D200 i-TTL Flash Follow Up

I shot a Sweet 16 last night with a D200/SB600 + Stofen. The reception

hall was dark with almost no ambient light. The flash mode was

iTTL-BL, set to -.3. Worked fine. The only thing to look out for is

reasonably accurate focusing. The flash system makes significant use

of the distance information from the lens. If you focus on something

in the background it will come out properly exposed. This isn't very

hard to do with the D200 either; the AF sensor area is larger than the

indicators in the viewfinder. The attached image is a straight out of

the camera JPG.<div></div>

So are you loving that camera or what? Any other tips you have on it?

 

I notice most people have the SB-800, what's the difference between that and the SB-600?

"most people have the SB-800, what's the difference between that and the SB-600?" - big difference, many thortcuts in SB-600. E.g. lower power, not a commander, lower range if used as a remote, no stand-by mode, pretty much underpowered so useless in bounced mode, accessories, more... it was already itemized earlier.

Looks underexposed and in line with what I've seen from a friend shooting the sb-800 in i-TTL on the D70s, and incidently what happens with ETTL II, any white in the frame will cause up to a stop of underexposure.

From my perspective it is properly exposed. Any hotter and the guy in the forground would start losing detail, and the main subject (Sweet 16 girl) is right on with good flesh tones. Also I set the camera to give a somewhat flat look. This gives me more flexibility in post production and comes out better when printed. Printing tends to bring up the contrast. A file really needs to be tweaked differently for printing of viewing on a monitor.

 

I bought the SB600 before I bought the camera when I broke my SB28. At that time I was shooting film and primarily using a bracket mounted Quantum. Shoe mount flashes were for a little outdoor fill and back up. Knowing I would be going digital I bought a flash that was compatible with the latest Nikon flash system. However, it turns out that the Quantum T2D + proper iTTL flash adapter isn't as exposure consistent as the Nikon flash. It's also makes for a big, heavy rig. I will probably add a SB800 to use as my main flash and use the SB600 for backup. I'll continue to use the Quantums for "studio type" location lights.

 

Oh yes, I do like the camera.

Do you think it is better or worse than other combos? I just got a d200 and have yet to invest in flashes/lenses etc. for it (I sold off my Nikon kit some years ago).

 

Thanks for you insight, Bruce.

Nikon D200 with SB800, or Nikon vs. Canon? The D200/SB is fine. A D2X is probably better because of the difference in the AF systems. The D2X is also more than twice as much money and bigger and heavier. Nikon/Canon? I think it really comes down to what gear you already have and control interface. There's all sorts of trade offs of this brand vs. that brand. I had to add very little gear (body and one wide lens) to go digital with a film backup. I much prefer Nikons controls to Canons, but I'm used to them. How a camera handles is a big deal to some people and not others. It's important to me. There's not much difference image quality wise between the brands.

I'm fully invested in a Nikon system, but I'm beginning to wish I had gone the Cannon route. The main problem at weddings is that darned 1.5x multiplier. Fine if you shoot wildlife, but hell if you need a wide lens.