Z7 II low frame rate with flash

[Kim Pilegaard]

I have a setup with a Z7 II, an SB-5000 flash with SD-9 battery pack and WR-R10 for radio control. I want to take pictures of small birds in flight and has therefore set the flash to manual and 1/16 output. Irrespective of how I set the frame rate on the camera (L, H, or H+), I only get 3 fps.

When trying the same with the D500, I get the 10 fps.

Can anyone explain what I do wrong - or is this just a limitation of the Z7 II?

[Bent Hjarbo]

Maybe there is some hints in this video
https://youtu.be/X9NjybeKct0

[Ilkka Nissilä]

I have a setup with a Z7 II, an SB-5000 flash with SD-9 battery pack and WR-R10 for radio control. I want to take pictures of small birds in flight and has therefore set the flash to manual and 1/16 output. Irrespective of how I set the frame rate on the camera (L, H, or H+), I only get 3 fps.

When trying the same with the D500, I get the 10 fps.

Can anyone explain what I do wrong - or is this just a limitation of the Z7 II?

Have you tried reducing the flash energy to 1/128 just to see if it is about the recharge time being insufficient? My guess is that the D500 allows the camera to fire whether the flash is ready (fully charged) or not, and the Z7 II may prevent firing until the flash is ready to go?

[Kim Pilegaard]

Have you tried reducing the flash energy to 1/128 just to see if it is about the recharge time being insufficient? My guess is that the D500 allows the camera to fire whether the flash is ready (fully charged) or not, and the Z7 II may prevent firing until the flash is ready to go?

Thanks for the suggestion. I reduced the flash energy to 1/256, and the result is still the same: 3 fps.

[Kim Pilegaard]

Maybe there is some hints in this video
https://youtu.be/X9NjybeKct0

Thanks for the link, Bent. I watched the video - at least to the part where Mark Cruz talks about frame rate with flash. He says that you can use flash and 10 fps, but does not explain how to do it.

[Nasos Kosmas]

I checked with z6, godox  x1T transmitter  and godox TT685 flash and got about 3 flashes on L and H , on H+ does not flash
About the same speed if the flash is on the hot shoe
Also the same  with z50 and got about 3,5 and again H+ does not flash

[Kim Pilegaard]

Maybe there is some hints in this video
https://youtu.be/X9NjybeKct0

Mark Cruz (Nikon USA) says at 16:50 in the video: "The new feature with Z7 II and Z6 II is when you put it on continuous extended getting up those 10 frames per second [or] 9 frames per second, depending on what your rate is for raw, you can now sync it with your flashes so your flashes can now sync beyond the five frames per second that we initially had”.

[Kim Pilegaard]

I put the question to Simon Stafford at Nikon Owner Magazines Technical Helpline. He stated that the maximum frame rate of the Z7 II while using flash is 5.5fps at Continuous High, and 3fps at Continuous High (extended).