Better Beamer and flash bracket

gluwater

I am looking at buying a Better Beamer and was wondering is a flash bracket needed for it. My set up will be the following:

20D
Gitzo 1227 CF legs
RRS BH-40 head
400 f/5.6
300 f/4
Better Beamer mounted on a 580EX on the hot shoe

Will the weight of the flash on the hot shoe off balance the lens being mounted on the tripod?

If I do get a RRS flash bracket I will also get a Cannon off camera shoe cord 2.

If I do not "need" to get a flash bracket would it still be bettr to get one? It seems like it would be more sturdy with one.

pathfinder

Nick - I've done it both ways.

The Beamer is real light and does not really change the balance point if the flash is mounted in the hot shoe.

With long glass, it helps if you can get the flash higher away from the shooting axis of your lens - This is where the flash bracket from RRS shines. Like everything we do in shooting, it is just another layer of stuff to mess with - but it is worth while if you plan on shooting from a location for a while. The longer the lens, the better it is to raise the flash up some.

I just ordered a second flash shoe for the B-91 flash bracket from RRS. This will allow the use of two flashes for macro for a larger light source or a two point source, or even a pair of Beamers at the same time.

You will need the Canon hot shoe ETTL extension cord to use a flash bracket.

gluwater

pathfinder wrote:

Nick - I've done it both ways.

The Beamer is real light and does not really change the balance point if the flash is mounted in the hot shoe.

I meant the actual flash, not the BB. I have never tried mounting the flash with a long lens on a tripod before and didn't know if it threw the weight too much on the camera.

pathfinder wrote:

With long glass, it helps if you can get the flash higher away from the shooting axis of your lens - This is where the flash bracket from RRS shines. Like everything we do in shooting, it is just another layer of stuff to mess with - but it is worth while if you plan on shooting from a location for a while. The longer the lens, the better it is to raise the flash up some.

This is exactly what I was wondering about. Thank you.

pathfinder wrote:

I just ordered a second flash shoe for the B-91 flash bracket from RRS. This will allow the use of two flashes for macro for a larger light source or a two point source, or even a pair of Beamers at the same time.

I didn't even think of using this for macro. This is a good idea and when Spring comes around I may give this a try. What are the two flashes you use? Do you use diffusers on them for macro use?