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look no wires

was not possible previously. These camera-top flash units are port-able, extremely easy and quick to set up a long way from the camera top, as they form a wireless remote system controlled from the camera. Now I don’t need to carry my heavy three-head studio flash kit to any events I attend. In fact, since I started using Nikon’s SB-800 Flashguns, I have hardly used mains powered heads at all. There are no power cables, no sync leads, no light meters to worry about and the best bit of all is that all the remote wireless units can be adjusted in power from the main “master” flash which is on the camera’s hot shoe – and this flash does not have to affect the lighting. You can replace it if you prefer with a Command unit which is faster to use and does not waste a flashgun. This means that if the photogra-pher wishes to power up or down a remote flash, there’s no need to go up to the unit to do it; it can be done while remaining behind the camera, making test shots and checking the lighting on your review screen. This saves a lotof time if you have more than two remote SB-800 heads. You take a shot, have a look, and power up or down the relevant unit from where you are shooting. The most important factor which the ‘wireless flash’ has bought is that it gives me directional light-ing for my images. Bounce flash is lacking in any of the qualities which add impact to a photograph. Directional flash can improve exist-ing light, even a single flash unit can be used to transform a shot quickly.

The Set UpI usually shoot with three units, one master on the camera which is usually turned off (so that it acts only as a controller) and two active remote units. My main light is normally fired through a diffusing

ikon’s SB-800 flashguns have added a new and creative dimension to my photography which N

Uzair Kharawala ABIPP discusses how he uses Nikon’s wireless flash system, the SB-800. He has produced a DVD which shows the process of shooting many of

the situations shown here, available from MPA for only £20.

brolly (shoot-through). If I need more power for this main source, then I clamp a second SB-800 to the lightstand (see picture). The flash guns can be powered by an external mains adaptor of high capacity battery pack, though a supply of high capacity NiMH cells is an economical solution. I use the Nikon SD8A which can be seen attached in my shot of the twin-head brolly unit.

Uzair Kharawala LBIPP discusses how he uses Nikon’s flagship flashgun, the SB800 at various

events and location. These lights feature wireless i-TTL flash control, Auto FP High-Speed Sync,

Wide Area AF Assists Illuminator, Zoom function up to 105mm and much much more..

Nikon SB800 flash guns have added a new and creative dimension to my photography which was

not possible previously. These little flash guns are portable, extremely easy and quick to set up.

Now I don’t need to carry my heavy 3-head Bowen Kit to any events I attend. In fact, since I started

using Nikon’s SB800 Flashguns, I have hardly used my Bowen kit at all!! There are no power ca-

bles, no sync leads, no light meters to worry about and the best bit of all is that all “Remote” wire-

less units can be controlled via the main “Master” flash which is on the camera’s hot shoe. This

means that if the photographer wishes to power up or down a “Remote” flash, he/she does not need

to go up to the unit to do that, this can be done via the “Master” flash which is on camera. This

saves a lot of time if you have more than 2 “Remote” units. You take a shot, have a look and power

up or down the relevant unit from where you are shooting.

The Set Up

I usually shoot with 3 units, one “Master” which is usually turned off

and 2 “Remote” units. The “Master” when turned off is only used to fire

the wireless “Remotes” which gives me the desired directional lighting.

One of the “Remote” is my main light and the other can be used as either

a hair light or background light.

Main light is fired through a diffused brolly. If I need more power, than I

clamp another one on the lightstand (see picture). The flash guns can

also be attached to an external power source. I use the Nikon SD8A

which can be seen attached on the photograph.

WeddingsAs with any wedding, time is of the essence

and quite often the photographer does not

have the time to set up the strobes, changing

lighting conditions may make metering

tricky, extra care needs to be taken care of

power cables and sync leads and may not

reach the outdoor location where you wish

to shoot.

Using Nikon SB800 makes all the above a

thing of the past. I can use them quickly and

safely.

The shot demonstrates what I said above. This was shot on a golf course at sunset when the light

was fading pretty fast. This shot took less than 3 minutes to set up including the test shots. The re-

quired exposure was achieved on the 3rd shot. The bride was illuminated with the on-camera flash

Advanced Wireless Multiple Flashes - Nikon SB800

Two remote flash units can be teamed in a shoot-through brolly for maxim power, or used (left) to light separate parts of the shot, stands or an assistant required.

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WeddingsAt any wedding, time is of the essence and quite often the pho-tographer does not have the leisure to set up mains operated studio flash monobloc heads. Chang-ing lighting conditions may make metering tricky, extra care needs to be taken care of power cables, and sync leads and may not reach the outdoor location where you wish to shoot. The weather may also prevent you from using mains heads outdoors. Using Nikon SB-800 makes all the above a thing of the past. I can use them quickly and safely. The shot with the shoes in nthe foreground is a classic example of when wireless flash is heaven-sent. It was bitterly cold and extremely wet. This shot took less than two minutes to set up and take, with separate lighting on the couple and on the shoes, and full control of the ƒ-stop for the right degree of differential focus. The umbrella shoot-through arrangement provides ideal lighting for a bridel portrait indoors with perfect colour and white balance. The monochrome shot of the bride was taken with a bridesmaid ending up holding the remote SB-800 in her hand! As there was

hardly any space to put the light stand I just asked the bridesmaid to hold the flash for me. The master on-camera flash was turned off. This means that the on-camera gun did not have any influence on the exposure and was only used to fire the remote. The remote was set to manual power adjustment mode rather than TTL. It took two test shots to set the exposure I wanted without

requiring a flashmeter. This shows how flexible the system is, and you do not need to have an assistant to hold your flashguns in most siutuations. Quite often during the reception I have clamped my remote SB-800 using a Manfrotto clamp to anywhere I can attach it, including door frames, furniture edges, and curtain poles. Though you could always work this way with slave flashes or slave

cell triggers, so many guests have cameras with flash that using slaves has become impossible. Only my master flashgun will trigger the system and the remote will not be fired by guests’ camera flashes. If you have more than one operator working, you can set up different channels for each photographer’s flash units, so that two can shoot at the same time and not trigger each other’s lighting.

45

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Flaghead - Real Power 07 (MPD) 11/1/07 12:52 pm Page 1

Location PortraitShooting up on a hill is very easy when you don’t have heavy kit bags to carry up and down all the way! This shot of a family was set up using two remote flashes. I underexposed the ambient light to capture the highlights in the sky while my flashguns lit my subjects. We shot various compositions of the family and I had to work extremely fast in fading light. The Nikon wireless flash system allows me to do just that. For this shot, one “remote” flashgun was placed to light the tree behind them and separate the background.

Sporting EventsThe Nikon SB-800 system uses a burst mode for High Speed Sync and can fire at any shutter speed. Underexposing the ambient light has given a dramatic sky to this image. I had to be quite a distance away from the bank as there was a lot of water spray from the jet skiers who passed close to the bank. I set up two remotes on a single light stand and placed them near the bank with a clear plastic bag over them to protect them from spray. I sat about 30 yards from the flash rig. Even in bright daylight, the master and the remotes talk to each other without any problems and the heads fire consistently.

CorporateShooting in an office environment is quite challenging as the photog-rapher may not have enough space to work with and also movingaround the furniture may not be an option due to computers on desks, cables, or boardroom fur-nishings. This shoot for a insurance company takes place every three months for new staff. Usually there are about 18-20 head and shoulder shots to be done.

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From setting foot into the office, setting up, shooting and leaving takes no more than 90 minutes, providing all the staff are lined up. The photo shows a simple set up with a light stand with a remote SB-800 and a reflector on the other light stand. The exposure on the camera and SB-800 was set to manual.

IndustrialThese shots were taken in an industrial factory. Being wireless allowed me to work anywhere without any hindrance to the workers. I placed a pink gel on one remote and a blue gel on the other. I set the camera and the flash guns on manual to underexpose the ambient light by around two stops. The results were achieved with minimum of disruption and inconvenience to all.

Still LifeThis shot was taken using the Nikon RICI Close Up kit. The wire-less kit allows for extremely speedy set up time and the results are quite outstanding.

Ì

Wireless Flash the DVD is available from the MPA for £20 + £1.50 p&p (£3 overseas) or at MPA events. Call 01325 35655 to order your copy.

All photographs by Oz Kharawala with Nikon SB-800 flash system