Nikon's SB-400 flash

Westside guy said:

Hey all,

I currently have the Nikon SB-600 flash. It's certainly a very nice flash; but it's kind of big for those times I want to walk around with just a camera and 1-2 lenses.

The SB-400 was originally released as "a new flash for the D40" - but is there any reason it wouldn't work well on a larger camera, such as a D300 or a D3 (yeah, like I'm buying one)? Mainly I'm wondering if there are issues with shadows from a longer lens if I'm not bouncing the flash.

Thanks!

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I use a SB-400 on the d300 once in a while and here's my take - its nice to have if you want to bounce off the ceiling, worthless if you don't. That's because the onboard (pop up) flash on the D300 is nearly as strong as the sb-400. I don't actually own the 400 (I have the sb-600) but my dad has the sb-400 and he uses it because you can tilt it up for bounce flash in family portraits. He uses it with a d300 as well. I do see a bit of shadow with bit lenses that have lens hoods.

Edit - my dads favorite part about it (the real reason he uses it) is because he hooks it on an off-camera cord and uses it for off-camera lighting.

My 2c - if its a weight issue preventing you from using the sb-600, I'd skip the sb-400 because your onboard flash is going to do just as well and save some more weight and $$$. With the d3, thats a different story because it has no pop up flash and you need something... the sb400 might be a good fit there.

Westside guy said:

Mainly I'm wondering if there are issues with shadows from a longer lens if I'm not bouncing the flash.

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No, I'm using it with my D80 and it performs flawlessly. It's much, much stronger than the built-in flash (I doubt the D300's pop-up flash is much stronger than Guide Number 12 (in metric units, of course)) and it is useful to bounce it.

I haven't seen any shadows whatsoever from my 80-200 Nikkor (that qualifies as long, right ).

It is very small (which is why I bought it despite having the money for an SB-600) and it is plenty strong for normal indoor photography. I was pushing it a lot when I was taking pictures of a wedding inside a church. But for parties or family gatherings, it's perfect. Even if you had a stronger flash, you would not need more power (and the exposure would be the same).

It recycles quite quickly, I can usually take about four pictures in a row at normal working distances. I highly recommend it, it's is a lot better than any pop-up flash.

It's not on a par with the SB800 (or soon-to-be SB900, I'm sure), but it works fine on my D3. It's a nice flash to take along mainly because it's so small and light. I've not had shadowing on either my 17-35 f/2.8 or 28-70 f/2.8...never used it with the 70-200.

It won't participate in CLS, but it has faster cycling, it's bounce-able, and won't shadow on most lenses where the pop-up will. And it's $110.

OreoCookie said:

No, I'm using it with my D80 and it performs flawlessly. It's much, much stronger than the built-in flash (I doubt the D300's pop-up flash is much stronger than Guide Number 12 (in metric units, of course)) and it is useful to bounce it.

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Quite wrong, the D300 pop up flash has a Guide number 17 when at full power

By default, the d300 onboard flash is just as strong as the sb-400 but lacks the upwards tilt/bounce capability.

taylorwilsdon said:

Quite wrong, the D300 pop up flash has a Guide number 17 when at full power

By default, the d300 onboard flash is just as strong as the sb-400 but lacks the upwards tilt/bounce capability.

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GN 17@ISO 200, that sounds quite strong. It reduces to a normal GN 12 at ISO 100, though. The SB-400 has GN 21 at ISO 100 or GN 30 @ ISO 200, so it's stronger and recycles much faster than any pop-up flash I've used. Certainly worth the $100.

OreoCookie said:

GN 17@ISO 200, that sounds quite strong. It reduces to a normal GN 12 at ISO 100, though. The SB-400 has GN 21 at ISO 100 or GN 30 @ ISO 200, so it's stronger and recycles much faster than any pop-up flash I've used. Certainly worth the $100.

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Agreed. Like I said, I think its a good buy as a flash. I just think that if weight is a concern, the built in flash will do an adequate job.

taylorwilsdon said:

Agreed. Like I said, I think its a good buy as a flash. I just think that if weight is a concern, the built in flash will do an adequate job.

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The SB-400 is very small and not really heavy. The batteries should be about as heavy as the flash. It fits into an unused space in my camera bag -- which is why I've bought it. If I went for the SB-600, I'd either have to get a larger bag or leave my 80-200 zoom at home

Westside guy said:

Yeah I think that qualifies. It's good to know; thanks.

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I have never used the flash with bazooka zoom and lens hood, though