Nikon SB-7 / SB-8 User manual

NOMENCTATURE

     Battery compartment



    Exposure calculator



    Shooting mode indicator



           mode selector





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FOREWORD
 These Nikon speedlight models bring you the advantages of light'
  weight, compactness and advanced circuitry. The use of a series-
  circuit configuration employing silicon controlled  rectifiers
 ensures that either unit retains all the unused charge in the
  capacitor for ultra-rapid recycling. When working at a distance
 of 1 meter and an aperture of f/4 (ASA 100 film speed), for
  instance, recycling time is less than l  second on automatic
  operation. Also, since the unused charge in the capacitors  is
  conserved, this likewise results in less battery power consumption,
  giving you more flashes per battery load. Despite the unit's small
                                 power either. An advanced  iir., th.r. is no loss of illumination
  reflector design, coupled with a high-output flash tube, gives
  corner-to-corner brightness and even illumination. An accessory
  clip-on diffuser extends coverage up to 75", perfect for use with
 28mm wideangle lcnses.
 To obtain the best results from these units, read this instruction
  manual carefully before use. Keep this booklet handy for quick
  reference until you have fully mastered operation. A few minutes
  of preparation will help you avoid costly mistakes.

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Attaching the SB-7 to the Camera
Nikon F2-series and F cameras
Turn the knurled ring on the mounting foot
until the slots in the inner and outer guards line
up. Next, slide the SB-7 unit forward onto the
camera's accessory shoe as far as it will go.
Then turn the outer guard to cover the opening
in the inner guard. This prevents the unit from
accidentally slipping off and at the same time
assures electrical contact with the ready-light
in the Nikon F2-series camera.

Nikon EL2 and FM, and Nikkormat EL,
 ELW,FT2 and FT3
  Attach the flash unit coupler AS-2 to the
  camera's accessory shoe in advance. Next, turn
  the knurled ring on the mounting foot until the
  slots in the inner and outer guards line up, and
  slide the unit forward onto the accessorv shoe
  of the AS-2 as far as it will go. Then turn the
  outer guard to cover the opening in the inner
  guard.
 Nikkormat FTtt
 Unscrew the finder eyepiece of the camera.
  Next, slip the optional Nikkormat accessory
 shoe in place and replace the eyepiece. Turn
  the knurled ring on the mounting foot until the
  slots in the inner and outer guards line up, and
  slide the unit forward onto the accessory shoe
  as far as it will go. Then turn the outer guard to
  cover the opening in the inner guard. Connect
  the sync 'socket on the unit to.the X terminal
 on the camera, using the accessory sync cord
 SC-7 (optional).
 Caution: Don't use the SB-7 with the Nikonos II,
  Nikonos III or the Nikon R10 and R8 Super Zoom
g cine cameras; there may be a short circuit.

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Attaching the SB-8 to the Camera
Nikon EL2 and FM, and Nikkormat EL, ELW,
FT2 and FT3
Turn the locking nut on the mounting foot
until it reaches the upper limit. Next, slide the
mounting foot forward onto the camera's
accessory shoe as far as it will go. Then
retighten the locking nut to prevent the unit
from accidentally slipping off.

Nikkormat FTN
Unscrew the finder eyepiece of the camera.
Next, slip the Nikkormat dcccssory shoe (availa-
ble as an optional accessory) in place and
replace the eyepiece. Turn the locking nut on
the mounting foot of the SB-8 until it reaches
the upper limit and slide the mounting foot
forward onto the accessory shoe as far as it will
go. Retighten the locking nut to secure the unit
and prevent it from accidentally slipping off.
Connect the svnc socket on the unit to the X
terminal on the camera, using the accessory
sync cord SC-7.

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Nikon F2-series and F cameras
 First, mount the flash unit coupler AS-l on the
camera's accessory shoc. Next, turn the locking
nut on the mounting foot of the SB-8 until it
reaches the upper limit. Then slide the mount-
 ing foot-forward onto the accessory shoe of the
 AS-1 as far as it will go. Retighten thc locking
nut to prevent the unit from accidentally
slipping off.
Nikon Rl0 and R8 Super Zoom
First, plug the sync cord SC-7 into the sync
socket on the SB-8. Next, turn the locking nut
on the mounting foot until it reaches the upper
limit. Slide the mounting foot forward onto the
camera's accessory shoe as far as it will go.
Then retighten the locking nut to prevent the
unit from accidentally slipping off. Insert the
sync cord contact point into the speedlight
sync terminal (tll on the camera.

FLASH SYNCHRONIZATION
Both the SB-7 and SB-8 synchronize with the  for a svnc cord.
shutter of the Nikon F2-series camera at shut-  With the Nikon F, the sync selector is used to
ter speeds of 1/80 sec. or slower, with the Nikon   adjust the camera for use with speedlights. First
F at 1160 sec. or slower, with other Nikon SLR  set the shutter speed at 1/60 sec.'br slower.
cameras at 11125 sec. or slower, and with the Then lift and turn the knurled sync selector
Rl0 and R8 Super Zoom cine cameras in single-  ring around the shutter-speed dial of the camera
frame shooting.                                until the FX mark appears in the selector
With the Nikon F2-series camera. a built-in  window. (The Photomic FTN finder must be
selector mechanism controls the speedlight  removed to gain access to the sync selector
sync adjustment automatically as you change   ring.) A hot-shoe contact built into the mount-
shutter speeds: simply rotate the shutter-speed  ing foot of the SB-7 eliminates the need for a
dial to the desired setting slower than 1/80 sec.  svnc cord.
The red line between l/60 and 11125 indicaLes
1 /80 sec. A hot-shoe contact built into the
mounting foot of the SB-7 eliminates the need

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With the Nikkormat EL and ELW, first set the  The Nikkormat FTx has two sync terminals
shutter speed at 11125 sec. or slower. Then lift  on the side of the camera. Connect the sync
and turn the knurled sync selector ring around   socket on the speedlight to the X terminal on
the shutter-speed dial until the lightning symbol   the camera using the accessory syno cord SC-7.
(?) appears in the selector window. A hot-shoe  The speedlight synchronizes with the camera's
                                                      speed at 1 1125 sec. or slower.contact built into the mounting foot of the   shutter
SB-8 eliminates the need for a sync cord.
With the Nikon EL2 and FM, and Nikkormat
FT2 and FT3, set the camera shutter speed for
11125 sec. or slower. Due to the built-in auto'
matic sync switchover mechanism, this is the
only step necessary to ensure proper flash
operation.

Rl0 and R8 Super Zoom                        angle of the shutter blade opening by depress-
 Flash synchronization is possible only with  ing the shutter blade opening control and
 single-frame shooting. Automatic exposure con-  turning it clockwise.
 trol can be made within the specified distance  With the R8, first ser the camera at 18 fps, and
 range.                                           slide the change-over switch toward the ,,S,,
With the R.l 0, depress the lock release button  (Single frame) mark. Then fully open rhe angle
and turn the running speed control dial until  of the shutter blade opening by depressing the
 the "SF" (Single Frame) mark clicks into place  shutter blade opening control and turning  it
 opposite the white index. Then fully open the  clockwise.

R10 Super Zoom                R8 Super Zoom

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  AUTOMATIC EXPOSURE OPERATION
                                                                         (ASA  The SB-7 and SB-8 control the amount of light   First position the speed of the film
   output depending on the flash-to-subject  dis-  number) opposite the white delta by turning
                                                                                                             be-t   tance. The farther away the subiect is, the more  the knurled rim of the calculator. Lines
                                                                                                               scale    light they emit; the closer the subject, the less  tween the numbers on the film-speed
                                                   represent intermediate settings such as 32, 64,  they emit. ln addition, the recycling time
                                                            as illustrated. Note the f/numbers opposite   changes with the distance. The closer the    etc.,
    subiect, the shorter the recycling time.            the orange and blue indicator blocks respective-
                                                    ly as the maximum distance range is indicated
  Exposure Calculator                          in both meters and feet opposite each colored
  The exposure calculator helps you to select the   block. Then read off the most suitable f/number
   usable range of f/numbers for the speed of the  which gives you the distance range, depth of
   film you are using and the effective distance   field and flash duration you want. On manual
   range. For any film speed, you have two                                                                          f7   control, read off the f/number which appears
   numbers to choose from. Each of the f/   opposite the distance You want.
   numbers determines the maximum distance
   range the auto exposure can control. The mini-
  mum distance remains 0.6m (2 ft) regardless of
   the f/number. With the distance unchanged, the
   smaller the f/number (the larger the aperture),
   the shorter the flash duration. Of course, the
    range of usable f/numbers changes with the film
   speed while the distance range remains the same
    for all soeeds.

Example  1
 lf you are using a film rated ASA ,l00, you can shoot
subtects at any flash-to-subject  distance from 0.6m    $
(2 ftl to 6m (20 ft) atf14 andfrom 0.6m,(2 ft) to 3m(10ft)atfls.
Example 2                                      $
When using a film rated ASA 100 with a flash-to-
subject distance of 3m (t O tt), you can shoot at either
 'f 14 or f 18. lf a short flash duration is preferable, use
the t14 setting. lf a greater depth of field is desired,
use the f/8 setting.





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Setting the f/number                    by a2l3-stop more than the indicated fi number
To set the desired f/number on the speedlight,  by depressing the EE lock/manual aperture
slide the shooting mode selector on the front   setting ring and turning  it clockwise or counter-
oanel of the unit until the white indicator block   clockwise.
on the top of the unit is positioned opposite the  With the R8, set the viewfinder needle by a
colored block corresponding to the appropriate   l/3-stop more than the indicated i/number by
f/number. Then, set the lens aperture according   depressing the central locking button and turn-
to the same f/number.                              ing the A-M-C knob clockwise or counterclock-
With the R10, set the needle in the viewfinder    wise.

The Reflector
On both the SB-7 and SB-8, the reflector tilts
through an arc of 180" with click stops every
90'. With the speedlight unit mounted on the
camera, set the reflector in the horizontal
position (calculator on top). The use of the
speedlight in the vertical position is generally
not recommended, since this will result in the
coverage of light falling off at the corners.

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TAKTNG AN AUTO FLASH PHOTOGRAPH
To activate the unit, slide the power switch to  Ready-Light/Open Flash Button
 the ON position. While the capacitor  is charging,  The ready-light doubles as the open flash
you will hear a soft whining sound which will   button. To activate, push down on the trans-
stop when the speedlight unit is fully charged,   parcnt ready-light. The open flash is used lor
and the ready-light indicates that the unit is   test firing and for discharging the speedlight to
 ready to fire. Select the appropriate f/number  "reform" the capacitor after a long period of
on the speedlight. Next, set the camera lens at   disuse. lt is also used for  f iring with the shutter
 the same f/number, compose, focus and press   held open at the B setting for strobe effects,etc.
 the shutter-release button on the camera. The   Caution: Remember that even before completion of
                                                                                                     speedlight fires speedlight automatically determines the correct   charging the ready-light glows. lf the                                                     lmmediitely after the lamp lights up, pictures taken flash intensity as long as the subject remains   will be slightly underexposed' To prevent this, open
                                                                                                                              several within the shooting range of the f/number  up the lens by a half stop more, or shoot                                                    seconds after the lamp lights up. However, perfect indicated on the speedlight.                                                  exposures can be made at all times in automatic Note: Be sure to slide the power switch to the OFF   exposure operation, except for the farthest distance
 Dosition when you are not using the flash unit'              ran se.

Ready-Light in the F2-series
Camera Finder
The Nikon F2-series cameras have a built-in
ready-light in the finder eyepiece. ln this way,
you can determine specdlight readiness withoui
removing your eye from the viewfinder. The
ready-light is connected with the speedlight
when the mounting foot of the SB-7 slips onto
the camera's accessory shoe. With the speed_
light in place, the ready-light on the sp.edlight
no longer glows, thereby conserving the battery.


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  MANUAT OVERRIDE
    In addition to its use in the automatic mode,
   your SB-7 or SB-8 can also be used manually.
   Switching the unit to manual sets the flash cir-
    cuit to full power for each exposure. Appli-
'   cationsor whenforusingthisGN-Nikkorinclude multiplelenses. flash shooting,                                              ,
   To set the unit on manual, slide the shooting
   mode selector until the white indicator is ad-
   jacent to 'M,' in-between the two automatic
   mode indicators.

F
'Red Eyes'Phenomenon
 'Red eyes,' an optical phenomenon in which a
sublect's eyes appear red in photographs taken
with a flash unit, are a result of the flash light
directly illuminating the retina. This happens
when the subject looks straight into the camera
on which a flash unit is mounted. The effect
becomes more pronounced  if there is little or
no ambient light. In this case, the iris of the eye
is wide open, and the illuminated retina  is
clearly visible.
To avoid 'red eyes' you can take any or all of
the following steps:
   1. Brighten the room to minimize the open-
       ing of the subject's pupils.
   2. lnstruct the subject not to look straight
      into the camera.
   3. Keep the flash unit as far away as possible
     from the camera by means of a sync cord.
Note that once 'red eyes' appear, there is no
way of retouching the negatives.

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A CCESSORIES
Sync Cord SC-7
Connects the SB-8 speedlight'unit  to  the
Nikkormat FTtt, Nikonos II, Nikonos III and
other cameras which have no hot shoe. Also
connects the SB-7 to the Nikkormat FTN.
Sync Cord SC-6
The coiled 1-meter extension cord permits
off-camera shooting with all types of Nikon
cameras. Fits both SB-7 and SB-8.
Sync Cord SC-10
Also connects the SB-8 to the Nikkormat FTN,
R10/RS Super Zoom, Nikonos ll/lIl and non-
 hot shoe cameras. Slides into the accessory shoe
of the camera and its sync cord is plugged into
the camera's sync terminal.
Flash Unit Coupler AS-1
Adapts the SB-8 to the Nikon F and F2-series
cameras. Has a hot-shoe contact which elimi-
nates the need for a sYnc cord.

ft"mtr U"it C"rpl"r nS-i
Adapts the SB-7 to the Nikon EL2 and FM, and
 Nikkormat EL, ELW, FT2 and FT3. Has a hot-
shoe contact which eliminates the need for a
sync cord. Should not be used with the R10.
R8, Nikonos II or Nikonos III.
N ikkormat Accessory Shoe
Used to mount a speedlight on the Nikkormat
FTN;supports SB-7 and SB-8.
Wide-Flash Adapter SW-2
Clips easily over the reflector of the SB-7 or
SB-8 to increase the angle of flash from the
normal 56" to 6J" when positioned horizontal-
ly and from 40o to 48o when positioned
vertically. lt also ensures adequate lighting at
the perimeter of the viewfield when the 28mm
wideangle lens is used.