SB600 & SB800

[Wombat124]

Hi All D70s Forum Members

I have read a number of threads on the SB600 v. SB800. Here is a review of the SB600 by Ken Rockwell who would be known by many members of this forum (I couldn't find reference to this link elsewhere - so if it has been posted I apologise unreservedly):

http://www.kenrockwell.com/nikon/sb600.htm

Unlike (as it appears from these threads) many members I am in the minority and not necessarily a "wealthy" member thus have to watch my purchases and spread out my dollars. I have purchased the SB600 as I believe it will provide me with the capabilities I need - as Ken Rockwell more eloquently outlines. I appreciate that the SB800 is the better flash unit but there you go - it is just out of my range and I can now buy other essentials like UV filters etc. Essentially, Ken Rockwell’s review finds the SB600 to be a good piece of equipment and worth purchasing.

Interestingly a different opinion then nearly all of the other posts that I have read.


Regards, Steve

[huynhie]

Steve,

if you are happy with your purchase and the SB-600 does do everything that you want, then other peoples oppinions wont matter to you.

[meicw]

Thanks for the link, Steve. Very interesting reading. This has helped me make my mind up.

Regards
MeicW

[dooda]

I sort of struggled with this one as I couldn't imagine the 800 giving me that much more flash than the 600. I went with the 800 because the dollar amount wasn't substantial enough for me to risk getting a flash with limitations. I still don't know if I did the right thing or not, but I don't think I'll feel the need to upgrade soon (something I absolutely hate). Good on you, it will probably get just as good pictures as the rest of us with 800's. I think that the 800 really pays off with studio work type stuff.

[Onyx]

The SB600 is all the majority ever need. IMHO many SB800 owners are not using the available capabilities of the 800 and could have been just as well served with the 600.

In fact, I could have bought a SB800 at the same time as the D70, but I waited for the 600 to be released, thinking it was all I needed and that the 800 was overkill. i still feel the 800 is overkill in many ways - eg. the external power options. The 600 is incapable of being powered by anything other than 4 AA cells in the unit. The 800 have more available options for power, but I'm not likely to explore those options as I find the 4 or 5 cells adequate for my needs.

The cost of additional accessories (filter gels for indoor white balance, output diffuser, built-in white bounce card) for the 800 more than made up for the difference in price between it and the 600. However if you don't need those accessories, then it becomes an unnecessary expense. While I do make use of the diffuser, it could also have been done by placing a white A4 sheet of paper in front of the flash output, and similarly the white card could have been ghetto modded with a rubber band tied around a piece of cardboard affixed to the flash.

The functional differences between the two units are few. The 800 may have a marginally higher guide number, but this is trivial as both have the same useable range: 0.6 to 20 meters (according to their maunals).

The limitations of wireless slave only mode in the case of the SB600 worries me not. I don't foresee a need in buying an additional flash unit to have master/slave setup anyways.

I for one could have been well served with a SB600. The reason I bought the SB800 was because I wanted/needed standalone auto flash, for backward compatibility with an old FM1 camera. If the 600 had support for non-TTL auto flash I would have been completely satisfied with it.

[xorl]

I ended up going with the SB800 as well. The included diffusion dome, filters, and bounce card saved me from having to buy something separately or DIY. I didn't know I'd be doing film stuff when I bought the SB800, but now that I am, the SB800 lets me do wireless flash (SU-4 mode). There are other useful differences as well (modelling light). For me, these advantages easily make up for the price difference. The SB600 is still a great unit tho'..

[birddog114]

How many photogs have the rubber bands over their flash to hold something?

[Killakoala]

I agree that the SB600 is an excellent flash for the majority of users and will serve them with dignity and reliability for many years.

I bought the SB800 and the SD-8A ext battery pack and it certainly got a good workout at the wedding i shot on the weekend. The four/five batteries wouldn't have recharged the flash quickly enough for me. But i blazed away for hours without having to change batteries all day. (I used the SB800 as a fill flash as the sun was shining brightly and later in the reception hall which was a bit dark) It did slow down a bit by about 10pm but by then it was virtually over.

It all comes down to 'Fitness for Service'. You buy what you need.

[Wombat124]

Thanks all comments. They are all relevant.

Understand Birddog's point: the SB-800 is of course the better unit.

Don't think I would use the rubber band (I hope).

Steve

[Onyx]

Maybe not a rubber band, velcro would be a much more elegant solution. In fact, most of Stofen's products are affixed with velcro, so it's even officially sanctioned ghettoness!