Which one? sb700 or sb910 flash for Nikon

[wommby]

Hi,

Haven't posted anything for some months as been really busy but I was wanted to get some advice on which
flash unit would be the best to get.

I have heard that the sb700 is much easier to use but the sb910 is the flagship and that is the one to get.

I have a Nikon d700 & d300.

Help me please my husband who is not a photographer says get the cheaper one but price is not an issue.

Deb

[Andrew1]

There doesn't seem to be very much difference in the side by side comparison. A bit of power but not much else. Check out what you need. For the same money as the 910 I'd go for the 700 and a couple of triggers for off camera flash.

http://en.nikon.ca/Nikon-Products/Flashes/index.page

[wommby]

There doesn't seem to be very much difference in the side by side comparison. A bit of power but not much else. Check out what you need. For the same money as the 910 I'd go for the 700 and a couple of triggers for off camera flash.

http://en.nikon.ca/Nikon-Products/Flashes/index.page

Hi Andrew,

Good point. Do you recommend the Wizard system?

[Manfred M]

I have their older siblings (the SB600 and the SB900). The SB700 is an upgrade to the SB600 and the SB910 is a minor upgrade to the SB900. I find myself taking the SB900 over the SB600 virtually all the time, even though it is larger and heavier because of the features the larger flash has; mostly the built in white card and the the diffuser (which a virtually always use).

The SB700 does have those features and a much better user interface than the SB600. The SB910 has a few outstanding features; better range (more power), better power management (better battery life), wider range of lenses is adjusts (14mm; with flip down diffuser through to 200mm) for and a faster recycling time than the SB700. That being said the feature gap between the SB700 and the SB910 is much smaller than with my two units. The SB910 is a bit larger and heavier than the SB700 as well.

The reason to pick one over the other is what you are planning to use it for. If you are shoot sports or weddings, then the SB910 is really your only option. Same comment if you are looking at using it with a light modifier. If on the other hand, you are mainly going to use it as an on-camera flash, the SB700 looks like a solid choice.

If money truly is no object, I would go for the bigger unit. I have yet to hear a photographer say "I wish I had the cheaper model", just because we all know that there will be those shots that we would have gotten with the better unit.

[Andrew1]

Debbie, the Pocket Wizards and Radio Poppers are a rather expensive and don't provide me any remote functionality that I require. My flashes aren't placed a hundred yards away so I can just move a bit and adjust the flash powers manually. Don't go too cheap to the lower ebay models because you won't be happy with those. I did some research and ordered mine on-line from Phottix due to their reliability and some specific needs but those may or may not be available in your area. Check some out with photographers in "Victoria south".
I have to disagree with Manfred. Weddings and sports have been well photographed long before the 910 appeared. 6 feet of range on the guide number and .2 seconds on recycle time mean nothing to the average shooter. That's the nice thing about using radio triggers. It's doesn't matter if you run them with older Vivitar 283's (not the 285's unless you know what to look for) or the older Nikon SB28's like I do. I am always on the lookout for more. You just need them to be cheap and adjustable. Those and a couple of umbrellas and reflectors and you're set for a whole new range of photography.

[Manfred M]

Andrew: I'm not a wedding photographer, but know three full-time ones an a couple of part timers quite well. Four of the five are Nikon shooters, and this is the information that I got from them. The comment on the D900 is that it an overheating problem when heavily used and the thermal cutoff would shut the unit down. Their trick was to over-ride the the thermal cutoff (via the menu), but if one was not careful, the flash got damaged. The D910 fixed that issue with overheating. Two of them were D900 shooters and I bought mine on their recommendation. Nobody was shooting the D600 (or D700) and one was still on the D800.

[Andrew1]

I don't disagree at all Manfred and am familiar with overheating problems. The average shooter would normally not be firing off enough full power flashes to be of concern and the original poster mentioned nothing about weddings. I only commented that for the average photographer there is no big advantage in the latest and greatest equipment for producing great photos. She could save some $$$ and build a more versatile kit.

[wommby]

Hi All,

Thanks for all your comments. I am actually buying because I have a wedding coming up. My first one, I wasn't really going to get into wedding photography but you know what it's like when a friend asks.

I was primarily an underwater photographer and recently set up a studio for babies and children etc. Now it seems I am about to embark on the wedding stuff.

I also love outdoor shots of kids playing so a whatever flash unit I get I want to use it here as well.

I thought the sb700 after reading the first reply, but now am not sure again.

Deb

[Manfred M]

I don't disagree at all Manfred and am familiar with overheating problems. The average shooter would normally not be firing off enough full power flashes to be of concern and the original poster mentioned nothing about weddings. I only commented that for the average photographer there is no big advantage in the latest and greatest equipment for producing great photos. She could save some $$$ and build a more versatile kit.

It's always fun suggestion as to how someone else should spend their money.

I actually have a very simple way of helping me make these decisions:

1. What is the minimum amount of money I will have to spend to get the "must have features"?

2. What is the ADDITIONAL cost over this base cost I have to spend to get the additional features I would like to get?

3. Is the additional cost worth it to me?

[wommby]

It's always fun suggestion as to how someone else should spend their money.

I actually have a very simple way of helping me make these decisions:

1. What is the minimum amount of money I will have to spend to get the "must have features"?

2. What is the ADDITIONAL cost over this base cost I have to spend to get the additional features I would like to get?

3. Is the additional cost worth it to me?

Thanks - I think I will go with the sb910.

[rpcrowe]

I don't know if this will help but...
http://speedlights.net/2010/09/16/ni...00-and-sb-900/

[carloshpvp]

I'm on the way to buy a D7000 + flash. I was really convinced to go for a SB700 due to its smaller size. However, I've heard about issues in using D7000 + SB700 and getting underexposed shots. Have anyone here experienced this kind of issue? As I'm not a professional photographer I think that the 200 USD difference could be used on a 35 or 50mm prime for example. However, if the issue really exists, the savings won't help in the end.
Thanks in advance.