NEW NIKON SB-900 speedlight flash technology advances at the speed of light with its zoom and smartsNikon Speedlight flagship Newest offers a powerful addition to the Polyvalente Nikon Creative Lighting System (CLS)
MELVILLE, NY (July 1, 2008) - Nikon Inc. today launched the SB-900 Speedlight provide Nikon digital SLR photographers with a flash capable of a wide zoom range, increased flexibility, time recycling faster, and a wealth of intelligent functions to strengthen the already broad functionality of Nikon Creative Lighting System (CLS). Building on the success of the popular SB-800 Speedlight, the SB-900 provides users with extensive possibilities of setting up lighting with a simplified interface and the ability to stay current with future technologies by the user updates applied.*
The SB-900 offers unprecedented coverage of the focal range of 17 to 200mm, to increase flexibility in a variety of shooting conditions, while adapting automatically Nikon DX or FX-format cameras. In addition, the light output was increased to a maximum guide number of 48/157.5 (ISO 200, in meters / feet FX-35 mm and the standard format). Photographers can now choose among three modes of light; Centre-weighted "provides the largest number guide and is suitable for pictures as portraits, where light Falloff in the image of the east edge of lesser importance. "Standard" provides a familiar pattern, similar to the SB-800, and is ideal for general photography and "even" which offers more edge to edge coverage, making it ideal for situations such as group photograph. In addition, the latest flagship Nikon Speedlight provides advanced photographers wireless i-TTL capabilities allowing the use of multiple Speedlights with ease and confidence on the spot or in the studio.
"Nikon is proud that his innovative leadership in flash technology has been hailed by photographers who have become aware of the versatility and power that the Nikon Creative lighting system contributes to their photography,"
said Edward Fasano, director general of Marketing System products reflex Nikon, Inc.
"The SB-900 Speedlight now provides photographers with a new level of functionality portable lighting, with performances and smart features that adapt to an even wider scope of the lighting challenges. "
The Speedlight SB-900 is designed to meet the challenges of creating lighting encountered by photographers today, including the need for fast, the demand for performance and ability to adapt seamlessly in almost any lighting scenario. The SB-900 design innovative tube xenon flash and reflector system travel agent - to allow a wider zoom range of extreme wide angle of 17mm (FX) à la mise en telephoto 200 mm achieved without using accessories or as wide as 12mm DX mode using the wide-angle panel engaged.
The SB-900 offers a fast recycling time of 4.0 seconds (at full power) with four AA alkaline batteries, which drops to a mere 2.3 seconds (at full power) while using four NiMH rechargeable batteries-about 25 per hundred faster than the SB-800 with the battery its fifth attachment.
UPDATES: Lots, inside after jump. Also, you had to figure McNally would get his mitts on some early copies...Just unveiled: The new Nikon SB-900 speedlight. From what I can see, it is fairly similar to nothing like the '800, except that it will zoom out to a 200mm beam spread.
That would be will be so cool, as it basically will give you a built-in Better Beamer, which can concentrate the light for better reach (or higher f/stop) and/or to create a nice grid spot effect.
Much more, inside.
Highlights:
• Rotates 180 degrees right or left. Sweet.
• Flash tube overheat protection, great for hi-power battery users
• More power More GN, but this appears to be only because of the 200mm tele setting: Up to GN 48/157 max
• Faster recycling - 4 secs w/Alkaline, 2.3 secs w/NiMH batts
• Tighter beam spread - up to 200mm throw
• Beam shaping - custom light patterns within the beam
• Faster CLS adjustments - physical dials.
• Upgradable firmware - sweet.
• One-second recycle w/new SD-9 Battery pack.
• Flash duration times: 1/880 (@full power) to 1/38,500 (@ 1/128 power)
• Has SU-4 setting, which presumably still means a great manual slave.
• It's a real honker. Ryan Brenizer has an animated .gif swapping out with the SB-800 here.
and...
It's five hundred smackers.
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I will probably get one, but I will definitely still be based on SB-800's for a while.
In fact, this may well drive down the price of SB-800s. Not so much at retail -- Nikon has their price points distributed pretty well for the '600, '800 and '900. But there will be a lot of people who will unload '800's into the market when they get their new '900. (I mean, who needs more than one flash, right?)
And yes, this is probably the only photo site that cares more about the new strobe than the new D-700. If anyone gets hands-on time, please report in via the comments. Thanks!
More info at Nikon site.
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Full Press Release Text
NEW NIKON SB-900 SPEEDLIGHT ADVANCES FLASH TECHNOLOGY AT THE SPEED OF LIGHT WITH EXPANSIVE ZOOM AND INTELLIGENT FEATURES
Nikon’s Newest Flagship Speedlight Offers a Powerful Addition to the Versatile Nikon Creative Lighting System (CLS)
MELVILLE, N.Y. (July 1, 2008) – Nikon, Inc. today introduced the SB-900 Speedlight to provide Nikon digital SLR photographers with a flash capable of a wide zoom range, increased versatility, faster recycling time, and a wealth of intelligent features to enhance the already vast functionality of the Nikon Creative Lighting System (CLS). Building on the success of the popular SB-800 Speedlight, the SB-900 provides users with extensive creative lighting possibilities with a simplified interface and the ability to stay up to date with future technologies through user-applied firmware updates.*
The SB-900 offers unprecedented zoom range coverage from 17 to 200mm, to increase flexibility in a variety of shooting conditions, while automatically adapting itself to Nikon’s FX or DX-format cameras. Additionally, light output has been increased to a maximum guide number of 48/157.5 (ISO 200, meters/feet at 35mm FX-format and Standard). Photographers can now also select from three light patterns; “Center-weighted” provides the highest guide number and is suitable for images such as portraits, where light falloff at the image edges is of less importance. “Standard” provides a familiar pattern, similar to the SB-800, and is ideal for general photography and “Even” which delivers the most consistent edge-to-edge coverage, making it ideal for situations such as group photography. Additionally, Nikon’s newest flagship Speedlight provides photographers with advanced wireless i-TTL capabilities allowing the utilization of multiple Speedlights with ease and confidence on location or in the studio.
“Nikon is proud that its innovative leadership in flash technologies has been praised by photographers who have realized the versatility and power that the Nikon Creative Lighting System contributes to their photography,” said Edward Fasano, general manager for marketing, SLR System Products at Nikon, Inc. “The SB-900 Speedlight now provides photographers with a new level of portable lighting functionality, with performance and intelligent features that adapt to an even wider scope of lighting challenges.”
The SB-900 Speedlight is engineered to address the creative lighting challenges faced by today’s photographers including a need for fast, on-demand performance, and the ability to adapt seamlessly to nearly any lighting scenario. The SB-900’s innovative design has the Xenon flash tube and reflector system moving independently – allowing for a wider zoom range from an extreme wide angle of 17mm (FX) to the telephoto setting which reaches 200mm without the aid of accessories or as wide as 12mm in DX mode with the built-in wide-angle panel engaged.
The SB-900 offers a quick recycle time of 4.0 seconds (at full power) with four Alkaline AA batteries which drops to a mere 2.3 seconds (at full power) while using four rechargeable NiMH batteries—about 25 percent faster than the SB-800 with its fifth battery attachment.
While ease of use has always been a defining hallmark of the Nikon CLS System, the user interface has been even further refined to simplify control and offer faster operation. Controls for setting the wireless Master and Remote have been relocated to the outside of the unit for easier access and frequently used functions are easily adjusted with a new Rotary Select Dial. A larger LCD screen is easy to read, even in direct sunlight, and photographers can assign “My Menu” hotkeys for quicker access to commonly used functions. A new thermal cut-out protection system monitors conditions when the flash might overheat due to excessive rapid bursts. Helpful operating temperature information is provided to the photographer with an innovative temperature gauge displayed on the LCD screen.
For the first time, Nikon SB-900 Speedlight users will have the ability to take advantage of future performance advancements, by way of user-uploadable firmware. The user will be able to download the firmware onto a flash media card and upload it to the flash through select digital SLR cameras.*
The SB-900 Speedlight is Nikon’s most intelligent Speedlight ever, created in response to the needs of today’s digital photographic professionals. When using the included fluorescent or incandescent filters and adaptor, the flash automatically recognizes what filter is being used and automatically adjusts white balance accordingly on the latest Nikon D-SLRs.* Additionally, the SB-900 aids auto focus with a broader AF assist beam that covers a wide 20-105mm that is matched to all of the D3, D700 and D300’s 51 focus points. The bounce and swivel capability of the SB-900 has been expanded to include: tilt up to 90 degrees, down minus 11 degrees, and a full 180-degree swivel left or right, allowing more creativity for on or off camera use, or as a remote Speedlight.
The SB-900 serves as the new core for the Nikon Creative Lighting System when used in combination with Nikon SLRs, and supports Advanced Wireless Lighting as a master or a remote Speedlight, inviting photographers to discover endless creative possibilities. While using one or more Nikon Speedlights wirelessly, photographers can artistically use shadows, highlight details, and light complicated angles with ease. Along with the SB-900, the Nikon Creative Lighting System features a comprehensive assortment of personal lighting tools that include the agile SB-600 and SB-400, and the remarkable R1 and R1C1 Wireless Close-up Speedlight systems.
Pricing and availability
The new Nikon Speedlight SB-900 is scheduled to be available in August 2008 and will have an estimated selling price of $ 499.95 .** The SB-900 will be delivered with the Speedlight Stand, adapter rebound color filter holder , Color filter intelligent Kit, Broadcaster Dome and the Soft Case. The SD9 Battery Pack is also scheduled to be available in August 2008 with an estimated selling price of $ 230.00.
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