Remote flash with Nikon SU-4 mode?

[fiatlux]

I'm not a flash fan but when I use flash with my Nikon kit, I usually use one or several SB800 in remote, controlled by my D300's internal flash.


Since M8's TTL flash does not allow wireless and does not seem terribly good, I was wondering about using a small "auto" flash like the Metz 20C2 (which has bounce capability) and slave my SB800 in SU-4 mode*.


Anybody done that?


* In SU-4 mode, slave flashes start and stop in sync with the main flash. This was Nikon's first attempt at wireless TTL which stopped working as soon as they introduced pre-flashes. Advantage is that slave flashes in SU-4 mode can be controlled by any legacy TTL or automatic flash, Nikon or not.

 

[pvdhaar]

Anybody done that?

Sort of.. with mixed results.

I've used the SB-800 in SU-4-A mode as a slave to several SLRs (film and digital), while cancelling the pre-flashes. For film SLRs this meant setting the camera to M or center weighted (depends on model). For the Nikon D40/D50 the on-board flash can be set to manual from the menus.

What all attempts had in common, was that the amount of light that the SB-800 sent varied a lot between consecutive shots of the same subject, and that's putting it mildly.. One shot it doesn't even register, the next shot of the same subject is completely blasted.

My guess is that the on-board flash circuitry that's designed for the small pop-up flashes has a hard time handling the enormous amount of light the SB-800 provides, and quenches the on-board flash sometimes too early and sometimes too late..

After a while, I went with setting the SB800 in SU-4-M mode. I'll dial in the manual output on the SB800 and the consistency between shots is 100%. It's of course easiest with the D40/D50 where I can chimp the overall result.

Obviously now that I have a D90, which supports CLS, I'm using the SB-800 in CLS remote mode. This makes off camera flash a breeze, as you'll probably also found out from shooting with your D300.