# Best Nikon flash?



## Lawrence (Mar 11, 2003)

I'm looking into getting a flash for my Nikon D80, Just can't make up my mind over which one,
The two that I've been looking at are the Nikon SB-400 and the Nikon SB-700.
(Forget the Nikon SB-910, It's way above my budget)

The SB-400 is a very nice basic flash also very handy and portable with a 2-AA battery usage,
It's nice for a quick out of pocket pop on type flash, It even has bounce capabilities.

The SB-700 on the other hand uses 4-AA batteries but can be used on the camera in commander mode
and also off the camera in wireless slave mode, That in itself increases the value of the flash for creative shots.

Costs are $149. for the SB-400 and $350. for the SB-700

I wish I could afford them both

Thoughts?


----------



## Joker Eh (Jan 22, 2008)

i was going to respond quick with the sb-910 but then read your entire post. Go for the 700, always get the most you can afford.


----------



## Lawrence (Mar 11, 2003)

Joker Eh said:


> i was going to respond quick with the sb-910 but then read your entire post. Go for the 700, always get the most you can afford.


Yeah, I'd love to get the SB-910, But it costs more than I paid for my Nikon D80.
I guess I'll see if I can get a SB-700 then, Thanks for the input.


----------



## Joker Eh (Jan 22, 2008)

ya you gave all the reasons for getting the sb-700, otherwise I would save my money on a flash.


----------



## Lawrence (Mar 11, 2003)

Joker Eh said:


> ya you gave all the reasons for getting the sb-700, otherwise I would save my money on a flash.


I paid $539. for my Nikon D80 at Henry's, It was an "Open Box",
Couldn't resist buying it, Brand new and never been used.

But, I need a flash for doing creative shots.

The SB-400 is pretty limited and can only do basic shots,
But the SB-700 can do creative off camera shots and on camera shots.
So I guess I'm really just answering my own question as to which flash to buy.


----------



## The Doug (Jun 14, 2003)

I went the other way. Five or six years ago I was geeking out over flash specs, trying to decide what to get. I was about to plunk down at least $500 but saw the SB-400 in the store (I think it was just introduced), thought oh what the heck - and bought it on the spot. Great little unit and I'm very happy with it. Sure I might get a more expensive / higher model at some point but right now I simply don't _need_ one with commander & wireless capabilities etc. The petite SB-400 gets the job done nicely. Whatever you get, enjoy and shoot shoot shoot.


----------



## Lawrence (Mar 11, 2003)

The Doug said:


> I went the other way. Five or six years ago I was geeking out over flash specs, trying to decide what to get. I was about to plunk down at least $500 but saw the SB-400 in the store (I think it was just introduced), thought oh what the heck - and bought it on the spot. Great little unit and I'm very happy with it. Sure I might get a more expensive / higher model at some point but right now I simply don't _need_ one with commander & wireless capabilities etc. The petite SB-400 gets the job done nicely. Whatever you get, enjoy and shoot shoot shoot.


I might just buy the SB-400 anyways and wait to see if I can get my hands on the older
SB-600 at a later date, Maybe on ebay or some old stock retailer.
The SB-600 had a better LCD screen on it and up until a month ago could have been had for
$229. at B&H Photo refurbished, The only drawback on it was the on/off switch,
It's a hold the button in affair instead of the on/off switch that is on the SB-700.

At the moment, I only really need a flash for meet ups with friends,
All my street shots will be without a flash and my creative shots can wait just a little bit longer.

So long as I don't have too high of a ceiling to bounce off of for a bounce flash,
The SB-400 should be fine, Also using just 2-AA batteries instead of 4-AA batteries is a bonus.


----------



## kps (May 4, 2003)

I think a used SB-600-800 would suit a budget conscious guy like yourself much better than the 400.

If you're going to spend money on an external flash get something with some useful features and capability. The rotating/tilting flash head alone is worth the price of admission.


----------



## Lawrence (Mar 11, 2003)

kps said:


> I think a used SB-600-800 would suit a budget conscious guy like yourself much better than the 400.
> 
> If you're going to spend money on an external flash get something with some useful features and capability. The rotating/tilting flash head alone is worth the price of admission.


You may be right, I may have to cave and get a SB-700 for $349. Can$ here in Canada.
There is a refurbished SB-600 on the US ebay for $249., But they won't ship to Canada.
I don't have a US mail box and even if I did, They only ship to confirmed Paypal addresses.

Oh well, Just as well I suppose, I'm kind of skittish when it comes to older stock,
I don't want to get stuck with something that might end up being a lemon.

Cheers!


----------



## Joker Eh (Jan 22, 2008)

Lawrence said:


> You may be right, I may have to cave and get a SB-700 for $349. Can$ here in Canada.
> There is a refurbished SB-600 on the US ebay for $249., But they won't ship to Canada.
> I don't have a US mail box and even if I did, They only ship to confirmed Paypal addresses.
> 
> ...


Well, lol, while looking at this thread yesterday there was an ad from nextag I think that had the sb-700 for $310.


----------



## Lawrence (Mar 11, 2003)

Joker Eh said:


> Well, lol, while looking at this thread yesterday there was an ad from nextag I think that had the sb-700 for $310.


Yeah, They are coming down fast, I think Nikon is going to discontinue them.
It might be the battery door issue, But really, It's not really that bad of an issue.

The battery door is just another one of those knack type things,
You either know how it works or you break it because you don't know how it works.

In any case, It's not the best battery cover design, Pity really.
Here's an unboxing of the SB-700 and a comparison of the physical size.
(This Youtube author also does a battery door test as well in another one of his videos)





+
YouTube Video









ERROR: If you can see this, then YouTube is down or you don't have Flash installed.


----------



## SoyMac (Apr 16, 2005)

I have a 910.
Expensive! (and I'm not one to cheap-out on stuff)

It's as easy to use as Windows 95 software. That is to say, the controls are unintuitive, kludgy, and I pretty much always use the time-consuming "Manual" mode and read from the book to get the light I want, because it's so hard to set up for various conditions.

Nikon should really take a long look at how Apple does User Interface.


----------



## absolutetotalgeek (Sep 18, 2005)

Depends on what you're defining as creative. You should go rent a couple of them, 600, 700, 800 etc, which ever ones are available. You might find the 700 a little light for doing off camera work, again depends on what you want to shoot. 

Before making any 'pricey' purchase of decent or pro equipment, go rent it. Try it out, make sure it's what you want. I've never gone wrong with that advice given to me by a 'pro' years ago.


----------



## okcomputer (Jul 18, 2005)

Either go really cheap with a third-party job for $150 or plunk down the cash for the one you really want/need. 

With prices falling, it would be hard to turn around sell the lower model in a year when you realize you want to upgrade.

I bought the Canon 430EX II, but two years later I picked up the 580EX II. Much more power, it can be a master, it has a bounce card, its controls are way easier to use, etc.

I have kept the 430 because I can use both wirelessly with my 60D, but the 580 is the only flash I use on its own.


----------



## eMacMan (Nov 27, 2006)

Aside from everything else, doubling the battery pack will either double the number of flashes per set, or increase the effective range by about 40%. As previously mentioned makes things like bounce flash possible or easier.

All depends on how you intend to use it the majority of the time.


----------



## Lawrence (Mar 11, 2003)

eMacMan said:


> Aside from everything else, doubling the battery pack will either double the number of flashes per set, or increase the effective range by about 40%. As previously mentioned makes things like bounce flash possible or easier.
> 
> All depends on how you intend to use it the majority of the time.


I'm using rechargeable NiMH batteries, They seem to be working fine
I have 2 sets of 4's of them, So they should last me quite awhile no matter what I'm doing.
Also the battery in the camera has an amazingly long life span before needing recharging.

But I am glad I bought the Nikon SB-700 instead of the SB-910,
The SB-700 makes the camera a bit heavier but not too unwieldily that I can't handle it,
I image the SB-910 would be even more unwieldily with its even bigger footprint size.

I'm happy with the SB-700, It's got a lot going for it,
Micky mouse simple to use in auto mode, But it can also be custom configured if I so choose.


----------



## SoyMac (Apr 16, 2005)

Lawrence said:


> ...
> I image the SB-910 would be even more unwieldily with its even bigger footprint size.
> 
> I'm happy with the SB-700, It's got a lot going for it,
> Micky mouse simple to use in auto mode, But it can also be custom configured if I so choose.


Glad you're happy with the SB 700, Lawrence!
For on-camera use, I think you definitely made the right choice.
I mount my 910 on a stand off-camera, and use the camera as master and the 910 as Slave.
As I mentioned earlier, the 910 is a complicated beast, and I'm still getting the hang of its settings. 
But I must admit that I'm starting to get happy with the results.

Show us some of your shots?


----------



## Lawrence (Mar 11, 2003)

Just waiting for one more lens and I'll be all set for my next expedition into the urban jungle,
I'm waiting for the NIKON AF 70-210 F4-5.6 D lens that I bought used for $199.
Should get it hopefully by wednesday next week.

Excellent reviews on this old metal lens.

I'll see if I can upload some shots from the 50mm f/1.8 in the next little while.


----------



## Veej (Feb 16, 2006)

SB-700 would be the best way to go, it will give you room to learn and grow, and don't worry about the SB-900 it's not that much better than the 700. I professionally shoot with and use SB-600, I have 3 of them and 1 SB-800.

BTW if anyone is interested I got a D200 with an 18-70mm 3.5-5.6 lens up for sale on Kijji for $600.  Link



BTW did you get a lens with the D80 for $500?


----------



## Lawrence (Mar 11, 2003)

Veej said:


> SB-700 would be the best way to go, it will give you room to learn and grow, and don't worry about the SB-900 it's not that much better than the 700. I professionally shoot with and use SB-600, I have 3 of them and 1 SB-800.
> 
> BTW if anyone is interested I got a D200 with an 18-70mm 3.5-5.6 lens up for sale on Kijji for $600.  Link
> 
> ...


Thanks for the reassurance, So far I'm loving it, It takes great photographs,
The lens that came with the D80 is a Nikkor AF-S 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6G ED II DX Zoom
I haven't used it yet (It's got a plastic mount), I prefer to use the heavier metal mount D type lens.

That's a good price for a Nikon D200, Shame that I'm no longer looking for a camera.
My brother in-law has a Nikon D200 and he loves using it, He takes it everywhere.


----------



## Aceline (Feb 21, 2012)

SB-600 the best Nikon flash ever


----------



## JCCanuck (Apr 17, 2005)

Aceline said:


> SB-600 the best Nikon flash ever


+1. Had a choice to get either another lens or a flash. Got the SB-600 which has excellent reviews. Using the SB-600 indoors and outdoors (low light or bright day shots) my good shots ratio has increased exponentially. Easy to use and love the swiveling capabilities.


----------



## Lawrence (Mar 11, 2003)

JCCanuck said:


> +1. Had a choice to get either another lens or a flash. Got the SB-600 which has excellent reviews. Using the SB-600 indoors and outdoors (low light or bright day shots) my good shots ratio has increased exponentially. Easy to use and love the swiveling capabilities.


Tried to get one, But they were sold out,
Settled for the SB-700 instead, Glad I bought it though.

It's been fantastic so far, Love the organizer case that comes with it too.
The case fits in my Lowepro Nova 180 AW camera bag perfectly.


----------



## Aceline (Feb 21, 2012)

SB-600-800 better then 400


----------

