Nikon SB 900 Problem

[haring]

I have noticed the following problem at a wedding with my Nikon SB 900 flash:

- If I take 3-4 pictures immediately after each other the individual pictures are inconsistently exposed. For example, the first one is dark, the second one is lighter, the third dark again and the forth one is lighter again. The difference is not that bad so I cannot compensate in PP but still weird!

If I take the pictures without the flash all the pictures are evenly exposed so the camera works perfectly...

Has anybody experienced this?

[Digidave]

Are you waiting for the flash unit to regenerate? The unit needs time to build up power again in order to get a 100% flash.

[inkista]

Another possibility is if you're using iTTL--the metering will change as the scene in the frame changes, so the flash's power output will vary according to the metering. Obviously, the metering mode you're using is going to have an effect, too.

This is why Nikon gives you FEC (flash exposure compensation), as well as a Manual mode. If the flash is in Manual mode, much like having the camera in Manual mode, you'll have more consistency between shots.

[jdepould]

You're probably at or near full power, which takes a while to recycle. Regular alkaline batteries require four seconds to recycle from full power (better than SB800).

Another thing to watch out for is overheating, which is common with rapid, high power use.

[sk66]

I hate to mention it, but I've managed to leave bracketing on when I didn't mean too...

[Digidave]

Originally Posted by sk66

I hate to mention it, but I've managed to leave bracketing on when I didn't mean too...

Oh yeah! I hear that!