SB800 on M2? on Hexar AF? no prob?

[doitashimash1te]

Next Thursday night I will do some night photography of a partly torn down school downtown. I'm gonna use my M2 & VC40/2 and Hexar AF as well, both loaded with K64. In pitch dark, I will shoot at a distance of about 60 feet max. Now for the first time I will try this with slide film... So I'm gonna need a flash unit on top of my camera's. With the SB800 on full power that should be okay even with 64ASA film and both lenses opened at f/2.

The thing is, I never tried my Nikon SB800 before on these cameras, so I'm reluctant; and have some questions:

-Could the SB-800 possibly fry the electronics of my Hexar?
-Will it "fit" properly on the hotshoe of both cameras? (The contacts on the flash look a lot more complicated than those on the cameras.)
-I guess it's pretty obvious that I should use it on manual on the Leica, but which automatic modes could I use on the Hexar?
-Will the M2 synchronize with the SB800?
-Should I use my M6TTL instead of the M2 and if so, how (which mode on SB800) and why? (I'm scared sh1tless to damage the electronics of that one!)

Thanks in advance for your thoughts.

Rene.

 

[pvdhaar]

I've used Nikon speedlights on the Hexar-AF. The flash ready contact on the Nikon speedlights corresponds to that on the Hexar, as does the center contact. The Hexar reacts the same as with the HX-14, although you must factor in the difference in guide number in P-Mode. This is possible if your Hexar supports manual selection of flash guide number (if not, the Hexar pages on photo.net detail how to reprogram your Hexar). Although it works, it's no fun, as the SB's are so heavy they make the Hexar topple upside down all the time..

The weirdest part is that it doesn't work the other way round. Neither the HX-14 nor the HX-18 fires on a Nikon AF-SLR. The F75, D50, etc. do see the ready light, but fail to trigger the Konica HX flashes.

As far as the modes on both the Hexar and the SB are concerned,
the speedlight modes that you can use are limited to non-ttl, so basically it's M, A and GN. Be aware that the Hexar in P-mode expects a flash with a fixed guidenumber, so put the speedlight in M. No need to blast it full power, you can dial it down to 1/4 and set the Hexar to match.

As far as the Leica's are concerned, I would not put the SB on a M6TTL Leica. The contacts are definately not compatible.

For my Leica M4 (which is about the same as an M2), I use a pc to hot shoe adapter which I put in the accessory shoe and mount the SB in that. It triggers just fine. I can use the SB in A, M and GN mode, manually setting the flash output or the aperture.

 

[pvdhaar]

Oh, I just realise that the M4 has two contacts on the back. The correct one is the pc (flash symbol) connector, not the bulb connector (bulb symbol) which times differently (too early)..

 

[doitashimash1te]

Thank you very much Peter. I will leave the M6TTL at home, and since I like simplicity, I guess I'll just use the M2 (leave the Hexar at home) and the SB800 in A-mode. I'm confident now that the results will turn out to be just fine.

 

[laptoprob]

Get the cable to connect the flash to the correct port on the back of your M2. Then do the math. No electronics needed. Works like a charm!
good luck!

 

[payasam]

You'll need spot-on exposure with slide film.