Nikon Is SB910 flashgun worth an investment?

hulk2012 · Feb 11, 2014

I've got a question whether Nikon SB910 is worth of a investment. I've got d800 plus few G primes. Thought of adding extra skills learning how to control lightening using flash in particular. Does flash make such much of a difference that is worth few hundeds bucks? Im mainly shooting portraits, landscapes and occasionally weddings btw.

sk66 · Feb 11, 2014

Portraits and weddings? Yes, a flash can make a huge difference. I can't imagine doing a wedding without one. Personally, I think the SB700 is the price/performance best choice from current Nikon flashes.

Designer · Feb 11, 2014

I have an SB-910, and I absolutely love it. You can experiment with cheaper lights later if you wish to save money, but I highly recommend this flash for your first speedlight. Actually, you might decide that you want a whole stable of 910's eventually.

I mostly use iTTL. I am still amazed at what the 910 can do. If the money was there, I would probably own several 910's.

Mach0 · Feb 11, 2014

The new flashpoint streak lights look awesome. Just saying. It's about the same size and is as strong as an alienbee b800.

Designer · Feb 11, 2014

Oh, yea! I now have a new wish list item. Thanks, Mach0

Mach0 · Feb 11, 2014

Designer said:
Oh, yea! I now have a new wish list item. Thanks, Mach0

Yeaaaaaa I'm thinking about it. Cost about the same as an ab800 with a vaga and much smaller. No ttl though but hey. Im sure they will come up with one next.

sonicbuffalo · Feb 14, 2014

I'm not a professional but figure that if I'm gonna spend $400, I might as well pony up a little more and get Nikon's best since I plan on sticking with Nikon from now on. I don't have a studio, but like to shoot portraits and using my prime 50 mm.

Designer · Feb 14, 2014

I saved $50 by buying one in an open box. Absolutely pristine.

astroNikon · Feb 14, 2014

I started this venture last year .. ended up with 2 SB-800s and 1 SB-700 & stands/umbrellas
but well worth it when you start learning portraiture.

D-B-J · Feb 14, 2014

You could always use SB600's. Two at full power would get you the equivalent (roughly) of the sb910, but that's only useful if you are using off camera flash.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

beachrat · Feb 14, 2014

The SB-910 is worth every single nickel,especially if you go out of your way to really learn how to use it to it's full potential.
And it's got tons of that.

hulk2012 · Feb 15, 2014

beachrat said:
The SB-910 is worth every single nickel,especially if you go out of your way to really learn how to use it to it's full potential.
And it's got tons of that.

Thanks. Do you find using it on camera mostly off?

beachrat · Feb 16, 2014

I use it both off camera and on(bounced in any direction i want) when I want to use ttl,and in commander mode to control Sb-800's.
The wireless system is a LOT better than most people think,and any time it failed it was my fault.
Read the manual over and over and refer to it often to familiarize yourself with its features.
It's also important to learn as much as you can about flash photography in general as you go.
It's a great high end tool,but it ain't magic.

sifelaver · Feb 19, 2014

You can connect the SB-900 or 910 to an external battery pack which is useful if you are shooting an event all day. Otherwise the SB-700 should be fine

Derrel · Feb 19, 2014

sifelaver said:
You can connect the SB-900 or 910 to an external battery pack which is useful if you are shooting an event all day. Otherwise the SB-700 should be fine

I was hit up with an ad the other day, from B&H Photo, or Adorama, one of the two, selling a nifty-looking external battery pack for Nikon flash units. It was priced at $99, and said it offered .5 second recycling time, and was I think 3300 milli-ampere hours, and operated at 315 volts DC, with several hundred recharging cycles guaranteed for the battery, which supplied over 300 full-power shots. Looked like a really nice product. This one used a replaceable, $69 internal battery cluster; other types of these external packs use six or eight AA-cells, and cost less money.

Quantum Instruments has long made external flash battery packs, which provide a ton of power for a speedlight. When you have an external pack, and are shooting at wider apertures, like say f/4 or f/5.6 and using ISO 400 or so, it's really nice, since with that high an ISO level and that wide an aperture, a powerful flash does not normally need to discharge itself fully, and with a beefy battery pack, you DO get almost instant follow-up shots, often for extended sequences, at events such as say a wedding cake-cutting, or a perp walk outside the courthouse, or the high school dunk tank at the fund raiser in the gym, etc,etc..