thinking about a pocket wizard

[Cobalt]

so starting to work on a lighting set up. and i was looking at triggers. everyone seems to use pocket wizards and i have seen plenty of good reviews on them so im wondering is that the way to go for a starter set up? what i was thinking of doing was taking my flash for my camera and getting a light stand and the umbrella and going that route for my first off camera flash. what do you think?

[ALwin]

Are you looking for a wireless trigger that supports TTL or just plain old manual sync?

If you just want to start out with manual syncs, get the Yongnuo RF-60X (X being a number) wireless triggers from ebay for your camera and flash. They are cheap, a set of 2 receivers and 1 transmitter costs around $50 with free shipping. Great for starters, very low cost/low risk investment.

A little above the Yongnuo are the Phottix Strato II set. They are more costly than the Yongnuo, but the transmitter that goes on top of the camera allows TTL pass through. Or you can attach a receiver to your camera and use the transmitter as a wireless shutter release.

Above the Strato II sits the Phottix Odin (currently for Canon only, Nikon version might be released soon) that supports TTL on the receivers. There is also the Pixel King/Knight that supports TTL on receivers.

Pocketwizards are as far as I know considered the top of the line wireless speedlight accessories. But the question is do you really want to invest in so much right away?


Are you thinking of using this setup in a studio or closed room type environment or planning to take it outdoors also? You might actually want to have at least 2 speedlights and 2 lightstands. As for umbrellas and softboxes, check out Lastolite, they make 8-in-1 umbrellas and other multi use accessories. They also make a wonderful hotshoe to light stand mount that has an opening for umbrellas. http://www.lastolite.com/tilthead-shoe-lock.php

[Cobalt]

was wanting to do wireless. was planning on using them indoors and outdoors. was leaning to more top of the line though because when i get together with other photographers that have the lights they always seem to have pocket wizards and i was thinking i could use mine to use there lights, but like you said as a start up kit i dont know if i want to drop that much money on them while im still learning.

and far as ttl and manual im not sure at all which one i should go for. ttl is just more auto metering and exposures right? but yongnuo sounds like it might be a good package deal, something ill have to look into. but if i go with the pocket wizard i have to buy the receivers and transmitters all separate right?

[ALwin]

Yes with the PWs, I have spoken to and seen the products at my dealers, you have to buy them individually. In Switzerland, even the non-TTL PWs cost over 200CHF each.

I got a set of Phottix Strato II 1 transmitter and 4 receivers for $250 and truthfully if I am keeping my flash offshoe, I don't really mind not having TTL. And all wireless transmitters, regardless of brand, their range may say something like 100m, but you'd probably never be more than 10m away since you are using flash and not studio type of lights which are more powerful.

The Yongnuo are rated to have a top speed of 1/200 sync, the Strato II have a top speed of 1/250.

Even professional bodies like the D700, D800 and D4 have 1/250 as their true top sync speed. Only when using FP mode do they get faster sync. But FP mode is a little tricky, there are some downsides to using FP mode and not staying within the camera's supported true sync speeds.

I think the Yongnuo are perfect for starters, they force you to learn how to manually set up your flash. Also, Yongnuo, Phottix, Pixel, etc. when you buy their triggers, they also provide the cables necessary to connect the receivers to not just camera flash, but also to professional studio lights.

Another thing with PWs, unlike the Yongnuo, they do not use the universally free 2.4GHZ wireless frequency. If you buy the PWs in the US, you will get a different frequency then the models they ship to Europe. If you want to use the lights of other photographers when you get together, why not ask them if you can use it.

And yes TTL is through the lens metering (autometering as you said). Good if you use the flash on the camera, not really good if you use the flash either offshoe or behind softboxes, umbrellas, etc. With umbrellas, softboxes, etc, you need to learn to compensate for the lost of light.

[Cobalt]

so im looking at a lot of these wireless syncs and like the yongnuo is for canon and nikon. i have a pentax... does it really matter with the syncs? i thought they would be universal

[ALwin]

No unfortunately they are not all 'Universal'. Ok having a quick search on the web:

1) Pocket Wizards
- They have the Mini and Flex which are for Nikon/Canon
- not sure if the Plus series will work with Pentax
- my suggestion is send an email to their customer service or information desk and see what they have for Pentax

2) Phottix has the Aster model that works with the Pentax AF-540FGZ
http://www.phottix.com/en/flash-accesso ... er-2r.html

3) When I enter 'wireless flash trigger yongnuo pentax' this in Ebay, I get some results. But I don't know much about the Yongnuo models that come up in the results. The CTR 301 series seems like a good product, and compact in size but some reviews on the web seem to indicated that though it does work with Pentax there are some reliability issues.

I would definitely look around some more, maybe ask your local professional camera dealer on what they would suggest.

[Cobalt]

ok thanks heaps alwin for all your help

but for my future reference when we talk compatibility for the cameras, the triggers have to be compatible with the camera or compatible with the flash unit? because i was thinking i might get another cheaper flash just so i can have 2 lights off camera

[ALwin]

The most basic wireless triggers do nothing more than close the circuit that tell the flash to fire. The receiver doesn't receive any other signal from the transmitter than that of telling it to close the circuit and make sure it matches the standard flash sync speed, so all the other settings (focal length values, flash power output, aperture values, etc. that are used to calculate exposure) are done on the flash. What you need is mainly a transmitter that would be compatible with the camera.

And since most of the off brand low cost wireless triggers are sold as a set (e.g. 1 transmitter and 2 receivers), they will work with the flash designed for the brand of camera. And as far as I know, apart from Sony which uses a different type of hot-shoe mount for their flashes, Nikon, Canon, Pentax, etc, seem to use a standard sized mount with similar connections for the at least the flash circuit.

If you need to buy a 2nd or 3rd speedlight, there are third party brands that make speedlights which are compatible with Pentax cameras. Such as Yongnuo, Nissin, Sigma, and Metz. Just make sure you buy one that supports manual mode.

[Cobalt]

so what your telling me if i have this right is that canon nikon and pentax all have the same hot shoe mount? and i buy lets say this trigger which states it is for canon...

http://www.amazon.com/Yongnuo-Wireless- ... 114&sr=1-5

it should work for my pentax? and if i buy another flash like vivatar that is compatible with my pentax then i shouldnt have a problem?

[ALwin]

They all have the same standard size mount with similar circuitry only for the connectors that trigger the firing of the flash. There are other circuitry and connections that are not all the same between the different brands (Canon, Nikon, Pentax).

Nikon D700


Canon 5D Mark II


Pentax K-5


The size and shape of the hot-shoe mount is the same standard size. But you notice that the connections are different between the different brands, except that all of them have a single large circular connection point around the middle. That larger connector is usually the connector that completes the circuit for triggering the flash.

[Cobalt]

ok i got ya... thanks again for all the help. im new when it comes to flash and trying my best to learn about it

[ALwin]

The Yongnuo you found on Amazon is designed for Canon though the product images they show seems to be the Nikon version, notice the different positions of the small connection points compared to the camera images?

Basically if you can find a trigger that has none of the smaller connections, and only has the 1 large connection, it should be compatible with any speedlight that uses the same standard hotshoe, regardless of brand. There might be issues of electrical power compatibility but usually the flash is powered by its own battery and not the battery from the wireless receiver (which is only used to power the wireless component and to 'jump start' the flash's circuit).

However as that large connection point only connects the circuit for firing the flash, without the other connectors, the flash might not know the sync speed of the camera shutter, whether you want rear shutter, or slow shutter, etc.


By the way, have you considered Continuous LED lighting options instead of speedlights? There are some great low cost LED light panels of various sizes on Ebay. With continuous lights, you don't have to worry about camera sync speeds and exposure settings. Just shine the light continuously on the subject, have the camera or hand held meter give you the exposure settings and press the shutter.

Something like this for example: http://www.ebay.com/itm/160-LED-Video-L ... 414f544acc

I have 4 of them, each one gives enough light over a wide enough area to do some portraiture work. And they can be attached together to form a larger panel, or placed around a small studio type space to light the subject. Of course if you work in a larger studio type space or trying to photo large scenes, you might need to buy larger panels or buy more smaller panels like these and connect them together.

I think it would be a good idea to explore this option too.

[Cobalt]

well im mainly leaning toward flash because one of my friends is a professional skate boarder and im going to try and get some good action shots of him doing what he does down at the local skate park. and its time i start getting into lighting and learn how to do all that. i have done a lot of model work but it has been more natural light and when i shoot with a friend use there set up. but for the more action shots its best i use flash to freeze the action though right?

[ALwin]

Freezing the action is mainly about having enough light for a fast shutter speed.