Nikon SB-910 Speedlight Unit

Product Information

I miss the dedicated LCDs of flashes like the SB-600, which are much sharper, cleaner and clearer than the less-legible dot-matrix displays of newer flashes like this SB-910 and the SB-700. More light flexibility. You can zoom further (to 200mm), the flash correctly sets to the FX or DX angle of view, gels used in the flash will be corrected for in white balance by the latest cameras, but most importantly you can change the "shape" of the light from highly concentrated to evenly distributed (with a setting in between). This is actually the "big" thing. You have to shoot with the different settings to understand just how much we've needed more light modification from flash. Now that we have it, we'll want more. In terms of Guide Numbers, things haven't changed a lot. For FX cameras, the GNs tend to be very slightly lower for the SB-900 than for the SB-800 for equivalent settings, though the ability to focus the flash head and the 200mm head position can give you a boost if you're not trying to light really wide areas and prefer to limit the flash coverage. Also, there's a bit more power at the very widest setting, probably due to changes in the diffuser. From a practical, functional level, I'd rate this all as a wash. The ability to shape the beam is actually more beneficial in actual shooting than a bit more power would be, in my opinion. Bottom line: don't expect a light level boost over an SB-800. By many professionals, it is considered the most advanced flash unit when compared to its compact size. The Speedlights.net says that "for many professional photographers this flash is still the best hot shoe strobe out there today" with smaller size than the successor SB 900, but has bigger Guide Number 38 over 34. [5]

After some preliminary use, I don't think there's any doubt: get an SB-900 if you're heavy into flash (and retire your SB-800 to dedicated remote wireless use). Things that are new or changed over the SB-800: Best flash interface yet. Tiny quibbles aside, Nikon nailed the controls. Faster to set, easier to set, easier to understand how it's set. Bingo. This Agreement is governed by and shall be construed in accordance with the laws of Japan without regard to its conflicts of laws principles. In the event a dispute arises under or in connection with this Agreement, you hereby consent to personal jurisdiction of Japan and waive any objection that such forum is inconvenient. You further consent to service of process in any action arising from this Agreement by regular mail or other commercially reasonable means of receipted delivery. If any provision of the Agreement shall be determined invalid for any reason, the remaining provisions shall not be invalidated and shall remain in full force and effect. This Agreement sets forth the entire agreement and understanding between you and Nikon, and supersedes and replaces any other agreements relating to the subject matter of this Agreement. The failure of any party to insist upon strict performance of any of the terms or provisions of this Agreement, or the exercise of any option, right or remedy contained herein, shall not be construed as a waiver of any future application of such term, provision, option, right or remedy, and such term, provision, option, right or remedy shall continue and remain in full force and effect. The headings of the sections of this Agreement are inserted for convenience only and shall not constitute a part hereof or affect in any way the meaning or interpretation of this Agreement. Except as otherwise expressly provided herein, the provisions of section 3 and section 4 together with any provisions that by their express terms apply to periods after termination of this Agreement, shall survive termination of this Agreement for any reason. Non-TTL "Auto aperture" Auto mode: the SB-910 is smart enough to read the ISO and set aperture from your camera, and then uses its own sensor to set the exposure. GN 59ft, 18 m @ 27mm) Nikon's latest smaller shoe mount flash unit which replaces SB-400. It is less powerful than SB-400 and uses AAA-size batteries. SB-300 is derived from the SB-N7, the same flash unit previously released for the Nikon 1 "multi-accessory port," instead of the ISO 518:2006 hot shoe. Both SB-300 and SB-N7 have a variable angle 'bounce' head up to 120 degrees but has no horizontal swiveling.

Speedlight is the brand name used by Nikon Corporation for their photographic flash units, used since the company's introduction of strobe flashes in the 1960s. Nikon's standalone Speedlights (those not built into the company's cameras) have the SB- prefix as part of their model designation. Current Speedlights and other Nikon accessories make up part of Nikon's Creative Lighting System (CLS), which includes the Advanced Wireless Lighting, that enables various Nikon cameras to control multiple Nikon flash units in up to three separate controlled groups by sending encoded pre-flash signals to slave units. In all practicality, the SB-910 runs a long time and recycles immediately as it's actually used in its automatic modes. Almost no one buys SB-910s to run at full-power in manual mode all the time, but I still feel scammed. As of November 2011 the SB-900 was replaced by the SB-910 which is technically very similar to the older model. There only are minor changes like the push button on the battery lid, semi-transparent function buttons, redesigned soft case, different accessories and re-adjusted thermal cut off circuit to prevent premature shutdowns. Regarding power level, looks, inner mechanics and PCB design both units are identical. All SB-900 and SB-910 units are made in Japan. Its guide number is 38meters / 125feet at ISO 100 and 35mm, with a maximum range of 58m when adjusted at 105mm. Distance-priority manual flash: you tell the SB-910 the distance (it reads ISO and aperture from your camera), and it calculates and sets the manual power level to use before you shoot.

Lenses – Should have no marks on the elements andoptically clear. There may be light dust present that will not effect theimagery. The SB-910 also has a huge zoom head range: 17mm to 200mm on FX, as well as a 14mm diffuser. This means that you'll never have to worry about using the diffuser, even with the 16-35mm zoom on FX. (These aren't exact, I'd shoot my 14mm lens without worrying about the diffuser indoors, too.)These are the number of full-power dumps Nikon claims you can get if you wait as long as 30 seconds for it to recycle. In actual automatic use, you'll get thousands of flashes depending on your distance, since less power is used for each pop.