We bought a new one in 2003 Still using it, and we have just bought another one. Best money we have spent on speed lights. Our SB800's are used everyday and have never given us any problems at all. We have used it on D2x, D3 and D800's and we;re moving to Z9's shortly and I expect it to work there too.
It's a brilliant flash today in 2023 as well , I've used since new w/ a D70 & later into D3S. I like the SB-910 menu better but if you get to know it, it does what you need & some. I integrated them into my SB-R1C1 macro kit. Added some SB-600 remotes as well. Loads of fun & Nikon made flash lighting fun.
I bought mine back in 2003. it's been used with D70, D90, D300S plus D610 and D810. it works well when paired to my SB900 and up to 4x SB600's - Nikons CLS hasn't let me down.
I still use it with the fifth battery and many times with an external battery, it is still very fast to recycle between shots even when purchased with my much more modern falsh.
My cousin had one of these and it was not working, I traded her an extra SB-600 I had so she had a working flash. I said a few interesting words to the 800 and it works fine now. I came across a extra battery pack for it and it’s humming along nicely. Well done video.
The only annoying thing was the limited rotation to the clockwise missing that over your right rear bounce or rear 45° bounce in traditional betting grip position. But we worked around it as it is still a brilliant flash all these years It does support Nikon standard TTL film all the way back into the 1980s It’s has a very wide stop of A automatic thyristor (on flash sensor) for any standard hot shoe or PC sync. Close sensitive as 1m at f2.8 & ISO 200 w/ adapter enabled.
Hello. I just saw your video on the SB800 in 2020. I agree; this flash has preformed very well for me from my N90 to my D3X . In my line of photography which is dirt track racing I need a quick and reliable flash, and this is it. I usually shoot at half power, ISO 800 with a 5.6 lens at 70mm and the shots look fine. They ( I have 4) have done what I needed from the start. I have no need to buy the SB900 or SB910 or any other newer flash at this time. The SB800 performs well in the studio as well at the dirt track. I have bought all mine used and if I see a good price on another I will probably buy it too.
Thanks for your comment, could not agree more, it's a great flash at a great price! I have moved mostly to SB-900s but I get them at less than £100 so not a bad deal either :)
Great video and I am thankful that it is still viable 7 years laters. My 910 just took a dump and the buttons are not functioning as designed and I really dislike how overly complicated the menu system is. I think the SB800 will serve my needs better so off to ebay now. Awesome!
Thanks for sharing, interesting that you don't like the SB910 menu system - I prefer it over the SB800 but it's great the Nikon has kept compatibility even today!
Note: the SB-800 is the last Nikon flash to be compatible with older cameras like F5/D1, it will even work on the 1959 Nikon F. I own two, and hate the ergonomics/menu system but I try to live with it..
This is true, and another reason it's quite so fantastic, I honestly thing it's the best value as a used flash. Thanks for your comment and please consider subscribing to support the channel.
I’ve not had any issues with my SB-800 flashes to be honest. As I think I say in the video, if you get one in very good physical condition it has hopefully been owned by a hobbyist and has plenty of life 🙂 it’s a risk, but at 1/10 the cost of an SB5000 you could easily buy two of these can keep one as a backup 🙂 Thanks for hour comment - please consider subscribing to support the channel 🙂
Great video...thank you. I have used this flash professionally for many years and agree it is a workhorse. I have experienced overheating with this unit however. Once I burned it out completely, using lithium batteries shooting at an event. I was able to get it repaired and at the time it was definitely worth it. This past year it appeared to be doing the same thing after about 20-25 shots on TTL, also shooting with a bracket and a AS-19 cord..not sure if this was a factor. Luckily I guess it was just going into a conserve mode (for overheating) by cutting back the light and then I switched to another flash. Have you experienced this?
Also the last model made in Japan. Just saying…. I bought my SB-5000 new and within a couple of months the ‘OK’ text on the centre button has worn off. SB-5000 is Made in China. Again, just saying…
Thank you a lot for this review - glad you took the time as the question must be on many minds. As an owner of this flash and a recently bought used D850 (with no flash on the camera) I probably can't use it apart from the body because it won't get the signal, right?!
I had a D850 and used 2 SB800's with an SB600 and 400 as well as the SU unit. I believe it does need something to send the signal. The camera can't do it on its own. Glad to hear it will work with the z7ii.
If the camera has a 'hot shoe' it doesn't need a pop-up flash. but a speedlight or a trigger will fit and should work. The trigger should fire the SB800 - the SB800 menu can be a bit daunting at first - so be patient and play with it.
Thank you for this short video and the useful informations. You mentioned that this flash is working with the mirrorless cameras too. Is it working in TTL mode with a z6ii? Basically the z series cameras are not compatible with any 3rd party speed lights only in manual mode, what is really disappointing to be honest. Have you ever tested on a z body in TTL? Kind regard!
No issues with any of my Nikon flashes - the SB800/900/910 and 5000 work well with all the Z series bodies. Only exception is the AF-Assist lights don’t work but that’s not a surprise 🙂 Hope that helps
Thanks for your comment, hope you love your Z6 II, to use the flash remotely you won't need a WR-R10, but you will need another flash or SU-800 trigger. I'd suggest another SB-800 to use as a trigger, they can be picked up for as cheap as £30 or £40 on ebay. Hope that helps!
@@HamerReviews This answer probably covers my question about doing remote flashing with my D850.😀 I own an old small Nikon SB-400 that could do the job very well I hope.
Great Video! I Bought one of this few days ago. How it's possible to have this flash in continuous mode? Because sometimes I lost some shoots where the sb800 light doesn't work! I have an Nikon D750 and a Nikon SC-29 cable. Please help me. Usually I use Lithium Battery (AA)
Hello, this is all new to me. I would use it in full auto mode. I want to use it with my D500 to do bird photography and only will need it in poor natural light. How far will this flash extend please?
Well, I have an SB800, had it for years and not used it! I now have Nikon D7200 and got the new Nikkor 18-300 that’s on my camera most of the time. I found that the pop up flash isn’t good enough and need to get to grips with using the SB800! I tend to learn best using things rather than reading a long winded confusing hand book. Do you have any videos of using it?
@@HamerReviews Many thanks for the super prompt reply. I think i will get one anyway for my 300, at the price it's a bit of a bargain i think and my future 500 might use it too.
No offense, and certainly not a criticism of your video. Mine is just a simple commentary, which is this: "...Is the Whopper still a good sandwich to eat in 2023..." "...Are my 2015 nail clippers still worth it in 2023..." "...Is the original Top Gun worth watching in 2023..." Man, RU-vid is overrun with these types of videos. An ever flowing river of this: "...Is my 79 year old Grandma still worth it in 2023..." "...Is the original NCIS still a good show in 2023..." "...Are my 2002 archived files worth opening in 2023..." I know these "grabbers" are fodder for the algorithm, but holy smokes with these titles.
Light doesn’t have planned obsolescence built in. God isn’t just gonna update earth every 3 years to where the strobes light doesn’t work with most objects anymore. Corporate marketing NPCs these days 😂
Sorry what? I really don't follow what you're talking about? Light might not, but tech does, if anything this video argued that this flash is still a great flash? Did you actually watch the video or have you just come to troll? Skip to 07:45 and watch the conclusion at the least... honestly comments like yours are so funny to read -thanks for the entertainment.
