E-bay triggers
Toshido
Registered Users Posts: 759 Major grins
Previously I mentioned I ordered some E-bay triggers with a unique mount for the flash.
Previous thread
E-bay ad
Well they finally came in today. They were shipped on Jan 4, 2010 according to the seller. They arrived today, Feb 2, 2010. I do not truly blame the seller for the delay. I think customs held up the package.
Initial impressions are mixed.... I had one receiver triggering an old flash from roughly 200 feet away. I stopped backing up because I had already crossed a street and was walking up the driveway of the house across the street. Same receiver inconsistently fired my 430 EXII from a max of about 30 feet (I had put away the tape measure).
None of the receivers worked well through a brick wall either. Again I plan on further testing.
The other two receivers have a serious lackluster performance as well.
I also question the batteries I was using. I have a set of Energizer rechargables charging for later testing.
I do have pictures that I will post up later tonight. I also plan on retrying a distance check and maybe try it on a few different frequencies.
Well for now I got to serve up supper for the family then take the kids swimming.
I think I am going to like off camera flash.
Previous thread
E-bay ad
Well they finally came in today. They were shipped on Jan 4, 2010 according to the seller. They arrived today, Feb 2, 2010. I do not truly blame the seller for the delay. I think customs held up the package.
Initial impressions are mixed.... I had one receiver triggering an old flash from roughly 200 feet away. I stopped backing up because I had already crossed a street and was walking up the driveway of the house across the street. Same receiver inconsistently fired my 430 EXII from a max of about 30 feet (I had put away the tape measure).
None of the receivers worked well through a brick wall either. Again I plan on further testing.
The other two receivers have a serious lackluster performance as well.
I also question the batteries I was using. I have a set of Energizer rechargables charging for later testing.
I do have pictures that I will post up later tonight. I also plan on retrying a distance check and maybe try it on a few different frequencies.
Well for now I got to serve up supper for the family then take the kids swimming.
I think I am going to like off camera flash.
0
Comments
Yes, please do keep us informed especially regarding the distance for reliable performance.
Moderator of the Cameras and Accessories forums
Kris
Put in new AAA rechargable batteries and it seems to have improved the range considerably. Still need to get them outside and check to be sure. With the iffy batteries 5 feet through a wall was too much for the triggers. now from the far side of the apartment (20 feet) an old fully walled over chimney and a wall away the flash will trigger using the transmitter test button.
Looking forward to getting the kids settled and hitting the driveway again. Will be overjoyed if I am getting 200+ feet with all three of them. Considering they claim 100'.
Just as an aside, off camera flash in manual mode does not seem nearly as daunting a task as I was thinking it would be. Already got a neat moody shot of my son and had fun playing with it a little inside. This is gonna be fun.
Hopefully by next Christmas family portrait time my family will be coming to me instead of.... Zehr's....
With clear line of sight I am getting 80-90% firing at 50', a much poorer 20% or so at 100'. With a brick wall in the way I am getting around 80% at 30'.
It seems to be more consistent with the test button than hot shoe though. So maybe tomorrow I will do the same thing again using the sync cable that was included.
Tonight all the testing was done one receiver at a time using my 430EX.
Overall I am happy with what I got. It is a far cry from pocket wizards, but then again so is the price. For some simple portraiture and relatively short ranges from camera to flash I think this will work great. If you are trying to light up a gym or stadium, then you will be sorely disappointed, I think.
There is still more testing I want to do, especially concerning the sync cord and using an older flash to test ranges though.
Then of course the playing around to see what I can do with two off camera flashes, that is what I am really looking forward to of course.
Package almost as received. I jumped the gun and cut the top open to see them quickly. But as you can see the box was damaged when delivered. Contents safe and sound though.
Contents of box. Minimalistic but sufficient.
Contents unpacked waiting for batteries.
Finally an unwilling target. Poor batteries in the triggers meant only one flash triggered. Also this was shot at SS 1/400. Faster than the camera can sync with flash. Black on bottom is where shutter (?) blocked flash.
I also have not had luck with high speed sync on the 430EX. So it looks like max shutter speed will be 1/250.
i use a cord like this, it pretty much eliminates my connection issues
Not an option for me.
First the 430 EX does not have a Sync port. Second the receivers do not have a sync port either.
The hot shoe connection to the receivers is one of the reasons I went with these receivers. I wanted low profile hot shoe mount receivers so I could avoid using an adaptor between receiver and flash.
I'm a dark side shooter, but I know Ziggy will have an answer for you shutter sync issues.
good luck
It's not what you look at that matters: Its what you see!
Nikon
http://www.time2smile.smugmug.com
Whats a Dark Side Shooter? Forgive my ignorance
Sometimes Nikon shooters call their following the "Dark Side", but it's just a bit of good fun.
Moderator of the Cameras and Accessories forums
The dark side is Nikon, since we generally dont have white lens.
It's not what you look at that matters: Its what you see!
Nikon
http://www.time2smile.smugmug.com