Questions using D90 as commander for SB-600

[Tbini87]

Hey guys,
after much work figuring out how to get my D90 to be the commander for my SB-600 (yes, I am a little slower than most of you guys around here!) I finally figured some things out. However, I still have some questions since the manuals aren't very easy to follow imo. So here we go:

How do I get back to the main menu after setting the Channel and Group for the SB-600. When I hold Zoom and - it just puts me back to the on/off choice. There must be a way to get back to choice of power output and the like.


If you guys could help clear up some of these issues or point me in the right direction that would be great. Maybe I just haven't found the right information in the manuals yet. Thanks.

 

[kundalini]

I don't have my SB-600 here with me, so I'm having to refer to the instruction manual.

1 - I press the On/Off switch, but pressing the 'zoom' and '-' buttons simultaneously for two seconds does the same.

2 & 3 - I haven't bothered with the sound or the lights, but page 53 in the manual describes how to deactivate both. Press the 'zoom' or 'mode' buttons to toggle between on and off.

Sorry, but it doesn't get much more self-explanatory than the manual with these questions.

 

[Tbini87]

fixed 2 and 3 already... but not understanding question 1. I turn it on... then holding zoom and - just puts me to a screen where I can zoom, change CH or change Group. It doesn't let me change power settings or +/- on Exposure... and I can't seem to get back to the very first screen.

Do I have to turn the slave mode off to go back in and change the manual power settings, then go back and turn the squiggly arrow back on to use it as a slave off camera? Seems like there should be an easier way to adjust power settings while staying in slave mode.

 

[kundalini]

You don't go into the menus to adjust power settings. That's done right on the LCD panel.

What mode are you in when trying to adjust power output? (wish I had my unit with me because it's really just a matter of a few buttons)

 

[Tbini87]

If I turn it on normal I could adjust the power on the LCD screen. I then push zoom and - to make it usable as a slave right? If I hold zoom and - again I get to the screen to choose channel and group. Holding zoom and - again only gets me back to the screen to turn the light, noise, and slave mode on or off. I can't get back to the original screen (where I can choose M, TTL, power, zoom, etc) unless I turn off the slave option (squiggly arrow). Don't know if I am helping you understand... maybe you could just wait until you get your flash in front of you and can give a play by play. Thanks for trying to help.

 

[mrpink]

fixed 2 and 3 already... but not understanding question 1. I turn it on... then holding zoom and - just puts me to a screen where I can zoom, change CH or change Group. It doesn't let me change power settings or +/- on Exposure... and I can't seem to get back to the very first screen.

Do I have to turn the slave mode off to go back in and change the manual power settings, then go back and turn the squiggly arrow back on to use it as a slave off camera? Seems like there should be an easier way to adjust power settings while staying in slave mode.

You do all of this in camera. Menu, bracket/flash ->, flash cntrl ->, commander mode ->, then set your group to manual and adjust your settings. Do not forget to hit OK when finished or it will not save your new settings.

On the SB-600, the best way to get back the main screen is to hit the power button. So to switch from hotshoe to slave, hit zoom + -, then hit mode, then hit on/off to return to the main screen.






p!nK

 

[kundalini]

If I turn it on normal I could adjust the power on the LCD screen.

Correct, even though I'm not too familiar with the term 'normal'.

I then push zoom and - to make it usable as a slave right?

Correct... to find that function in the menus.

If I hold zoom and - again I get to the screen to choose channel and group.

Correct, but keep in mind this should bring you back to your main diplay.

Holding zoom and - again only gets me back to the screen to turn the light, noise, and slave mode on or off. I can't get back to the original screen (where I can choose M, TTL, power, zoom, etc) unless I turn off the slave option (squiggly arrow). Don't know if I am helping you understand... maybe you could just wait until you get your flash in front of you and can give a play by play. Thanks for trying to help.

Okay, I think you're taking it one step too far. Once you're back at the main display, press the 'mode' button to choose which type of mode you want the flash to be in.... M, TTL, etc., is that where you want to be? M will give you power adjustments, TTL will give you +/- compensation, you can adjust the zoom range....... and something else....., is it the apeture?

Again, once I've gone through the menus and set what I want, I will press the On/Off switch to get back to the main display. Mind you, I'm not preseing the button long enough to actually power down, just briefly to switch back to the main display.

 

[Tbini87]

If I turn it on normal I could adjust the power on the LCD screen.

Correct, even though I'm not too familiar with the term 'normal'.

I then push zoom and - to make it usable as a slave right?

Correct... to find that function in the menus.

If I hold zoom and - again I get to the screen to choose channel and group.

Correct, but keep in mind this should bring you back to your main diplay.

Holding zoom and - again only gets me back to the screen to turn the light, noise, and slave mode on or off. I can't get back to the original screen (where I can choose M, TTL, power, zoom, etc) unless I turn off the slave option (squiggly arrow). Don't know if I am helping you understand... maybe you could just wait until you get your flash in front of you and can give a play by play. Thanks for trying to help.

Okay, I think you're taking it one step too far. Once you're back at the main display, press the 'mode' button to choose which type of mode you want the flash to be in.... M, TTL, etc., is that where you want to be? M will give you power adjustments, TTL will give you +/- compensation, you can adjust the zoom range....... and something else....., is it the apeture?

Again, once I've gone through the menus and set what I want, I will press the On/Off switch to get back to the main display. Mind you, I'm not preseing the button long enough to actually power down, just briefly to switch back to the main display.

I think this is where I am getting lost (the bolded underlined part). This doesn't get me back to the main display. It doesn't give me the choices of TTL, M, etc. It only shows me zoom, Channel and Group.

 

[Tbini87]

fixed 2 and 3 already... but not understanding question 1. I turn it on... then holding zoom and - just puts me to a screen where I can zoom, change CH or change Group. It doesn't let me change power settings or +/- on Exposure... and I can't seem to get back to the very first screen.

Do I have to turn the slave mode off to go back in and change the manual power settings, then go back and turn the squiggly arrow back on to use it as a slave off camera? Seems like there should be an easier way to adjust power settings while staying in slave mode.

You do all of this in camera. Menu, bracket/flash ->, flash cntrl ->, commander mode ->, then set your group to manual and adjust your settings. Do not forget to hit OK when finished or it will not save your new settings.

On the SB-600, the best way to get back the main screen is to hit the power button. So to switch from hotshoe to slave, hit zoom + -, then hit mode, then hit on/off to return to the main screen.



p!nK

I set everything up in my camera. Then turned on flash, hit zoom and -, and turned on slave mode in the "csm". Then hit zoom and - and saw the Channel and Group and set that to match D90. Then I hit zoom and - to get back to "csm" I guess... but can't get back to the MAIN menu from there. Looks like you have to turn slave mode OFF to get back to main menu. Is this correct? Seems like a waste of a few steps to me, but maybe that is just the way they set it up...

 

[mrpink]

I set everything up in my camera. Then turned on flash, hit zoom and -, and turned on slave mode in the "csm". Then hit zoom and - and saw the Channel and Group and set that to match D90.

At this point, the only button you should be pressing is your shutter release.

Everything you typed after it is not needed. You should see two red leds flashing on the front of the flash, this is indicating "ready to fire".








p!nK

 

[Tbini87]

I set everything up in my camera. Then turned on flash, hit zoom and -, and turned on slave mode in the "csm". Then hit zoom and - and saw the Channel and Group and set that to match D90.

At this point, the only button you should be pressing is your shutter release.

Everything you typed after it is not needed. You should see two red leds flashing on the front of the flash, this is indicating "ready to fire".








p!nK

Right. I have been able to take pictures at this point. However, say I think I need more power... then what steps do I take? I don't understand why I can't change the power setting on the same screen that has the zoom, channel and group on it. I would have to turn commander mode OFF to get back to the main screen, change the power setting, turn commander mode back ON then start shooting again?

 

[mrpink]

I set everything up in my camera. Then turned on flash, hit zoom and -, and turned on slave mode in the "csm". Then hit zoom and - and saw the Channel and Group and set that to match D90.

At this point, the only button you should be pressing is your shutter release.

Everything you typed after it is not needed. You should see two red leds flashing on the front of the flash, this is indicating "ready to fire".








p!nK

Right. I have been able to take pictures at this point. However, say I think I need more power... then what steps do I take? I don't understand why I can't change the power setting on the same screen that has the zoom, channel and group on it. I would have to turn commander mode OFF to get back to the main screen, change the power setting, turn commander mode back ON then start shooting again?

you change your flash power settings IN CAMERA. You do not need to touch your flash once you have it set up in slave mode. You can adjust power from 1/1 (full dump) all the way down to 1/128 using the D90's commander mode menu screen.







p!nK

 

[KmH]

The SB-600 doesn't have Commander mode. Commander mode is in the D90.

IIRC (it's been a while since I used CLS) You change the power setting using the D90's Commander Mode menu, not the speedlight menus.

 

[brianT]

When you set the D90 to commander mode, and the SB600 to wireless mode, the power setting is controlled from the D90 menu.

Set the D90 to commander TTL, then change the Comp. setting to increase the power. The Comp. setting can be +3.0 or -3.0 adjusted in 1/3 increments.

The reason for adjusting this on the camera menu is because if the flash is wireless and is 10 feet away from you and the camera, you do not need to walk over to the flash to adjust anything.

 

[kundalini]

IIRC (it's been a while since I used CLS) You change the power setting using the D90's Commander Mode menu, not the speedlight menus.

That was the missing link last night. I haven't used CLS much of late either. :blushing: