I want 2 flashes, each on a tripod. Wireless. Any ideas?

Discussion in 'Photography Equipment & Products' started by keith204, Sep 17, 2007.

  1. Sep 17, 2007 #1
    keith204

    keith204 No longer a newbie, moving up!

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    I'd like to have the capability to set up 2 tripods, each with a flash, and when I shoot my camera, BOTH flashes to go off. How possible is this, and what budget am I looking at. A friend recommended Flash Triggers from eBay, has anybody used this type of thing?

    I'm great with a Sigma flash, or whatever is cheap... this is for more a Hobby than to make money.
     
  2. Sep 17, 2007 #2
    Garbz

    Garbz No longer a newbie, moving up!

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    Cheap light stands, not tripods. They extend higher but aren't as sturdy. I know someone with those wireless ebay triggers. They work very well, good enough that I recommend them to anyone who can't afford the $400 for pocketwizards, and many who can afford them but should spend their dollars on better lenses or another flash.

    One trigger clips into the hotshoe, the other onto the flash unit either direct into the flash shoe or via a sync chord. From there it's just click and adjust.
     
  3. Sep 17, 2007 #3
    Big Mike

    Big Mike I am Big, I am Mike Staff Member Supporting Member

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    There are plenty of options and the price will vary.

    First, the triggering system. You could go with E-bay triggers...something like THIS, or THIS. With that 2nd one, you would need some sort of hot shoe adapter, or flash unit that have the right socket for the plug.

    I have one like the first one, and it works fairly well but not really well. It doesn't fire every time and lately, it's been triggering the flash twice.

    For either set up, you would need one transmitter and two receivers.

    A better, but way more expensive option would be Pocket Wizards. Their units are 'transceivers'...so they can be used as receivers or transmitters. They can also be used to trigger the camera remotely. They are reliable but rather expensive. Somewhere around $200 each, I think...and you would need three.

    You could use optical triggers like THIS. They fire the flash when another flash is fired in the area. You would need one flash to fire though. It could be the built-in flash or a hotshoe flash on your camera. You could combine this with the radio trigger and have one flash triggered with the radio slave and the other one triggered optically.

    The third option would be to use Canon's IR wireless technology. You have a 430 already, which can be a slave, so you would need another slave and a master to go on the camera. The 580 can be either a master or a slave and the ST-E2 is a master only (no flash). Either way, this is a rather expensive way to go. However, it does allow you to retain E-TTL flash metering and you can set your ratios and control the power off all units from the master. They say that the IR system is good inside, but not all that reliable outdoors where it can't bounce off of walls etc.

    For flash units, if you go with the radio or optical triggers...any old flash unit will do. I'd suggest somthing cheap but that has some power. I've heard good things about the Sunpak 383.
     
  4. Sep 17, 2007 #4
    Big Mike

    Big Mike I am Big, I am Mike Staff Member Supporting Member

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  5. Sep 17, 2007 #5
    JIP

    JIP No longer a newbie, moving up!

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  6. Sep 17, 2007 #6
    kundalini

    kundalini Been spending a lot of time on here!

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  7. Sep 17, 2007 #7
    jstuedle

    jstuedle No longer a newbie, moving up!

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    In another post I mentioned I used to use a couple Sunpak 383's, lightstands and Wien optical triggers. I used the on camera flash pointed at a remote flash to trigger the optical slaves. I used 30" umbrellas and this combo worked great for location animal portraits. This was the cheapest and most portable way to go for me at the time. Pocket Wizards are more reliable at greater distances but a lot more pricey. I now use 5 Pocket Wizards, 4 Nikon SB series flashes and superclamps. With this combo I have lit up an auditorium with 4 stops more light than 128 par cans rafter mounted. It all depends on your goals and pocketbook.
     
  8. Sep 18, 2007 #8
    Mike_E

    Mike_E No longer a newbie, moving up!

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    Light stands, Hong Kong wireless and a couple of these... http://super.nova.org/DPR/DIY01/ .

    If you find an old flash of any sort at a Goodwill store or pawn shop you can put an optical slave on it and hide it behind your subject for a cool effect.

    Do go wireless though as when you are on location you may have to have the flash behind a wall or through a doorway and the opticals won't work.
     
  9. Sep 18, 2007 #9
    WDodd

    WDodd TPF Noob!

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    They have strobist kits out at www.mpex.com which is a cool place out of Columbus, Ohio. www.amvona.com has some cheap stands that I heard some people on here talk about. I have a reflector from there that was really cheap compared to other places.
     
  10. Sep 18, 2007 #10
    XJBaylor

    XJBaylor TPF Noob!

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    A new option, that is said to be very very reliable is the Elinchrom Skyport. About half the price of pocketwizards to purchase two receivers and one transmitter. Slightly less range and slightly less durable, but I think it is still a pro level product, you just need to be a little more careful when you transport them.

    Keith
     

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