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Flash Transmitter

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 mike_uk82 08 May 2012
Just looking for a bit of advice on flash transmitters.

Ive got a 5d ii and 430exii flash. Do I really need canons fancy transmitter or will one of the cheaper ones do.

I will never be a great distance away from the flash so range isnt an issue but ill want to be further than a cable will allow.

Any help greatly appreciated.
 harry1969 08 May 2012
In reply to mike_uk82: If you don't need TTL then don't waste money on expensive triggers. Just get Yongnuo 603's (which people seem to rate though I've not used) or Cactus V5's, which I have and they're brilliant. They trigger every time and range is excellent too.

Harry.
 stoo2k 08 May 2012
In reply to mike_uk82:

I just got a pair of Pixel Kings. 100m range, HSS of 1/8000s... bit chunky but fire perfectly every time. Probably overkill for me as I've no real experience of off camera flash, but I had £100 Amazon vouchers that needed spending. Still cheaper than Pocket Wizards though!
Ulrik Hasemann 08 May 2012
In reply to mike_uk82: The cactus v.4 works fine too. A bit cheaper than v.5.
 David Ponting 08 May 2012
In reply to mike_uk82: Switch to Nikon line of sight transmission is built into everything above a D7000!

More seriously, does your flash have an "SU-4" mode (that might be the Nikon term or it might be the generic term) - i.e. responds to almost anything that flashes?

I've got mine to respond usefully to a different-branded compact camera before; but on the other hand I've set it to that at a party and had it flash to everyone else's cameras, blowing out all their pictures. It's a hack, but it might be a short term solution for you.
 chris fox 08 May 2012
In reply to mike_uk82:

Depending on what you are shooting depends on what you want to get. For indoor shooting with the flash close-by there is the built in infra red on the 5dII, the cheapo ebay triggers are unreliable, they will work but can fail (I had some that didnt always fire).

I now have the pixel kings and they are fantastic, flashes every time without fail, i paid £188 for a transmitter and 2 receivers of amazon.

also there is the Hahnel wireless trigger
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Hahnel-Combi-TF-Wireless-Canon/dp/B003U9VKUW/ref=sr...
 ChrisJD 08 May 2012
In reply to mike_uk82:

I use these (can't fault them for the money)!

http://tinyurl.com/3wgppd5

All manual - much more fun.
 Sean Bell 08 May 2012
In reply to mike_uk82:

Titan Pro's by Interfit are the cheaper alternative to Pocket wizards(they can also trigger and be triggered by pocket wizards) £80 per transceiver.Take AA batteries which is very handy(no tiny wee screws to undo to replace watch batteries).Flash sync 1/250.Great range.4 channels and can be used to trigger the camera shutter with optional cable.

Dont bother with TTL. learn to use flash manually, more rewarding in the long run.





OP mike_uk82 08 May 2012
In reply to mike_uk82: Thanks for the help all.

Ive just ordered one off amazon. £24 ish. Fingers crossed it will do the job. Seems similar to the one ChrisJD has.

I dont know why canon think they should charge so much.
 Arjen 08 May 2012
In reply to ChrisJD:
Those PT04 are very old models, and take some expensive battery. Mine also died after a year or so, and weren't very reliable.
For a little bit, of not the same money you have v4 or v5, both of which are excellent and work on normal, rechargeable AAA batteries. I have the V5s and they are very good, very useful that they double-up as a wireless shutter-release too, including the half-way shutter-press.


Only nuisance is that I regularly forget to turn them off, meaning that the batteries are almost always dead. Spare batteries are a must with these things.
 Arjen 08 May 2012
In reply to SeanB:
> (In reply to mike_uk82)
>
> Titan Pro's by Interfit are the cheaper alternative to Pocket wizards(they can also trigger and be triggered by pocket wizards) £80 per transceiver.Take AA batteries which is very handy(no tiny wee screws to undo to replace watch batteries).Flash sync 1/250.Great range.4 channels and can be used to trigger the camera shutter with optional cable.
>
> Dont bother with TTL. learn to use flash manually, more rewarding in the long run.

80 quid per transciever is not that cheap, cactus V5s are a better deal with 15 channels, with even (limited) grouping ability.

TTL flash shooting can sometimes be quite handy, if light conditions change but you want the exposure on that flash-lit part of the subject be equal, TTL with spot-metering can be quite practical, especially if the flash is in an awkward position, like in a softbox and not easily accessible.
I'm still hoping for cheap wireless triggers that let you adjust the power of the flashes from the transmitter on the camera.
 ChrisJD 08 May 2012
In reply to Arjen:

What you on about - the receivers take AAA ?

The transmitter takes an 23A (12V) Mini battery - the factory one was a bit crap, easily replaced with a decent one for 50p. Not had any problem with transmitter.

Do the job for me - worked perfectly on Monday shooting off a couple of hundred shots! Synced to 1/250.
 Sean Bell 08 May 2012
In reply to Arjen:

Hadnt heard of Cactus before.look OK, sync speed up to 1/1000 would be handy.

Not sure I like the look of the channel selector(does it stay put?)The Titans automatically know if they are in transmit or receive mode(they also sync with Pocketwizards, which I find handy as I can borrow units from colleagues when I need more wireless options)

TTL is the work of the devil. Go manual or go home.

 Arjen 09 May 2012
In reply to ChrisJD:
The only 12V battery I could find was more expensive, and the transmitter I had just stopped working after a year. Also, I ordered 3 receivers but 1 was DOA. My success rate with the working ones was about 80%, with my current ones close to 100%.
YMMV, from what I've read is the quality a bit flaky, with people being lucky and others not. I'm just saying that currently there are better options that aren't that much more expensive.
 Arjen 09 May 2012
In reply to SeanB:
> (In reply to Arjen)
>
> Hadnt heard of Cactus before.look OK, sync speed up to 1/1000 would be handy.

High sync speed is only useful for camera's like a D40 and other camera's with an electronic shutter - I guess for the current crop of mirrorless camera's a high sync speed is really cool.

> Not sure I like the look of the channel selector(does it stay put?)

It does.

>The Titans automatically know if they are in transmit or receive mode(they also sync with Pocketwizards, which I find handy as I can borrow units from colleagues when I need more wireless options)

Ok, that is a big plus, cool that they're compatible.

> TTL is the work of the devil. Go manual or go home.
>
>

Nah, with TTL you don't miss shots because you were fiddling your flash...
 ChrisJD 09 May 2012
In reply to Arjen:

> The only 12V battery I could find was more expensive

Not really hard to find:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Twin-Pack-Energizer-Alkaline-batteries/dp/B002YOWPH...

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