Can't use SB-800 as master. Why?

[adriana_iorga]

<p>Hi there,</p>

<p>This is my first post and I'm pretty new to off-camera flashes so bear with me, please :)<br>

I've owned a SB-800 for quite some time now and I wanted to improve my photography using off-camera flashes. So I bought a SB-600 to use as a remote on a stand to the SB-800 which will be mounted on my camera. The problem is that when I mount the SB-800 on the camera the "master" function dissapears in the menu. What am I doing wrong? Searched the internet but I still can't find an answer. Sorry if this is silly but i need some help :)</p>

<p>Thanks in advance!</p>

[garypeck]

<p>Hard to help without knowing what camera you're trying to get setup.<br>

Master menu disappears on camera or strobe?<br>

g</p>

[adriana_iorga]

<p>Sorry, I'm using a D90. Master menu disappears on strobe.</p>

[robert_hooper1]

<p>I've never done what you are attempting, Adriana, but maybe <a href="http://www.daveblackphotography.com/workshop/0408.htm">this link will help</a>.</p>

<p><a href="http://74.125.155.132/search?q=cache:Erb-JevncPwJ:www.nikoncls.com/SB-800/sb800_cls_master.html+SB-800+master&cd=3&hl=en&ct=clnk&gl=us&client=safari">Another site</a>.</p>

<p> </p>

[robert_hooper1]

<p>It would seem that you have to mount the powered off SB-800 to the powered off camera, turn on both camera and flash and then work your way through the SB-800 menu to the Master mode. </p>

[adriana_iorga]

<p>Looked at both links and did what you said (mounted the powered off SB-800 to the powered off camera, turned on both camera and flash) but I still get only "off", "remote" and "SU-4" options in my strobe' menu.</p>

[Matt Laur]

<p>How do you have the exposure set up on the camera??<br /><br />And: while you're seeing that "off" option, actually choose it. That might shake it out of slave mode, and show you the Master and Master (RPT) choices.</p>

[ShunCheung]

<p>The D90 is iTTL compatible and it all should work. See this thread and get the Nikon quick reference guide: <a href="http://www.photo.net/nikon-camera-forum/00QqKG">http://www.photo.net/nikon-camera-forum/00QqKG</a></p>

[adriana_iorga]

<p>All manual, f/4, 1/100, ISO 400. Chose the "off" option. Did nothing :(</p>

[jnina]

<p>Hello Adriana!<br />To set up your SB-800 as a master flash you just go to the wireless menu and highlight "master" and press "SEL".<br />On the camera you need to go to: Menu - Custom Settings - Bracketing and Flash - Built in flash - Commander.<br />That should do the trick.</p>

[adriana_iorga]

<p>Thanks, Jose but, unfortunately, that's exactly my problem. I don't have a "master" option to select. It's not showing.</p>

[Matt Laur]

<p>Out of curiosity, what lens do you have mounted?</p>

[adriana_iorga]

<p>Nikon 17-55</p>

[dbcooper]

<p>Just brainstorming ideas:</p>

<ul>

<li>by any chance is the camera's flash control set to 'off' (mono LCD on top by the shutter button)? </li>

<li>have you set the D90 to Commander mode without mounting the SB-800? Did that work correctly? </li>

<li>is there a value assigned to the onboard flash (TTL), or is it set to provide Commander flashes only (---)?</li>

<li>does the popup flash function correctly as a Commander?</li>

</ul>

<ul>

<li>are you trying to set the SB-800 while mounted on the D90? If so, does 'master' appear after powering it up when it's off the camera?</li>

<li>have you tried a reset of the SB-800?</li>

</ul>

[adriana_iorga]

<p>1. can't see anything wrong on my lcd<br>

2. if you are referring to using to built-in flash as commander then yes, i have tried it and it works correctly<br>

3. tried all the options here, still no change<br>

4. yes<br>

5. master appears when sb-800 is not mounted and disappears when i mount it<br>

6. just now, no change</p>

[douglas lee]

<p>Can you try on another camera? Very odd behavior. (Like you didn't know that.)</p>

[glenjo]

<p>What happens if you remove the flash from the camera, set the the flash to MASTER and put it back on the camera? All this with powering flash and camera on/off correctly. My flash stays in MASTER mode both on and off camera.</p>

[david_ralph1]

<p>Adriana,<br>

It's not you, it's the SB-800 menu design. It feels like an engineer with sado-masochistic tendencies acted out in creating the menu structure for the SB-800 rather than a photographer who wanted to set up artificial light once in a while. The shot would be long gone for most of us without a cheat sheet, and even then it could be history by the time one gets an SB-800 set up.</p>

<p> This is the current link for a quick guide that Shun mentions. I had a terrible time getting Nikon's site to respond for the link today, finally getting a response with Safari, but the with Nikon's site hanging up with Firefox and IE. The file is also posted to numerous third party sites in Google. The pamphlet is designed to give you the step by step directions, with photos of the LCD display solely to set up slave and master for wireless, and the menu location in recent cameras, but not older wireless capable, like the D70. I found it so necessary, that I printed it and then had it laminated in clear plastic so that it could live in my bag for a very long time.</p>

<p>http://www.nikonusa.com/Assets/Common-Assets/PDF/FastTrack_To_WirelessSpeedlights.pdf </p>

<p>If that does not work, perhaps I could find some way to send the file to you, but it is a couple of megs. </p>

<p>Good luck, <br>

Dave Ralph<br /> </p>

[tom_boston1]

<p>Like Matt said, try selecting the "Off" option. But I reproduced the behavior you describe a little bit.</p>

<ul>

<li>Set unmounted Flash to Remote.</li>

<li>Flash Off. Camera Off.</li>

<li>Mounted flashed.</li>

<li>Turned flash on.</li>

<li>Went to menu to select Master. It's not there because the camera is off. </li>

<li>But with the Master option not showing, switching the camera on/off did not make the Master option show.</li>

<li>Selected Off on the flash menu. Master became visible.</li>

</ul>

<p>Kind of freaky. Moral of the story, if you've previously used the flash as a remote, make sure you switch it out of remote before mounting it on the camera.</p>

<p>A simpler option is to select Master on the flash menu before mounting the flash to the camera.</p>

<p>If the selected Master option disappears when you mount the Flash, check for dirty or incomplete contacts on the hot shoe and the bottom of the flash.</p>

<p> </p>

[zack_zoll]

<p>I get this with my D70 sometimes. Try unlocking the flash and wiggling it around a bit. You should hear a little whirring noise when the contacts connect correctly, and then the master option will appear. Then lock the flash down.</p>

<p>If I were to guess, the SB-800 has gotten enough use that the shoe is slightly loose, and it's not making contact on the D90 well, If can't detect an iTTL camera connection, the Master mode won't me in the menu, At least, that's usually my problem.</p>

[torben.palm]

<p>Hi,<br>

When I mount the SB-800 on my D300 the master option also disappears. But if I select the option on the flash before mounting it on the house, master option is present. Maybe we see something similar here?</p>

 

[adriana_iorga]

<p>@Glen What happens is that when I mount it on the camera the master menu with all the options for different groups disappears.<br>

@Tom thanks. I tried all of that but no change.<br>

@Zack tried that. no change. The contacts connect correctly and there was no change if I wiggled it<br>

@Torben it's not like that for me :(</p>

<p> </p>

[tom_boston1]

<p>Your SB-800 can correctly switch to Master mode, with the Flash Group controls, when off the camera. Yet, when you mount the flash onto the camera, the flash leaves Master Mode even when you turn the camera on.</p>

<p>This behavior is consistent with the foot of the flash not making correct contact with the hot shoe on the camera. (I simulated the condition by mounting an SB-800 with a small piece of paper inserted in the hot shoe so that two of the pins could not make contact.)</p>

<p>Look at the bottom of the flash. There is one locking pin that is recessed when the lever is in the unlocked position. There are also four other spring loaded pins. These spring loaded pins are what carry the signals between the flash and the camera.</p>

<p>Inspect these pins. It should be easy to apply slight pressure to any of these pins and they should readily spring back. Look for all four pins to behave evenly. The SB-800 and SB-600 probably have identical foot designs so your SB-600 should be a good example of how the pins are supposed to act.</p>

 

[scott_harris4]

<p>I just recently had this happen to me. The problem was the flash was not all the way inserted into the shoe. Hope this helps.</p>

[adriana_iorga]

<p>thanks for all your help! I'll get it checked as soon as possible!</p>