Nikon SB-900 Speedlight
The SB-900 with its whopping $400 price tag has been out for a few months now, and the verdict is in. To see how $400 can improve your photos, read on.
My take? DON’T get an SB-900, instead buy a couple of SB-600s and have money left over for lightstands and other accessories. Here’s why.
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The SB-900 offers a lot of features, but what’s the real advantage? After several months’ worth of shooting with this flash on my D300s and D90, here’s the way I see it:
- Power. The SB-900′s guide number of 131 (ISO 100, 50mm, feet) is not even a full stop greater than the SB-600′s 118. It’s actually less than the SB-800′s 144. No real advantage here.
- Wireless Control. The SB-600 can’t do this; but the speedlights built in to the D300 and D90 (not to mention D200, D80, and D70) can. The SB-900 can control multiple groups of flashes; but who really needs this?
- Streamlined Controls. Never having used the SB-800, I can’t say how much of an improvement this is over that unit. But I’m not crazy about the SB-900′s wheel, that’s for sure.
- FX/DX detection. If you shoot FX (D3X, D700, or D3) then this could be handy. It can also be handy for DX shooters who want to squeeze every drop of power by adjusting the zoom level to match the 1.5x crop factor of their lenses. But it’s easy enough to do this manually, especially if you’re using a prime lens (when you only have to do it once).
- Expanded zoom coverage. OK, 12-200 in DX-format (really 12-135) and 17-200 in FX is an improvement over the 24-85 of the SB-600 or the 24-105 coverage of the SB-800.
- Light distribution patterns. This is a unique feature that can be very useful. Centered-weighted and Even lighting patterns do what they sound like, contracting or expanding the lighting pattern without the need for snoots, grids, or other light modifiers. But it’s also one of those pesky features that you can easily forget to reset, which can then screw up your subsequent shots. On the other hand, it’s hard to forget that snoot.
- Firmware updates. This is a capability Nikon should have added long ago, given the cost of their speedlights and the rate at which they were rendered obsolete (anyone remember the SB-50DX?). It remains to be seen whether this will truly result in lengthening the service life of your SB-900; check back when the D4 is released in another 18 months or so.
- Gel filters. The included gels and filter holder is nice; I consider this a must-have for the SB-600, for which these must be purchased separately. The automatic identification of the presence and type (within limits) of colored gel is handy, but only the D3X, D3, D700 support this feature. I’ve found that Auto WB works just as well as the appropriate preset, however, when using gels under fluorescent lighting.
All told, for the price of a single SB-900, you can have yourself a pretty effective two-light wireless studio kit with a pair of SB-600s. The choice is yours!
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7 responses so far ↓
1 Steve // Dec 11, 2008 at 11:00 am
Well, I think I made a mistake. I was unsure SB-600 or 800. This past weekend I picked up the 800. I didn’t consider weight, extra size. Hmm. Oh well I have it. But now I am wishing I had a full gel pack,. The included gels are limited. The diffuser will need to be replaced by something better. So that add on is not so hot. I now wish I had the 600 and a stand plus umbrella. I was impulsive.
2 John // Dec 11, 2008 at 4:28 pm
Being able to control the output of groups of flashes is one of the best features ever! I can set up groups of one, two, or any number of flashes then dial down (or up) any flash, or group of flashes that I want without having to step out from behind the camera, and I can adjust my flashes as the ambient light changes. Even in a 2 flash setup, one flash can be group A, the other group B. From there, you can easily set up lighting ratios up to a 6 stop difference between each flash. Need a hair light or a fill light? Add another flash (or 2 or 3 or 100) and call it/them group C and you can control that output as well.
Yes, you can set up your flashes manually to do the same thing, but I find that the wireless solution saves me a ton of running around so I’m not wasting my client’s time.
I haven’t used the SB900 as I’m quite satisfied with my SB800′s. Granted the 800′s are probably a slight bit more cumbersome to setup, but for the difference in dollars, I’m not complaining about 2 or 3 extra pokes of a button.
The SB 600′s are amazing as remote units, but can not be used as commanders, and as such don’t allow you to adjust your lighting groups.
The SU-80 works great as a commander though and can be picked up for around $250.
3 The Sports Photo Guy // Dec 11, 2008 at 4:48 pm
The new cameras (D300, D700, D90) with built-in flash can control two groups (A/B) by itself. I honestly think the number of folks with one of these cameras who really need the SB-900/800 is dwindling.
4 John // Dec 11, 2008 at 10:02 pm
Yup! Pretty hard to disagree with you there… a 900 or 800 really becomes a want vs. a need.
I personally WANT the convenience of being able to adjust my flash power on the fly right up top on my hotshoe… darting in and out of the camera menu is a little sluggish… but I can’t disagree with you on the camera menu’s ability to get the job done. And an SB600 is certainly enough flash for the majority of situations. At the end of the day, a system that works reliably is all that really matters. If what you’re shooting isn’t going to go running away on you while you mash a few buttons, then what you’re suggesting is absolutely true.
5 Steve // Dec 12, 2008 at 6:48 pm
If you head over to the Strobist, you will see them recommending lower cost manual flashes for almost everything. To get folks started better to have a fully equiped flash equipment bag then to have expensive studd but not enough capability. So it definitely becomes your application, desire for convenience, cost, etc. I think it is clear, a low costflash can work extremely well and also be lightweight. What I am finding with the SB-800 after a week is I use the manual settings quite a bit. Especially to lower the power and make 6 fps possible for 6-9 shot bursts. The far reach of th SB-800 is nice, however, I have not used an SB-600, so difficult to compare. But it would surprise me if the SB-600 would not work well for me given Chuck uses these regularly for high end sports shooting. Chuck probably has to stay farther back than I do also, since I am covering my sons’ sports and I can basically stand anywhere.
6 The Sports Photo Guy // Dec 12, 2008 at 7:14 pm
David Hobby (The Strobist) offers a wealth of information on using simple, manual flash-based setups to produce sophisticated lighting results. Others swear by the ultimate level of wireless control offered by top-end flashes like the SB-900 and SB-800.
I like to think I follow the “happy medium” by taking advantage of the ease and simplicity of Nikon’s Creative Lighting System without having to shell out a ton of money. I’ll share my specific technique for sports lighting – wrestling, in particular – in a future article.
7 Steve // Dec 13, 2008 at 3:42 am
Would also be great to hear about which sports allow you to use flash and when.
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