I finally have some money saved up, and need some advice.

[John_05]

The cables most likely. The Vivitars use a proprietary connection. I don't know if they come with a 3.5 to pc cable either.

I've decided to go with the Cyber Syncs. I'm just going to get one flash for now, and another later on. I already have the Canon, so a 3rd can wait. When it's so hard to save up money, I think I'm better off spending it on those now instead of later.

Will I still need cables with those?

 

[John_05]

So far my Cactus V2s have proven fairly reliable.....I am happy with them and the range they provide. For the amateur at a fraction of the cost of a pocket wizards I think they are just fine.

Now if you are a professional, by all means.... go with something built for the professional like pocket wizards. BUT with a budget with $600, you can easily blow your entire budget on professional remote triggers alone.

I'm pretty much blowing the budget getting the Cyber Syncs, but I'll still have plenty to get everything else I need for now.

I just wont have any money to put towards buying that lens, but what I have has served me well so far, so I can handle waiting a little longer to get new glass.

 

[Village Idiot]

I've decided to go with the Cyber Syncs. I'm just going to get one flash for now, and another later on. I already have the Canon, so a 3rd can wait. When it's so hard to save up money, I think I'm better off spending it on those now instead of later.

Will I still need cables with those?

The cables most likely. The Vivitars use a proprietary connection. I don't know if they come with a 3.5 to pc cable either.

Call Alien Bees. They have good customer service and will let you know whatever you need.

You can get cheap cables from www.flashzebra.com . The guy that runs it is top notch too.

 

[John_05]

Call Alien Bees. They have good customer service and will let you know whatever you need.

You can get cheap cables from www.flashzebra.com . The guy that runs it is top notch too.

I checked a different site, and the Vivitar comes with a PC-1 Sync Cord.

This is the description from B&H.

"The PC-1 sync cord allows Vivitar flash models that feature an off-camera socket to be used remotely with cameras that feature a PC socket."

It looks like I shouldn't need any cables, but I'll order a set just to be on the safe side.

Thanks once again for the help.

 

[joecoulsonphotography]

I have advice for you, take the $600 and go to New York or somewhere very cool for a week or less and shoot thousands of pictures. It will make you much happier than more gear. It seems to me like for where you are in your journey of photography, you have plenty of gear. Shoot shoot shoot.

(this coming from an equipment junkie who has been in recovery for some time now)

 

[John_05]

I have advice for you, take the $600 and go to New York or somewhere very cool for a week or less and shoot thousands of pictures. It will make you much happier than more gear. It seems to me like for where you are in your journey of photography, you have plenty of gear. Shoot shoot shoot.

(this coming from an equipment junkie who has been in recovery for some time now)

Seeing as I live in New York, I still have $600 to spend.

Seriously though, this isn't the right time for me to try traveling anywhere.

I shoot a lot usually, but I've grown bored of the areas I have access to. I've also wanted to learn more about flash photography, so getting some gear to practice and learn with will inspire me to shoot a lot more, and hopefully spark some creativity.

Thanks for the suggestion though. :thumbup:

 

[joecoulsonphotography]

I shoot a lot usually, but I've grown bored of the areas I have access to....

hmmmm:er:

 

[Antithesis]

I'd look into improving your core equipment. It seems like your putting the cart before the horse. IMO a 10-20mm is going to be a lot more fun to play with than your reflectors and stuff unless you have an assistant and really like doing natural light portraits...

Also, what are you shooting? Primarily people I assume? If your getting bored, get the aforementioned wide angle and go wander around manhattan and have some serious fun and switch to a different genre for a little bit maybe.

 

[usayit]

I can understand where the fellow is coming from though.....

There's a big difference between learning a 10-22mm lens and learning how to work strobes (even with tiny flashes). He's just choosing to learn something else that has caught his interest... in other words... playing with strobed light over just learning another focal length.

With that said... I wouldn't suggest going overboard with the $$$ invested. This is true for any hobby/interest you pursue in the beginning. My whole kit (linked earlier) was around $270 and there's enough there to learn.

 

[John_05]

hmmmm:er:

I guess I should have been a little clearer with my post.

I don't live in New York City and have no way or money to get there, or anywhere else for that matter. I live on SSI, so my income is extremely limited. The city I live in is fairly small, but without a car, traveling to other places I haven't shot a thousand times is nearly impossible. I have a bad back, so riding a bus isn't a decent option for me either.

One of the main reasons I would like to learn how to use strobes, or just better light in general, is so I can still shoot and not have to spend my last $20 to go somewhere once a month to shoot new places. I'd also like to be able to take better family pictures, and I can't always do that outside where I can get better light.

I hope that clears things up a little. I'll try not to be so vague next time.

 

[John_05]

I'd look into improving your core equipment. It seems like your putting the cart before the horse. IMO a 10-20mm is going to be a lot more fun to play with than your reflectors and stuff unless you have an assistant and really like doing natural light portraits...

Also, what are you shooting? Primarily people I assume? If your getting bored, get the aforementioned wide angle and go wander around manhattan and have some serious fun and switch to a different genre for a little bit maybe.

I don't have an assistant, but I have stands and reflector arms to hold the reflectors. It's not quite the same and it takes longer, but it gets the job done, most of the time.

I plan on getting more lenses once I learn more about how to make good images with what I have. I've been very happy with the progress I've made in the last 5 or so years, so lenses are next on my list of things to get.

I've been shooting everything I can think of. I haven't been focusing on any one thing in particular. I just like shooting.

Thanks for the input though. :thumbup:

 

[John_05]

I can understand where the fellow is coming from though.....

There's a big difference between learning a 10-22mm lens and learning how to work strobes (even with tiny flashes). He's just choosing to learn something else that has caught his interest... in other words... playing with strobed light over just learning another focal length.

With that said... I wouldn't suggest going overboard with the $$$ invested. This is true for any hobby/interest you pursue in the beginning. My whole kit (linked earlier) was around $270 and there's enough there to learn.

I don't think I've gone overboard.... yet. I've been getting more and more serious about my photography over the last 5 years, and haven't quite spent $2000.00 yet.

I ordered the (3) umbrella adapters and the flash (Vivitar 285HV) so far, and in a week or so, I'll be ordering the triggers and cables I need.

I decided to get the Cyber Syncs so I don't (hopefully) have to get something better down the road. I need to buy better things when I can, because I don't know when I'll be able to afford to if I don't now, and I can't afford to buy inexpensive things over and over if something happens to them.

I'm also getting one a couple extra 5/8 - 1/4" x 20 adapters in case I lose one. At $4.00, they're pretty cheap. All that and the sync cables I need will come to about $435.00 when I'm done.

Thanks once again for the input. Its been extremely helpful.