Nikon User Thread

If you have a d50 then I would ONLY get the sb-800... or at the very least get the sb-800 first and if you later want another flash then add the sb-600 to that... the sb-800 has all the same functions as the su-800 which is the "commander unit" which you would add to the d50 to give it wireless flash functions... but the sb-800 does everything the su-800 does (watch the "b" and "u"... one is a commander and flash, the other is commander only)... so anyway the sb-800 will command other flashes and also operate as a flash itself at the same time.

Why would you want this? Because the cam can be key or fill and the other flash can be key or fill... and you can set them accordingly... so that you can light a shot intelligently... and easily, thanks to Nikon's CLS lighting system which works fantastically well, by the way!

The sb-600 has no commander functions... so if you get an sb-600 you could always add an sb-800 later and then get the functions... but I would get the big boy out of the way early. Why not? You'll have 2/3 stop more punch... and yes, for an extra $100 I don't consider that to be a premium markup! Why? Because how much does a 2/3 stop faster glass cost? Like 3-10x the price? So that's my take on that...

It's always better to have more light then you need and use less, then use all the light that you have and need more.

Just like my camera choice I was seriously torn on this one... but the sb-800 comes with a couple nice extras in addition to having over 25% more max power... and if it's popping flashes at the same guide number as the sb-600 then it's the same speed... so anytime you hear somebody say that the sb-800 pops flashes slower then the sb-600 (from actual experience) then you'll know that the shots taken with the sb-800 will be better exposed... because at equal power they are equal speed on recycle time.

The other reason 2/3 stop more light matters is hopefully you'll graduate to some improved techniques like shooting flash through a frost gel... or in a flash soft-box... or calculated bounce... and in all those situations flash power is reduced... so it's not like you have excess flash anyway. Talk to any pro and they'll tell you that most dedicated flash units like that already don't have enough power... so what's a hundred bucks? I guarantee when you sell it you'll get a higher percentage of your money back... and if you don't ever sell it then you must have made the right choice. ;-)
 
so the sb-800 it is for my D50.
So i still need the su-800 to make my flash wireless right? or can the sb give me that also?
I also want a softbox or frost gel to give it the vignette look to some shots.
Thanks
 
The sb-800 will listen to everything your d50 tells it WHILE IT'S MOUNTED ON THE HOTSHOE OF THE CAMERA... and then the sb-800 will instruct another flash to either key or fill while the sb-800 will do whatever you want. So it's ONLY wireless AFTER the first one is attached to the cam. This is why I went with the d70s... the cam itself transmits the info that the sb-800 would normally transmit. If you get an sb-600 you get none of that... it's simply an on-cam flash until you get an sb-800 or the su-800.

My point was that the su-800 is just the instruction transmitter that isn't in the cam, but again, it's the same instruction transmitter that's in the sb-800 flash... which is why I see zero point in paying $250 for the transmitter, which can't add any light... instead of getting an sb-800 for $300 and then if you want it to just instruct other flashes it can do so... or it can also flash and instruct the other flashes... but with the d50 you must have either the sb-800 flash, or the su-800 transmitter to send info to another flash wirelessly.
 
DSC%5F0030.JPG


paper%20weight.JPG


these are some pictures i took with the d50 using the 18-55mm. the second one was tweaked in photoshop. im not sure what the exact f-stop, shutter speed or length the pictures were taken at.
 
Last edited:
cheezweezl said:
my head hurts....
Click to expand...

Jim... those shots are very nice. I've said it a million times... the d50 looks like film. Plain and simple... I love the look of d50 shots. I wish I didn't have to decide between images that look like that or the features of the d70s. That was a sucky decision and it still is for me because I really wanted the d50 output... but in the end I wanted the d70s features more. Still, even though I got a d70s, I'm sticking to what I said before... and that is that the d50 is capable of producing the best images.

Cheez... it's not hard to understand really... this is it:

sb-800 = flash with commander mode (means will run other flashes + operate as a flash itself)

sb-600 = flash which can be controlled by the sb-800 wirelessly, but can't control other flashes wirelessly.

su-800 = just the transmitter portion of the sb-800. A small box that goes in your hotshoe that you would use in addition to either the sb-600 or sb-800 so that you can do wireless, off-cam flash.

d50 = does not have commander abilities built into the cam, so if you want to use a flash off-cam wirelessly then you need a transmitter... either by getting the sb-800 flash, which has one built-in... or by getting the su-800 transmitter. I think the su-800 is pointless when for just a little more you get the sb-800 which gets you the transmitter/control functions AND it's a flash itself... part of the advantage of the CLS Nikon flash system is you can run multiple flashes which will all work TTL... means perfect key/fill/bounce lighting no matter how many flashes you end up with... it's pretty common to eventually have at least 2 because of all the stuff you can do. With the d50, since there's no way to control a flash wirelessly... you are more likely to end up with two flashes... with at least one of them being the sb-800, because if you want to run a seperate flash wirelessly from the cam then it's either that or get the transmitter for nearly the same money.

Putting it simply... if you have a d50 and you want off-cam wireless flash you have three choices... either (2) sb-800, (1) sb-800 transmitting and (1) sb-600 receiving, or su-800 transmitting and either the sb-800 or the sb-600 as your off-cam flash. With the d50 something with an "800" in the model number has got to become part of your camera before you can run a seperate flash wirelessly.

This is one of a very few reasons why I went with what I feel is inferior picture quality on the d70s... it's got this control built in... wireless flash control as part of the cam, with nothing else to add to it, was a strong influence on my final choice. In my opinion, if you know you want to get a flash, then this makes the d70s $150 cheaper then the d50. Because once you write down all the things you bought to get wireless flash ability there will be that much $ difference in each camera system... but as I said in the beginning... I'd still rather have the d50 images, I just thought it was more economical to go d70s for the features I wanted.
 
MattinSTL said:
sb-800 = flash with commander mode (means will run other flashes + operate as a flash itself)

sb-600 = flash which can be controlled by the sb-800 wirelessly, but can't control other flashes wirelessly.

su-800 = just the transmitter portion of the sb-800. A small box that goes in your hotshoe that you would use in addition to either the sb-600 or sb-800 so that you can do wireless, off-cam flash.

This is one of a very few reasons why I went with what I feel is inferior picture quality on the d70s... it's got this control built in... wireless flash control as part of the cam, with nothing else to add to it, was a strong influence on my final choice. In my opinion, if you know you want to get a flash, then this makes the d70s $150 cheaper then the d50. Because once you write down all the things you bought to get wireless flash ability there will be that much $ difference in each camera system... but as I said in the beginning... I'd still rather have the d50 images, I just thought it was more economical to go d70s for the features I wanted.
Click to expand...


hmm. It's a shame then we are limited to the sb-800's power WITH transmitter, when with the D70, the wireless function makes the flash's redundant. They should make the sb-700, with the 2/3 more power of the 800 but with no transmitter. Do we (D70/D70s owners) really need any flash unit that has a transmitter then?

Also, I have two Photogenic Powerlight 1250's I bought from the school when it closed. I would love to use the D70's built in transmitter to help trigger them. Any ideas for a workaround?


Jim, the second pic is fantastic. There's something about glass and refraction that is always pleasing to me. great work.
 
Last edited:
You can actually use any flash wirelessly with any camera... as long as that flash has a SLAVE mode... which is a common function in any decent flash... but the problem is that you either have to do a lot of experimenting (taking lots of trial pictures) or else you REALLY have to know what you're doing... because a flash in slave mode is a dummy... it will pop when it sees another flash pop... and it's so fast that for sake of the picture it was at the same time... but all that flash can do is pop at whatever you set it to illuminate.

With either the sb-800 or sb-600 as your wireless flash off cam... it still maintains communication with the cam and will be set according to what you're setting on the cam... you never have to go over and mod the flash settings... as you change the cam it automatically changes the flash. Pretty cool huh? This is the WHOLE reason I put so much emphasis on this regarding my cam choice. You get full, intelligent TTL control of that flash and if you change the setup the flash follows your new setup... very, very slick.

Arguably the sb-800 is still worth it as a main flash on the d70 because it's still got more power then the sb-600... and the transmitter functions of the sb-800 are more complex then the transmitter functions of the d70(s)... for any "normal" person the transmitter still does plenty... basically the transmitter of the d70(s) won't show any limitations until you get into very very serious flash photography with 3 or more flashes. With the Nikon CLS system it's possible to carry a bag of 6 or so flashes... set 'em up... then from one sb-800 tell each flash what you want it to do... and you can set them in seperate "zones" so that all you have to do at the main control flash is enter the zone you want to modify. Let's say you're shooting a fashion model entering a ballroom... you may have your primary flash (key) set to illuminate her on the staircase, with a fill/rim behind her to elminate a shadow on the wall... then another pair of flashes are set to give the other areas of the picture depth and detail... but one flash is too hot, or you change your mind and want to trim out the depth... you can do ALL that control... up to virutally unlimited zones and flashes... from that one primary sb-800. This way you simply take the picture, check it, and trim as needed. Like I said, while that's incredibly cool... for us "normal folks" I don't think we need that much control... so yes, if you have a d70(s) then you could get a sb-800 or skip it. The sb-800 has more complex transmitter functions, but the d70(s) will still let you so a simple off cam flash and meter it TTL... no matter if you get the sb-600 or sb-800.

Many professional flash shots use the cam position as fill, and the off-cam flash as key... so having one flash on-cam anyway is fairly common.

So if a person gets an sb-800 and an sb-600, or (2) sb-800... then the d50 is once again the cheaper overall system... with (in my opinion) the better overall pictures.
 
Insane DOF.

that 50mm lense at 1.8 has a shallower depth of field than anything I've had my hands on yet.

gracie2.jpg


Modified and cropped, but the focus wasn't enhanced.








plant.jpg


CC'd, but no blur.



:thumbsup:

Not specatcular pics, but that lens is awsome.
 
i'm no expert, but here's a shot i took w/ my d70 w/ 70-300mm. it's not the best zoom lens, but what the heck...it does the job for now.

dsc_0243.jpg
 
I'm diggin' the heck out of that cat photo... that's perfect lighting. Is that real light or flash?

...and Jumalian... welcome to the forum... that is a great pic you have there too... it's weird but I've always liked a nice back like that... and the context of the whole photo is cool... nice definition of the subject and place, yet pleasing blur/bokeh.

Man I am so glad that I finally got one of these cams.

Edit: Well I'm mad at myself for not discovering this BEFORE I ordered my sb-800 flash... but if any of you guys have been wanting a flash for your nikon... and you've been thinking "sb-600 or sb-800"... go to this link HERE and you'll see that B&H has a secret sale running on the sb-800 for $294.95... so combine that with the $25 Nikon mail-in rebate... BAM! $270!

At $270... if you factor in the extras that are included with the sb-800... which total about $30+... then you're looking at a real difference of about $70 between the sb-600 and sb-800... and that's a bargain in my book. My sb-800 arrives today and I didn't even get the deal I'm telling you guys about... :-(

I entered "psmay" to find the secret page... and then linked it directly... so if it looks like this is a normal price then try going to B&H home and searching using "sb-800"... it'll be $20 higher.
 
Last edited:
Well hopefully tonight I will be able to upload some raw and uncolor corrected photos from the graveyard and what not. Because I only have a small camera bag the only glass I am bringing with me today is going to be the 50mm 1.8 and the 18-70mm D70 kit lens. I am going to leave the 70-200mm in the hotel.

I wish I had bought a larger camera bag.

I'm really digging that beach shot of the back. The bokeh in this shot is really nice and adds to the overall feel of the image. Rapier, that cat shot is great, but the DOF is almost too thin for the image. You might want to step that lens down to increase the DOF and be able to get the whole image. The image itself though is super sharp and looks great, I just wish both of the eyes were sharp.

You could literally sell cat pictures, call it Matt's Pussy Pics, that cat is just that photogenic.

OK, off to the funeral and then to sit shiva with the family. Baseball games tomorrow night!

-Jeremy
 
Care to back up that statement? A link perhaps?

I've read links for the d80 in Chinese, etc... and they're a little "hoax-ee" to say the least... like d2h bodies with a "d80" badge on them... etc. etc.

Is this from "thom hogan predicts" referring to a possible d80 in August?
 
Last edited:
Thanks for the replys on the cat pic. Ideally, yeah, the whole thing should have been in focus, but I was so overwhelemed with the DOF that I wanted to display that, insetad of proper composition.

That was total natural lighting. She had just ingested a rather large amount of catnip, and between bouts a manic craziness and outright spaced out stoned, she is somewhat calm and managable. That was me on my belly outside the back door, the light from the evening sun coming in from slightly behind, her also on her belly, lookin past me through the open sliding glass door outside. The background in the pic is the carpet and couch, which are so blurred they look like a gradient.
 
I don't want to reveal my sources or even hint at it because it would be obvious where it would have came from. But I will say it's pretty much the D200 at a very affordable price. Nikon is going after the consumer market (As is Sony with they're new DSLR) with this D80. Also expect it to use SD cards instead of CF.

Later,

Bob



MattinSTL said:
Care to back up that statement? A link perhaps?

I've read links for the d80 in Chinese, etc... and they're a little "hoax-ee" to say the least... like d2h bodies with a "d80" badge on them... etc. etc.

Is this from "thom hogan predicts" referring to a possible d80 in August?
Click to expand...
 
Love that cat photo Rapier. My 50mm is my most used lense.

Side note, someone here pointed me to a CS2 update to suport raw .nef files for mac but the path they show on intalling the plug-in file is different from the path i see on my comp. Can anyone tell me what folder the plug-in file is supossed to go in?
Thanks,
 
I learned a couple of photography lessons today...

Graveyard pictures in almost 100 degree heat while wearing a suit and tie = not a good idea

People look at you funny after a funeral when you are wandering around outside taking pictures

People get pissed when I sing along to Stevie Nicks in the car, given that I can't sing and it's freaking Steavie Nicks

I have no idea how to do a good sillouhette shot. I adjusted the metering and everything but can't do it.

Any ideas on the last one will be very helpfull.

Also, I'm going to B&H on Sunday... I figure with all the money I've spent there over the years it would be cool to actually check the store out. I'm excited about that.

-Jeremy
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top