Philadelphia, US
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Ray, whether or not using an SB-900 as your commander to run other flashes instead of the D700 built-in flash is a matter of perception, need, and whether or not the difference represents good value to you.
I seriously doubt most people have purchased the SB-900 solely to be a commander. We have to remember there's value in the SB-900 as a flash unit to light up our scene. Forgetting the extra features, it has far more power to light up a scene than the D700's built-in flash, and you can angle it, to easily bounce it too, something the built-in can't do. Lest I forget, if you put the SB-900 on a bracket, you can keep it vertical, above the lens, even in portrait mode (camera turned to the side for a vertical shot), while the built-in will be shining from the side in portrait mode.
The way I see it there are four major differences between the commander capabilities of the D700 built-in flash and the SB-900; 2 groups in the D700, but 3 groups in the SB-900 (both have the Master too), the SB-900's signals are sent further due to its power, when used as both a master and commander, the SB-900 is a superior flash unit compared to the built-in, when used as both a master and commander, the SB-900 can be used off camera for better positioning, helping in a variety of ways, tethered to the camera, via a cable such as the SC-28.
So, here's just one advantage of how the capability of the SB-900 can be used, compared to the built-in flash, as commander. I assume if you're considering using an SB-900 as a commander, there's another flash in the picture which can be a remote under CLS. Let's say you're taking a portrait. You want to light the face from both the left and right, but not straight on, but you want the camera to be pretty much straight on. You can use the SB-900 on the left, attached via an SC-28, and a remote flash on the right. The SB-900 will light the face from the left and command the remote to flash on the right. That's an oft used portrait lighting scheme for two flashes, and couldn't be accomplished by the D700 and one remote.
But what about the sophistication, ... hum? Let's merely talk about that extra group available with the SB-900. That extra group is really handy. For example, put the SB-900 on the left (Master), an SB-700 on the right (Group A), an SB-700 above the head as a hair light (Group B), and an SB-700 to light the background (Group C). With the SB-900 commander controls you can configure each of the 4 flash units to provide the precise light you want for the shot.
Ray, as to, is it a bonus to have the internal commander with the D700, versus none on the D3 series? I have a D700 on which I have used the built-in flash in a couple of emergencies when I left my speedlight in the hotel room while traveling. It was okay compared to the SB-800 or SB-900, but only okay, as far as I'm concerned, but it certainly was better than nothing and allowed me to get the shot. That being said, I don't think you choose between a D700 and a D3 or D4 series camera based on the built-in flash.
Ned
A Nikonians Team Member
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