V1.02
Thom Hogan’s Complete Guide to the Nikon D300
Page 561
Recommendations:
1. The most interesting use of this function is to
restrict
an
external SB-600, SB-800 or SB-R200 from going into
TTL
FP
flash mode at shutter speeds above 1/250.
TTL FP
uses short repeating bursts of flash, and has a maximum
power of about 1/8
th
that of normal i-TTL. Moreover, some
photographers feel that the burst of the
TTL FP
system
makes for slightly different edge definition on moving
subjects. If you have an external flash and TTL flash isn’t
working at shutter speeds above 1/250 (the SB-600 and
SB-800 LCD won’t show
TTL FP
), this is the setting to
check. Bookmark that in your brain, because it’ll come up
some day, especially if you reset Custom Settings banks.
2. The 1/320 option may raise eyebrows. Nikon, as usual,
hasn’t clarified anything in their documentation about
this; if anything, there is conflicting information in the
manual about whether this applies to internal or external
flashes. It appears that this is option is a return of the old
F5 trick, where the power is restricted on the flash.
Indeed, there’s one note in the D300 manual that suggests
just that. The problem is that Nikon hasn’t provided
enough specifics about this (only a chart for the SB-800,
even though the internal flash and other flash units can
use this function, too). Thus, I don’t recommend the
1/320
(Auto FP)
option
unless
you’re shooting in TTL
and
you
know that you won’t need anything close to full power.
This applies to both external Speedlights other than the
SB-800 (for which page 290 of the manual specifies GNs)
and the internal flash.
