Remote high-speed flash sync on D300

[joshodonnell]

For my bird photography I use a Wimberley Sidekick and I have the flash bracket

that allows me to mount my SB-800 off camera up above the lens. I use an SC-17

to connect the flash to my D300.. I also use it in high-speed sync mode (FP)

most of the time. I find that sometimes the SC-17 can be an annoyance (yes it's

minor but still), so I'm considering picking up an AS-10 to mount my flash on

the bracket and then use the SB-800 in remote mode with the built-in flash as

commander. Will the FP mode still work when I'm using the SB-800 as a remote

flash?

[frank_skomial]

"the SB-800 in remote mode with the built-in flash as commander." - Yes. Both as CLS remote, and also as CLS controlled remote FP flash.

 

At least it does work like that on D200. While D300 has certain flash features disabled, ... so, you try and tell us how that worked for you. I returned D300 after one week of trying and did not test all fatures... but perhaps it will work like on D200.

 

In order not to scare off birds I would recommend shooting in SC-4 mode. Multiple flashes or pre-flashes could possibly scare little beasts, but then againg you tell us how friendly you became with your birds. Feed them frequently.

 

I have pictures taken with food in one hand, the litle bird sitting in the palm of extended left arm, and picture taken with camera held in right hand - sounds unbelivable ?

[joshodonnell]

Well I got it figured out... When choosing the settings in Custom Setting E3, the on-camera flash needs to be OFF, which is indicated by two dashes (--). The on-camera flash will still fire the necessary flash to trigger the remote flash, however the output from the on-camera flash is minuscule and should not contribute to the overall exposure of the image (I tested the output and it is considerably less than when the flash is manually set to 1/128 power).