever.

I think I have sold my flash set up in its entirety tonight, waiting on a call. Will let you know either way as would prefer to shift it in one go to keep postage and payment fuss to a minimum.

[ryanyboy]

Cool! Ta for the tips. I'll wait for you to give me the nod if the speedlites are still available

[Some Bloke]

Cool Nikon video at:-
http://www.demonoid.com/files/?category=0&subcategory=All&quality=All&seeded=0&e xternal=2&query=nikon&uid=0&sort

Look at Monday 24th Nov
Another one at Wednesday 4th July

eBook at Friday 12th Dec

[amgard]

The pre-flash sends info as others have said above... what is interesting is that the info is received via an infra-red sensor in the slave guns, so you can place a infra red filter over the built-in flash to reduce the effect of the pre-flashes on exposure.

In fact with the SB-R1 macro flash kit an infra-red filter is included for just this purpose. It's part # is SG-3IR and can be bought separately for about £8