Photography News Issue 35

Photography News | Issue 35 | absolutephoto.com

43 First tests

Nissin Flash Di700A and Air Commander £199

Specs

Price £199 bundle price, Di700A £169 and Air Commander £49 individually Compatible cameras Nikon, Canon and Sony fit Guide number 54 (ISO 100/m at 200mmposition) Recycle time 0.1-5sec Colour temperature 5600K TTL function Yes with +/-2EV (in 1/2EV steps) Power levels (manual) 1/1-1/128 (1 stop increments) Flashduration 1/800-1/30,000sec Beamcoverage 16-200mm (full-frame with diffuser) Manual zoom 24-200mm Flash exposure lock Yes, via camera Syncmodes Instant Sync, Skip Preflash Stroboscopicmode No Wireless flash functions Yes Wireless groups /channels Three groups/eight channels Maxwireless range 30m AF assist beam Yes Flash ready indicator Yes Autopower dump Yes Vertical tilt -7° to +90° Horizontal rotation 360° (180° left and right) Power supply 4x AA batteries in flashgun, 2x AAA batteries in Air Commander Power saving 2mins (5mins in wireless/slave modes) Dimensions 140x75x115mm Weight (without batteries) 380g Contact kenro.co.uk, nissindigital.com Triggeringoptions Optical slave or radio

Off-camera photography has never been so easy to use or so affordable. Time was that you needed lots of expensive, complicated bits of kit, which didn’t always work, but over the last decade or so there’s been a genuine revolution. Technology has advanced, getting cheaper and more reliable, and smaller companies have taken on the big boys; photographers have been the winners. One of the latest examples of this trend is the Nissin Di700A flash; a wireless, TTL- ready speedlight which twins with the Nissin Air Commander unit to offer remote triggering and a range of other functions. I tested the Nikon version out onmy D800, but it’s also available in Canon and Sony fits. The first good thing to say is that the trigger uses a radio signal (RF) to fire the flash off camera and that means you don’t need to worry about line-of- sight. You can still trigger it optically if desired, but RF means a more reliable system and in testing I found it worked perfectly. Syncing the trigger with the flash was really easy too: you simply start with both units switched off then, on the flash, hold the power and Set buttons for 3secs. After a beep you hold the same two buttons on the commander unit and a blinking from the pilot button tells you that the two are twinned. You then set the group from one of A, B or C corresponding to that on the flashgun From there you can trigger the flash from up to a maximum of 30m away although the manual states this is ‘dependent on environment’. flash

As it’s radio-based, unlike systems which work optically the Di700A doesn’t have to be facing a certain way or even be visible, meaning you can tuck it behind objects. If you do suffer interference from other devices, the channel can be changed and there are eight for each group. The claimed range held true, although I found that beyond about 20m its success-rate dropped swiftly. Within 20m it fired all the time though, and I couldn’t think of too many situations where I’d need to use it further from the camera than that. The Di700A’s wireless functions aren’t just about triggering either; you can also control themode from the commander unit, setting it to either manual or TTL. In the former, power is controllable through eight levels from 1/128 to 1/1 and in TTL mode you can add compensation from -2 to +2EV in 1/2EV steps. The zoomhead can be set from 24 to 200mm. In terms of power levels and compensation, the same numbers hold true using the flash on camera, which means that, in manual mode, there’s not as much flexibility as on units which allow power variation in 1/3 or 1/2 stops. The same goes for the overall power output; with the Di700A’s Guide Number of 54 (ISO 100/m at 200mm), it’s no weakling, but it is perhaps a little behind some of its similarly priced competition. But while it potentially lacks a little power and finesse, I didn’t encounter any problems with the Di700A and got pleasing results.

The flash in use The Di700A was also easy to use in high-speed sync (HSS) mode both on and off camera, and aside from the modes already mentioned there’s full auto and two slave settings (so it will work in slave mode with and without a pre-flash from a master unit). The TTL mode performed very well on and off camera and generally the only tweaks required were to influence the light creatively, not in terms of exposure. When twinned with the camera’s own flash exposure compensation function I managed to get a +/-3 setting giving further options such as overpowering the flash from behind the subject to get a sunny backlit look. The Di700A’s recycle times are quite acceptable and with fresh AA batteries I clocked a recharge time in full power at just under 4secs – better than the 5secs stated in the manual. A hundred or so flashes later it dropped to about 8secs, but anything at 1/4 power or belowwas instantaneous. External powerpacks can be used and improve full-power recycling to under 1sec. Power saving kicks in after two minutes (five in slave or wireless modes) and all settings are retained; the commander wakes the flash up remotely. In terms of handling, there’s little chance of being overwhelmed by buttons as there aren’t many. Both the flashgun and Air Commander have

an on/off, set (or S), and pilot buttons as well as a wheel, while the Air Commander also has a mode button. Everything can be accomplished quickly and it soon feels like second nature. For example, on the Air Commander the mode button cycles between TTL, M and Z (zoom), with the set (S) button swapping the groups and the wheel setting output. There was one issue with the both units’ LED displays; they’re colourful, clear and easy to navigate, but less easy to see in bright sunshine. Similarly, on the Air Commander unit it had a habit of dimming to the point of being virtually invisiblewhen reaching a low battery level, and the more indicators are turned on the weaker it got. It’s a clear signal you need to swap its AAA cells. The Di700A is certainly a well constructed unit, with a solid, reassuring feel. Everything is tight with no rattle or flimsiness to be found. The locking flash head itself turns with assured stops through its range, left and right through 180° and a little over 90° vertically. The battery compartment is another well-designed feature, using a magazine, rather than slotting the cells in loosely. This means you can buy additional magazines (Nissin BM-02, £11) and keep them at the ready without fumbling for batteries; a nice touch. The Di700A also comes with a stand and pouch. KS

Verdict

The Di700A is an admirable flashgun; very easy to set up and use, with lots of options for different flash effects. What it little lacks in power and flexibility it makes up for in handling, and minor gripes about the screen aside it was a pleasure to use. Pros Built-in RF receiver, range of modes, great build and easy to use Cons Not as powerful as some; manual settings limited to 1EV steps, screens can be dim

Above The Di700A’s built-in radio receiver allows triggering, power, mode and zoom controls via the Air Commander unit, so you can shoot TTL-metered off-camera flash more easily. Here, Dorothy (homes4dogs.co.uk) is lit with some fill-flash at +1.3EV.