Nikon launch new Speedlight SB-700 flash to replace existing SB600

Nikon have just announced a new Speedlight flash in the form of the SB-700. With a compact body and packed with features, as well as being billed as easy-to-use, it’s set to be a top seller. It integrates flawlessly with Nikon’s DSLRs, FX and DX cameras, and its quick wireless control will make the flash appealing for a wide range of customers, including advanced photographers seeking to extend their Creative Lighting System. The SB-700 is versatile in the fact it can act as a master, controlling two groups of flashes, and can also act as a remote unit in a flash set up.

At £100 cheaper than the SB-900 it inherits some of the same advanced professional features, such as Nikon’s i-TTL metering system, but at the same time it has an easier-to-understand operating system, with a new improved LCD panel. The i-TTL automatically detects the lens focal length and adjusts the flash output accordingly for angles of view from 24mm to 120mm.

Users have the choice of three illumination patterns, which can be quickly selected to match a range of shooting scenarios, from portrait and studio to events and night-time photography. Key features also include a maximum guide number of 38, detecting flash head heat and delaying the recycling time if the temperature of the flash head rises, as well as fluorescent colour gel filters, which are set to be more durable and easier to use than the conventional film-type filters. These colour filters are automatically detected by the flash and tells the camera which type that is in use.

The SB-700 also comes with the practical Nikon Diffusion Dome to soften the light and even the shadows of direct flash. With any luck it will be in shops soon, priced at just £290. For more information head to www.nikon.co.uk.