Nikon d800 commander mode flash

[hellobob]

It seems as though when Nikon d800 is set in commander mode and Nikon strobe sb 910 is set on remote, the flash from camera body is lighting the subject and firing the sb910. How should this be set so that on body flash only fires the off body flash and does not effect light on subject?

[hellobob]

DISREGARD, PLEASE. INCORRECT QUESTION.

DISREGARD!

[Andrew Garrard]

:-) I assume you found the "commander only" menu option for the internal flash. That said, because the remote flash triggering does rely on the internal flash outputting light, you may still see some illumination of nearby subjects, especially in second curtain flash mode. If you get this, there's an "SG-31R" that fits in the hot shoe and blocks the flash so only infrared (which actually triggers the remote flash) gets through. HTH.

[rodeo_joe1]

Or you could use radio triggering, which is far more reliable.

[jillmorton]

It seems as though when Nikon d800 is set in commander mode and Nikon strobe sb 910 is set on remote, the flash from camera body is lighting the subject and firing the sb910. How should this be set so that on body flash only fires the off body flash and does not effect light on subject?

I've been using radio triggers for a while, so am rusty with Nikon's optical wireless. Good luck.

[ben_hutcherson]

f you get this, there's an "SG-31R" that fits in the hot shoe and blocks the flash so only infrared (which actually triggers the remote flash) gets through. HTH.

 

There's also the somewhat "overkill" option of the SU-800, which is basically an SB-800 without the flash head-it has a tiny little tube behind an IR filter. The advantage of this route is that the SB-800/SU-800 commander mode does a lot more than the one built into the camera. At the end of the day, though, I probably wouldn't buy an SU-800 as an SB-800 can be had for peanuts these days, can be thrown up over your shoulder at low background to give a nice bit of fill for your off-camera strobes, or fitted with an IR filter to function just like an SU-800.

[rodeo_joe1]

There's also the somewhat "overkill" option of the SU-800, which is basically an SB-800 without the flash head-it has a tiny little tube behind an IR filter. The advantage of this route is that the SB-800/SU-800 commander mode does a lot more......

And it will still let you down unexpectedly when the slave flash can't 'see' the commander flash for any reason. I've even had this happen when the slave was right beside the commander.

 

Radio triggers are the answer, as Nikon has now finally realised and switched to - in their own totally botched and kludgy way.

[Andrew Garrard]

Yes - once I had to pay for an accessory to trigger the flashes anyway, I figured out may as well be a radio system. The internal flash could be ignored as a trigger at least as much as an SU-800 would, but at least it was "free", didn't make the camera substantially bigger, and was always to hand.

 

When I first switched to Nikon, they were known for having "good flash", mostly due to AF-D. Now they have one radio triggered flash, a clunky and overpriced two-part trigger that removes the use of wired remotes, and no accessory for triggering older speedlights. To my mind they've basically ceded the flash manufacture to third parties like Nissin, Yongnuo and Godox. Canon are, for what it's worth, innovating a bit more.

[Hector Javkin]

I agree that radio control is better but, to control the slave flash without having light from the on-board flash light your subject, get one of these: [link] for about US$12. It blocks the visible light, but lets the IR that controls the slave go through.

 

. . . Sorry, didn't see Andrew's reply above. +1 to what he said.

[Andrew Garrard]

(To be fair, the trigger flash is pretty dim, so I generally don't use my SG-31R.)

[Hector Javkin]

I don't know where mine is, but could probably find it.

[mike_halliwell]

If any of you have IR enabled cameras you'll probably have noticed that most domestic and gallery lighting is now IR free, ie 'dark' with the increased take up of LED lighting.

 

I guess this would mean better flash-peak detection by the slave receiver....:)

 

Still pretty hopeless outside in the sunshine though.:(

 

RF, the best (current) way to go. Personally, I'm a Yongnuo fan.

[CvhKaar]

"RF, the best (current) way to go. Personally, I'm a Yongnuo fan

 

Agree , but i switched from Yongnuo to Catus, because Yongnuo becomes more and more problemating to upgrade, and is a Yongnuo set is dedicated to one camerabrand, where as Cactus proves to be more versatile, the same transmitter/receiver can be used for multiple camera brands.

 

Link : CCactus V6 II HSS Wireless Flash Transceiver| CACTUS

Edited March 10, 2020 by c.p.m._van_het_kaar

[mike_halliwell]

the same transmitter/receiver can be used for multiple camera brands

Sadly the multiple camera brands bit is the problem.... camera brands NOT flash brands

 

If I was starting out, it's a no brainer, but it appears not to support Yongnuo 560s. which is my cluster flash of choice. Half a dozen will light a church nicely.

 

The newer YN 560-TX Pro does seem to have broadened it's own flash and camera brand compatibility.

 

To quote from their website... esp the last line.

 

YongNuo have announced the YN560-TX PRO, TTL and HSS enabled Radio Transmitter, and next generation 560 PRO Radio System, which will finally integrate the YN560 and YN-622 Radio Systems into one compatible system.

 

The new 560 PRO Radio System also now features auto sensing radio Receiver modes for Canon, Nikon, and Sony camera systems

 

[CvhKaar]

Sadly the multiple camera brands bit is the problem.... camera brands NOT flash brands""

 

Yes, flash brands, controlling a Nikon and a Canon flash from a Nikon camera(d500) same time works for me with the the V6 II version ( the previou versioun had some trouble with SB600 flashes..)

 

In adition you can also share a flash setup among multiple photographers at the "same time" ( obviously its nice to wait for eachother in this setup..)

 

Major features:

 

1. Cross-brand TTL
   works across Canon5 , Fujifilm, Nikon, Olympus, Panasonic, Pentax and Sigma flashes all at the same time;
   
   
2. Cross-brand wireless manual power and zoom control with HSS support
   of Canon, Fujifilm, Nikon, Olympus, Panasonic and Pentax flashes;
   
   

[rodeo_joe1]

Sadly the multiple camera brands bit is the problem.... camera brands NOT flash brands""

And that, ladies and gents, is why I still use old fashioned Auto Aperture or fully-manual flash control.

 

I can fit my YN RF-603N triggers to Nikon, Sony, Canon or any other brand of camera or flash and have them trigger with complete reliability and interchangeability - apart from Minolta's "everyone else is out of step except me" lunatic hotshoe.

[mike_halliwell]

now features auto sensing radio Receiver modes for Canon, Nikon, and Sony camera systems

I just noticed a bit of weaselling with that quote when I saw the actual unit comes in 3 flavours... yup, Canon, Nikon and Sony.

 

It works with everyone's flashes (kinda), but is body specific... Doh!

[Andrew Garrard]

Full TTL support might have made Yongnuo more interesting to me when I was shopping for my D850. I went with Godox because at the time they had (I think) the cheapest full TTL solution that was compatible with Nikon's; Yongnuo was cheaper, but only for fully manual flash. Given that I don't use flash much, having the camera take the first stab at it for me is useful. Plus being able to set relative flash exposure from the hotshoe point (if not the camera body) is useful - when I've used flash it's often in a small room, and physically accessing the flash guns involves clambering. I have some passport photos in which I look kind of flushed because I've been jumping up and down accessing flash heads. McNally probably doesn't have this problem.