Just as we were starting to get used to and taking full advantage of the brilliant and powerful Nikon SB800 Speed light flash, those jerks over there at Nikon decided it would be funny to throw us a curve ball and introduce its new big brother to the masses in the bigger (and we mean BIGGER… Check out the images to compare sb800 vs. sb900 size below!) and more powerful Speedlight SB 900 Flash
Nikon SB800 vs. SB900 (right)
While the Nikon SB800 is still a top of the line unit, the Speedlight SB-900 Flash has been out for more than a month now and some early Nikon SB-900 reviews are starting to surface that it can be worth the switch, of course, depending on what you intend to use it for. Below is some pictures to help those whom are already familiar with the Nikon Speedlight flash series, compare, the huge size difference of the new kid on the block vs the previous flagship SB 800 unit, as well as a chart to help you fully Compare Nikon’s SB800 vs. SB900 details side by side. Stay tuned for a more in-depth analysis and report on the differences and comparisons between the Speedlight’s SB-800 and SB-900 as well as a guide to help novices and professionals choose between buying the SB800 versus the SB900 depending on what your primary purposes are… Will you want to make the switch and get the more expensive future proof unit? Or stick with the now relatively cheap, proven and fantastic SB800… Stay tuned, article coming soon – for now enjoy the pictures and comparison charts:
I had finally decided to replace my old falling apart Nikon Speedlight SB-800 and I had a tough decision in front of me. I was going to keep my two SB-600′s as off-camera strobes but was it worth it to spend the extra $110 on the Speedlight SB-900 or would the SB-800 do the trick again? My final decision was yes, there were some key features that were new on the SB-900 that I thought would be worth the extra money for me. That said, after owning it for a few months there were definitely some things about the SB-800 that I liked more but I’m still happy with my purchase because the features I was interested in work great. I’m just wondering if I should have stuck it out a bit longer with my SB-800 before making the purchase because since I bought it in August for about $470 it has come down to about $425 now in October.
The original reasons I bought this new unit after reading initial reviews online and comparing the sb 900 versus the sb 800 speedlights, was the greatly improved interface, improved zoom, improved recycle time, and the fact it doesn’t take a fifth battery among a few other things:
New interface of Nikon’s SB900 Flash
The new interface makes it so much quicker to do anything. There’s no holding a button to turn it on or off, you just turn a dial. There’s no cycling through menus to control other flashes with the master mode, you just turn a dial. I absolutely love this, it really does make a difference if you are shooting a wedding and you need to switch back and forth from using the remotes to just the on-shoe flash.
Better Zoom on SB-900 Speedlight
As for the improved zoom, Nikon’s SB-900 flash does give you a bit more control with how it can concentrate the beam a bit more than the SB-800. The 900 also has settings to create different light patterns which can be nice if say you want nice and even lighting for a portrait shot but I find that evening out the light pattern is a lot like zooming out all the way and concentrating the light pattern is similar to zooming in all the way.
Loving the recycling time of the Nikon SB900
The recycling time is a bit faster than the Speedlight SB800′s if you are using lithium or NiMH batteries but you need to watch out because this more powerful flash is easier to overheat (not quite as easy as I’ve read some people comment in other sb900 speedlight flash reviews before, as long as you aren’t going snap-happy you should be fine) and once the flash overheats there is a thermal protection system that will shut the whole thing down until it’s good and ready to start again.
The no fifth battery is another part of the flash that I absolutely love. I was bewildered as to why Nikon thought having an odd number of batteries was a good idea. Why not give it some extra juice and throw in a sixth? Why need it at all? They have obviously done well with their R & D to bring us a more powerful flash that runs on fewer batteries. Keep in mind that the space saved by no fifth wheel pack is kind of lost by having an all around bigger flash.
Better is ussually smaller in technology.. oh well!!
It’s almost a shame they didn’t maybe come out with a SB-850 that had the improvements like no fifth battery, the new menu system, and the better zoom but put them in a flash the same size as the SB-800 and maybe left it with the same power so maybe it would be harder to overheat. I really don’t think there is anything too wrong with this flash but I think they left a big hole in their flash line-up only coming out with this flash and not a smaller less expensive alternative. Since when does new technology take up more space than the old one???? large size is definitely one of the most common cons in nikon sb-900 reviews you will read and I agree, I thought things were supposed to get smaller as technology improved :’( Read more »
Stuff.tv has a great little hands on look at 3 of the 7 new Autumn 2008 additions to the highly popular, stylish, and functional Nikon CoolPix family. Below is a short video preview of the Nikon Coolpix S60, Coolpix S610, and Coolpix P6000 digital cameras… Thanks to stuff.tv and YouTube for the video that although not an in-depth review by any means, is a great short clip demonstrating the look and feel of these sure to be bestselling cameras of the upcoming holiday season. Ruth Green takes us on a tour of each camera’s main features and talks a bit about what makes each unique and different to each other and their older coolpix counterparts, enjoy the video and stay tuned for more in-depth video reviews of the p6000, S610 and S60 CoolPix compact digital cameras in the weeks to come:
This is a great zoom lens from Nikon. With the vibration reduction the pictures are sharp and the zoom range is great. This may be the only lens that you need from wide angle to a medium telephoto. I’m very happy with this lens. It works like magic with my D700, I would highly recommend both of them.
The majority of accessories one might need besides batteries are included in the box, with some popular options not included being pretty much limited to after-market diffusers, educational material, scenario dependent equipment (such as underwater equipment) and different types of batteries and battery packs for squeezing the most juice out of your Nikon SB-900 Flash in intensive shooting scenarios.
AS-21 Speedlight Stand: Basic stand for use with the Nikon SB900 speedlight, no popular aftermarket accessories are present nor is there a really vital need. Replacement parts run about $8 online if you need a replacement.
SW-13H Diffusion Dome: Basic diffuser & bounce adapter to produce Omni-directional lighting, replacement parts run about $10-15 with some popular alternate choice for specialist coming from Gary Fong’s Lightsphere-II series, Sto-Fen Omni-Bounce 900, & Opteka Flash diffuser.
SS-900 Soft Case: Protective travel case for tucking your Nikon SB900 speedlight away and keeping it free from dirt, damage and organized.
Nikon SB-900 Batteries & Battery Packs:
One of the more important purchases you will make along with your SB-900 Flash is the type of batteries you will use, there are multiple options and different types of battery options will change the way your speedlight acts. Below is a chart showing some of the differences obtained using different types of batteries:
Battery Type:
Min. Recycle Time
Min. # Flashes
full output to ready light on
Alkaline-manganese
4.0 Sec
110
4.0-30 secs
Lithium
4.5 Sec
230
4.5-120 sec
Oxyride
3.0 Sec
125
3.0-30 sec
Ni-MH (2600 mAH)
2.3 Sec
190
2.3-30 sec
Nikon SD-9 High Performance Battery Pack:
Better with Nikon SD9 pack
Although by no means cheap, the Nikon SD9 Battery pack will help you really squeeze out the max juice from your flash, allow for more firing at increased power, and keep you running longer. The main benefit of the Nikon SB-9 Battery pack is that it can take 4AA sized batteries or 8AA sized batteries in separate compartments, with indication lights to let you see what compartment is in use and charge level / readiness displayed. This is a major difference compared to SD-8A battery pack which only takes 6AA sized batteries in a single compartment without the indication factor, the Nikon SB9 power pack takes batteries of the following types:
1.5V LR6 (alkaline)
1.2V KR-AA (NiCd)
1.5V FR6 (lithium)
1.2v (Ni-MH)
Nikon School Speedlight Guide DVD:
Awesome Nikon SB900 Guide
One of the best speedlight resources out there, the Nikon School Speedlight SB900 Educational DVD goes over many basic, medium, and advanced theories and practices and will teach you how to take full advantage of the SB-600, SB-800, and SB-900 Flashguns along with Nikon’s Creative Lighting System for some amazing results. Professional photographers in the Speedlight School SB-900 Guide take you on a tour with the speedlights and teach you tons of techniques and theories that will undoubtedly be useful to anyone of any skill level. Read more »
Bythom.com, an incredibly popular photography and Nikon Gear website, did a great early Nikon SB900 review, and written by Thom Hogan, an author of several books and a hugely respected writer in the community, it is a straight forward, well written and unbiased review of the Nikon SB-900 that any photography interested in the Nikon Speedlight SB 900 Flash should take a read over before deciding if they want to purchase this unit or perhaps another less expensive model.
Ratings and Summary of ByThom SB900 Review:
Features: 5 / 5
Performance: 4 / 5
Build: 4 / 5
Value / Price: 4 /5
Weaknesses of Nikon SB900 Speedlight:
Getting quite large In everyway the new SB-900 is larger and bulkier, with increased size and weight you better have room in your case.
Weird cost cuts: Plastic 1/4″ tripod mount? No multiple cabled TTL or TTL modes for film bodies? No D-TTL? No dedicated head style switch?
Strengths of Nikon SB900 Flash:
Best Interface to date: With the tiny problems aside, the Nikon SB900 is more powerful, versatile, and easy to control and flexibly use then ever before.
Styled lighting patterns: The new ability to control light concentration is an exceptional feature. Indeed, it makes and gives you even more control.
Wireless Capabilities: All the wireless abilities you need and want including SU-4 mimicking… finally in a product that can be set quickly and easily with the improved interface and controls.
Many little tweaks: All of the little touches, fixes, addons and improvements make the Speedlight SB 900 a great step forward. With faster recycle times, improved range on swivel and zoom range, dedicated gel filter that helps control white balance correctly, the list of tweaks and improvements to the SB-900 compared to the SB-800 is long and appreciated!
One of the new features of the Nikon SB-900 is in its ability to quickly and easily be updated via firmware updating when a compatible (at date: D3, D300, D70, D700) camera is attached. This allows Nikons engineers a new level of freedom to make adjustments, fix bugs, tweak features and add whole new features to the Nikon Speedlight SB900 hardware. Recently Nikon released the SB-900 firmware v5.02 which addressed a couple of issues early customer complained about and fix up the speedlight to make it an even more powerful and versatile flash. The two most significant changes in SB900 Firmware 5.02 are:
Now while using the SB-900 Flash in uninterrupted i-ttl shooting mode, images that were received right before firing ceased would be commonly overexposed. This problem has been corrected and metering precision along with number of times flash fires have been improved upon as well.
The Nikon SB-900 along with a camera supporting CLS, setup in TTL auto flash mode, will not automatically change to A-mode according to the cameras communication status. In previous firmware the mode was maintained erroneously but is now modified so that TTL auto flash mode is restored once the Speedlight SB900 flash recognizes a Creative Lighting System ready camera attached.
One of my favourite sites, www.PopPhoto.com, which is dedicated to all things American Photography and Camera gear– has recently published up a review of the Nikon SB900 comparing it to the SB800, and they do a great job of pointing out some of the key differences to consider when comparing the SB800 versus the SB900 flashguns. It isn’t so much an in-depth and hands on report of the model as much as it’s a quick sb900 review pointing out some of the new features and evolutions of the speedlight, but theis worth a read most definitely nevertheless as Peter Kolonia has done a great job examining the new Nikon SB900 Speedlight Flash and brings up lots of great points people interested in photography and lighting should consider:
Some differences SB900 versus SB800:
Much improved zoom range: One of the major changes users of the old SB-800 flash will love is the now much more versatile and flexible 17-200mm auto-zoom range.
Much Improved Recycling Time: Although in time it may not seem like an appreciable difference, it is actually a near 35% improvement over the older model depending on type of batteries used, more flash output is another major benefit.
Firmware updating: Hooked up to a compatible camera, people can now update the firmware of the Nikon SB900 Speedlight to get much needed bug fixes, new features, tweaks and improvements the model as a whole, a major benefit if Nikon’s engineers stick to continually improving this flash into the best possible technology it can be.
DX & FX auto recognition and adjustment: The Nikon SB900 will now automatically adjust setting and detect if its connected to FX or DX units, a major complaint of the SB-800 of old, fixed in the newer generation.
Much Much More: There are many more minor and a few major differences to consider when comparing Nikon’s SB800 vs SB900 – check out pophoto.com for the full review and to continue some of the noted changes in Nikon’s newest speedlight flash.
