Nikon SB-700 AF Speedlight Flash for Nikon Digital SLR Cameras

Most importantly, I am not a professional photographer. I would say I am a very enthusiastic hobbyist when it comes to photography. That being said, I always do my research when it comes to photo gear. For the purpose of this review, I use the Nikon D5100 which is a "cropped" (DX) sensor. That is somewhat relevant when looking into gear and flashes. Overall, this is a great flash/speedlight upgrade to the built-in flash on your dSLR. There are cheaper and simpler options available, but if you want to buy a high quality product that has features that will let you expand your photography skills, this is a great option. Important general things you should be aware of when consider any flash/speedlight upgade: (Final "Pros/Cons" at the bottom) • Upgrading to an good mounted flash/speedlight will dramatically expand your options when using a flash as well as the overall quality of the photos taken with a flash. Keep in mind, a good mounted flash/speedlight like this can be used indoors AND outdoors to provide fill-light which is helpful when your subject is backlit or you are take shots in low-light. • One of the primary benefits/goals for upgrading to a mounted flash/speedlight is to obtain better fill-light and softer, more even lighting to reduce or soften shadows. In order to make sure you have the most options, you will want a flash that can rotate up/down as well as left/right. This will allow you to "bounce" the flash off of a ceiling, wall or other reflective surface. This is one of the keys to getting softer shadows and it is super-simple to take advantage of. The SB-700 is 100% capable of doing this, but be aware that some other Nikon or third-party flashes do not rotate or only rotate up/down. If you plan to shoot in portrait mode (vertical orientation) you will need to be able to rotate the flash left/right in order to point at the ceiling. • There are MANUAL flashes and "Automatic" TTL compatible flashes. The main difference is that MANUAL flashes require that you adjust the flash power/compensation yourself for each shot as the exposure changes and you zoom in/out. There is no "auto" mode like your built-in flash. Flashes that are more "automatic" are TTL compatible which means that use information from your camera (TTL = Through The Lens) to automatically calculate the amount of flash needed for a given shot based on other camera settings that determine the exposure needed. That being said, most experienced photographer comments/reviews I have scene will tell you that MANUAL is the way to go to learn and is perfectly suitable. However, I am sure many of you (like myself) are looking for something that is automatic most of the time, but gives you the option of manual adjustments, (This SB-700 offers both). Many of the cheaper (but not necessarily worse) flashes do not offer TTL or "Automatic" flash adjustment. • Manufacturers like Canon, Nikon etc have their own proprietary "lighting systems". Think of these lighting systems as a set of rules/standards by which their cameras communicate with "compatible" flashes to properly light a scene with one or more flashes. IMPORTANT: Not all flashes are compatible with these proprietary lighting systems. Nikons system is referred to as "CLS" compatible which stands for "Creative Lighting System". This SB-700 is fully compatible with that system, but your camera may not all Nikon cameras have 100% of the hardware capabilities to take advantage of all of the CLS features. More on that later. Many third-party flashes do not offer compatibility with some of these proprietary systems. Some do, but I have read that there can be some compatible issues so be sure to do your research if you go the route of third-party flashes. • Not all flashes/speedlights (and cameras) are capable of using high shutter speeds (above 1/200 of second or so). In my research, this seems to be an issue with the mid-range dSLRs (Like the D5100 and others) due to the fact that they use a mechanical shutter as opposed to an electrical one. It all has to do with how quickly the shutter can open/close and react to the timing of the flash. I believe this is referred to as flash sync of xSync. What does this mean? Well, if you want/need to use a flash and are hoping to "freeze" fast motion (faster than average at least), some cameras will not be capable of utilizing faster shutter speeds above 1/200 of a second. The special flash/shutter mode that allows this is referred to as "Auto FP" or "HSS" depending on your camera, etc. Is this an issue for you? I was kind of bummed about this and found out about it AFTER I purchased the SB-700. That being said, it really isnt a huge deal. The drawback to using Auto FP/HSS (if you have it) is that is dramatically decreases the power/light of the flash to about 25%. So you arent going to get a ton of light anyway with those higher shutter speeds. Plus, at that point, the speedlight is acting more like a constant light than a true speedlight (to FREEZE motion). Would Auto FP/HSS be helpful in capturing faster than average motion? Probably. Should the lack of Auto FP/HSS on your camera prevent you from buying a flash? Probably not. So, the SB-700 is capable of AutoFP/HSS, but you camera (including the D5100) may not be. • Master/Slave/Commander Stuff. You will definitely see info about master, slave, commander when researching flashes. This basically comes down to using one or more flashes off-camera (usually wirelessly) to achieve different lighting affects. From my "hobbyist" research, it basically involves a "Master" flash unit "Commanding" one or more "Slave" flashes. In order for a "Master" flash to control a "Slave" flash, the "Master" flash OR camera must have a "Commander" feature/capability. The good news is that the SB-700 is capable of being used as a master or slave flash, BUT the SB-700 does not (I believe) have "commander" functionality built-in (The SB-900 does). If you have a higher-end dSLR, you camera probably has "Commander" functionality built-in so you are good to go. Sadly, the D5100 does not have this functionality. What does this mean? If you want to use the SB-700 off-camera (but by itself) with a camera WITHOUT "commander" functionality, you will either need to use a hot-shoe cable from your camera to the SB-700 OR you will need to purchase an additional "Commander" unit (or the previously mentioned SB-900 mentioned) that attaches to your hot shoe and "adds" commander capabilities to your camera. The good news is that once you have "commander" functionality you can wirelessly control one or more slaves. Bottom line...if you are not concerned about using the SB-700 off-camera or with other flashes you dont need to worry about this, BUT options are available if you decide to expand you lighting. • Full-Frame vs Cropped Sensors (FX vs DX) and Flash Zoom modes. I wont get into everything about sensors (because I dont know everything about them), but I will say that not all flashes are fully compatible with both FX and DX format cameras/sensors. I THINK this ultimately means that the actually power and exposure of the flash will not be fully utilized by your camera if you have a DX camera (Like the D5100) and use a FX only flash. So if you buy a cheaper "high-power" flash, your DX camera may not get to use all of the advertised flash power. A lot of the time you will see stuff about GN or "Guide Number" this (I believe) has a lot to do with the flash power at different focal lengths and subject distances. The good news is that the SB-700 DOES support both FX and DX formats so you are somewhat future-proofed. WOW. Ok, so If you made it this far, I am sure you are serious about a new flash. Hopefully I help you and saved you some time. Below is my "summary" of "pros/cons: Pros: Very versatile flash/speedlight upgrade Can be used in "Automatic" mode OR Manual mode. Fully compatible with Nikon CLS system Supports both FX and DX cameras/sensors Can rotate vertically and horizontally (ideal for bouncing in landscape AND portrait orientation) Includes built-in diffuser and bounce panel Also includes mountable diffuser dome for direct flash use Supports automatic TTL and Manual modes LCD Display is clear, backlit and easy to use Offers master/slave capabilities for expanded lighting setups. No built-in commander though. Most professional features for a more reasonable cost Well-built and sturdy Nice, laser-like pre-flash for proper focusing and exposure From other reviews I have ready, it has a very fast "recycle" time which means you can take multiple shots with flash in quick succession. It seems to work well for me, but I have not calculated this myself. Cons: Pricey for non-professionals - although worth the price. Have to be careful to depress side button when rotating. A little stiff Definitely adds some size and weight to your setup. There are smaller/lighter options available. You can get MANY of these features from third-party flashes/speedlights for LESS money, BUT you sacrifice full CLS/iTTL compatibility and probably are not getting the same level of product. The other feature usually missing from third-party flashes is either an "Automatic" mode and/or full support for FX & DX sensors. For mid-range dSLRs (Including d5100), you cant utilize Auto FP or HSS for higher than 1/200 of a second shutter with the flash. Cameras without "Commander" functionality cant use the SB-700 as a master without the use of a hot-shoe cable OR a separate "Commander" unit. There is not ability to "trigger" the SB-700 via the built-in flash of the D5100 and many others. If you found my review helpful, please indicate so below or share a comment. Thanks.

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Ive used many Nikon speedlights over 20+ years, sometimes they improve a lot, sometimes they go backwards it seems. Having used 5 SB-800s for the past near-decade or so, i wanted a newer one mainly for on-camera fill and to use as the Master for the older units when i didnt carry my SU800 flash controller. It does work very well as a master unit, and you dont have to carry another piece plus the CR123A batteries for the SU800. THis is a major selling point for me, and if you dont already have a SU800, this is a good alternative for just using as a controller with other Speedlights. The 700 model is actually BETTER than the 800 in a few respects: the controls use some dedicated switches for M/TTL, and slave functions. You have to go thru a bunch of pages of menus to get to the function you want with the older 800, then back in and out, what a ridiculous mess of a menu, Nikon. This is MUCH better and faster, and is the reason i hated the 800 the day it came out, even though ive used it on a daily basis professionally for years now. The thing is, the much older SB26 had the same switches essentially, years ago! So Nikon actually went back in time and realized the OLD way was better, thankfully. I do not like that this unit is actually bigger than the 800 (altho smaller than 900) and uses s newer, weird-fitting bounce cover. Think they just did that to try to sell more accessories, again. So if you lose one, it wont fit or be interchangeable with another, even their own speedlights. Not to mention an off-brand such as Stofen, who made them long before Nikon and other major brands stole the idea and started making their own with their flashes. The really bad thing is that i find it tends to be less accurate on-camera than my old 800s were/are. Sometimes it just totally blows out the exposure/dumps for no reason. The 800s seemed much more reliable and consistant with exposure. The battery chamber/latch is different. Ive read of some problems with this, but so far mine does seem to work fine and is an improvement, it doesnt fall of and get lost at least every time you need to change batteries. Seems like a solid flash overall, but think it should be more compact, its unnecessarily large for the size of the flash tube i think. Doesnt have a PC sync jack. Big no-no for most Strobists, but id rather it had a 1/8" jack anyway. I may put my own in it if i feel the urge (dont recommend if you are not electronics-inclined though, and youd void your warranty). Otherwise, its a decent flash, but i think Nikon just has to change things for the sake of changing up models and such. And it still isnt that reasonably-priced either, just more affordable than the "pro" model.

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Nice features on a lower level flash, compared to the SB900, which I do not own. Controls are much more accessable than on my SB800 and SB80. Output is more than adequate when paired with my D7000 because of the higher iso capabilities of that body, as well as my D300. So far, exposures appear to be consistant. The release on the head is a little stiff to allow bounce and swivel, so I hope that will loosen somewhat with use. I do like that there is only one release to do both and that you can swivel 180 degrees either direction from straight on position. Comes with a more secure soft diffuser than previous models, as well as tungsten and fluorescent filters. For the money, I would have liked to see more of a colored filter set included, like the SB800. Of course, the Nikon Creative Lighting System compatability is a big plus. Also included is a nice rectangular case to store everything, including a provided stand, although I dont use it, since eveything goes in my bag. Overall, a really nice flash for most lighting situations. Would like to see Nikon (and the other major makers) bring their prices down a little so freelancers dont have to surrender body parts to buy equipment needed to stay competitive, especially since this particular flash is made in China. Having said that, it does appear to be relatively solid in construction. Time will tell how well it holds up.

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I LOVE this flash - Im usually a natural light photographer, but for evening events (especially receptions!) Ive struggled with environmental lighting (or should I say - lack thereof). I usually shy away from using a flash for fear of the dreaded directional lighting dilemma, but I did lots of reading, practice, and purchased a diffuser with this flash and couldnt be happier with my end result. My event photos look so naturally lit that looking at them you forget how dim the actual event lighting was! Just be warned that if youre taking lots of photos at once, the flash does overheat and delay - I try to plan my shots so the flash is well rested for the vital moments. But there are shots here and there that I miss because the flash overheats, and this can be a bit frustrating. However, for the price and performance overall of this flash Im incredibly happy with the improvement Ive seen in my photos.

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This is an excellent medium budget flash for Nikon DSLR cameras. It can be used TTL, Manual or as a commander. It also works well wirelessly through the Nikon builtin flash. It has some features over the SB-900 like a menu button but it has a lower output. Another issue with this flash is the on/off/remote switch is not easy to use. I dont know why they made it so difficult. Its basically flat to where you have to turn it with your finger tip. Plus it locks in remote mode so you have to push a tiny button first. It does work very well in TTL mode and as a wireless flash through the builtin flash. (Note: all nikon wireless flash require direct line of site. To improve that you need to look into something like the Pocket Wizard which also allows TTL or the Cowboy Studio wireless system which is manual only.) But is it worth saving the couple hundred dollars or so over the SB-900 or the newer SB-910? I have had mine for about two years now and I have to say I wish Id spent the extra money for the output and the fact that the 900 does a better job telling you the distance. Excellent flash but my next one will be the SB-910.

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