Nikon SD-8A Battery Pack

Nikon SD-8A battery power pack

For quite a long time, trying to get a hold of a Nikon SD-8A/SB-800 power pack was an exercise in futility, thankfully they are readily available now. The SB-800 is a fantastic speedlight that is built to withstand professional use & abuse. One area in which all speedlights suffer though is their recycle time and the number of flashes you can get out of a set of batteries. For the vast majority of users, this will never be an issue if you use the 5th battery chamber and are using it to shoot precious memories of the family.

When you are depending on the SB-800 to deliver the goods each and every time for a paid event where you may be taking over a thousand shots, the SD-8A may just be the best accessory you can buy for your SB-800. The SD-8A is not a complicated piece of equipment, it has a simple yet vital job to do and it does it well. On the top of the range speedlights (SB-800 and some previous versions including the SB-80DX) it allows you to add another 6 AA batteries which makes a world of difference in the recycle time and number of shots you can take.

As to the speed difference between using the SB-800 with 5 batteries and using the SD-8A with the extra 6 batteries, Nikon claims it to be up-to 75% faster and although I’ve never taken out a stop-watch to time it, I’d say that sounds about right. Of course, using high power rechargeable NiMH AA batteries will make a big difference whether or not you have the SD-8A as a first step if you need to get the recycle time down, but if you’re working with a SB-800 you need to know that the camera and speedlight are ready to take the shot when you have to press the shutter, those few seconds can make a huge difference. I also seem to get almost double the number of flashes with the SD-8A attached which makes it worth the price just for that feature as at some weddings, I’ll easily go past what the default 5 batteries are capable of.

Power packs are nothing new of course as they’ve been around for ages. What is great about the Nikon SD-8A though is its size and weight. It really adds almost nothing and is so small and light it can even fit in your shirt pocket if needs be, although I generally have it attached to my belt. For the small sacrifice of having a wire dangling from your speedlight, you get a lot more functionality so if you depend on your SB-800 for a living, the SD-8A is an easy recommendation and one of the strongest points in favor of buying the SB-800 over the SB-600 which cannot utilize the power pack.