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88888888

macrumors 6502a
Original poster
May 28, 2008
506
0
Sb-600 or sb-900?

Sb-600 won't work on commander mode on d60?
I don't understand what that means?
Also which one can be controlled by a wireless remote?

Thanks
 

finnschi

macrumors 6502
Dec 30, 2008
460
0
Hamburg, Germany
I don't know how much money you want to spend but you'll probably get the most bang for the buck from a Metz Flash .. ie the mecablitz 48 its around 200$ and its "Made in Germany" ... haven't found a bad review yet :D

(I own this flash its awesome, its even better than the SB-600)
 

finnschi

macrumors 6502
Dec 30, 2008
460
0
Hamburg, Germany
good Wireless flash units are exepsnive.. but you can trigger them using any of the wireless flash systems aviable (I hope this is right for nikon as I own a canon...)

There are also some cheap ones ie Phottix and they work quiet well (for me) :D
 

88888888

macrumors 6502a
Original poster
May 28, 2008
506
0
k im looking into the metz flashes.

does anyone know the commander feature?
 

OreoCookie

macrumors 68030
Apr 14, 2001
2,727
90
Sendai, Japan
I have had Nikon's SB-400 and this Christmas, I have upgraded to an SB-600. Both are great flashes. The SB-600 works great as a slave, you don't need any wireless equipment if your camera can act as a commander (which my D80 can). It just works™ and it's great fun.

The SB-600 has plenty of power and I don't think it's necessary to get an SB-900 -- unless you want to get additional Nikon flashes afterwards. Then the SB-900 can act as a commander even if your camera cannot.

An alternative to the SB-900 is to look for an SB-800. Maybe you can still find one every now and then. It is the slightly less powerful predecessor to the SB-900 that can also act as a commander.
 

88888888

macrumors 6502a
Original poster
May 28, 2008
506
0
hmm yea. i just don't know what exactly is the commander feature.. what does it allow you to do?
I have a d60 getting a sb-600 will have no commander, 800 and 900 will have it.
 

jaseone

macrumors 65816
Nov 7, 2004
1,245
57
Houston, USA
What kind of photography do you see yourself doing? Do you ever think you will need to use the flash off camera in a studio situation or similar? In order to do that optimally you would need an SB-800 or SB-900 on camera and then SB-600's or higher off camera.

What do you mean triggered by a wireless remote? So you can trigger your shutter with the wireless remote and have the flash fire or so you can use the flash off camera as I described above? If you mean the latter then that is what commander mode is, if you mean the former then just about any external flash will work.
 

OreoCookie

macrumors 68030
Apr 14, 2001
2,727
90
Sendai, Japan
hmm yea. i just don't know what exactly is the commander feature.. what does it allow you to do?
Let me explain it to you for a camera that does have commander mode built in: when you buy a Nikon flash (except for the smallest one, the SB-400), you get a stand which is basically a hotshoe on a piece of plastic. You can position that flash anywhere in the room you'd like (as long as there is a way for the light to hit the flash, you cannot place it behind a wall) to suit your creative lighting ideas.

Then you can ask your built-in flash to act as a trigger for the other flash: if you take a picture, the built-in flash tells the other flash what to do, e. g. how much light it is supposed to give off or if the camera should determine this automatically.

Basically it's a cheap and very versatile way to trigger several flashes off camera. You can have up to three groups of flashes, etc. etc.

Your camera cannot act as a commander unit, so you only need to get one of the larger flashes if you plan on getting another flash to use the commander feature with. Then the flash on your camera's hotshoe acts as a commander for the off camera flash(es).
 

ChrisA

macrumors G5
Jan 5, 2006
12,837
2,043
Redondo Beach, California
Sb-600 or sb-900?

Sb-600 won't work on commander mode on d60?
I don't understand what that means?
Also which one can be controlled by a wireless remote?

Thanks

Get the lowest priced unit that allows the flash head to tilt and swivel so you can bounce off the walls or ceiling.

or off camera, muli light flash setups "everyone" simply use manual flash mode.

Automation is good when you don't have time. But if you have time to set up light stand, reflectors and so on then the extra five seconds it takes you to turn a knob by hand is no big deal.

If you only have on e speedlight "commander" is of no use to you
 

jaseone

macrumors 65816
Nov 7, 2004
1,245
57
Houston, USA
Your camera cannot act as a commander unit, so you only need to get one of the larger flashes if you plan on getting another flash to use the commander feature with. Then the flash on your camera's hotshoe acts as a commander for the off camera flash(es).

Or just save money now by getting the SB-600 and if you find you want to do off camera flash once you have mastered bouncing and diffusing on camera flash then you can get an SB-800 or better and use the SB-600 as a slave.
 

88888888

macrumors 6502a
Original poster
May 28, 2008
506
0
oh ok!
thanks i think i'll be getting a sb-600, unless sb-700 is gonna come out soon.. is it possible?

So, i can do wireless flash right?
Any recs for what wireless remote to get?
 

jaseone

macrumors 65816
Nov 7, 2004
1,245
57
Houston, USA
So, i can do wireless flash right?
Any recs for what wireless remote to get?

What exactly do you mean wireless flash? Do you just mean to be able to trigger your shutter remotely and have the flash fire as needed? If so whatever the standard wireless remote is for the D60 is fine, if not then I don't think you have really read what has been said in this thread...
 

compuwar

macrumors 601
Oct 5, 2006
4,717
2
Northern/Central VA
Sb-600 or sb-900?

Sb-600 won't work on commander mode on d60?
I don't understand what that means?
Also which one can be controlled by a wireless remote?

Thanks

You haven't really given enough information to get back anything useful. The SB900 has several advantages over the SB600- only you can decide if they're necessary for your shooting-

1. More power- especially useful when shooting fill flash outdoors.
2. SU-4 mode- can be triggered by any other flash firing- useful in studio and single-camera situations.
3. Can control other Nikon flashes (SB600, 800 and 900) via infra-red pulses.

The SB-600 has two advantages over the SB900-

1. It's cheaper.
2. It's a little bit smaller.

Paul
 
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