Hello everyone
I would like some advice on flash photography. Firstly, a quick introduction of myself and my current gear, for context. (Please bear with me, and thanks in advance for reading and your responses).
With over 20 years of photography experience, (the most recent 12 years with Canon DSLRs), I consider myself an advanced amateur level. I have taken photos from many genres, mainly concentrating on landscape, wildlife, nature macro and occasional ‘event’ (e.g. camps, celebrations, functions). I am a middle-aged married guy living in Australia.
I own a Canon 7D, 400D and 350D. I use the 7D for 98% of my current photography (the 350D was my main camera from 2005 till late 2009 – when I purchased the 7D). The 400D I purchased second hand a few weeks ago. My mainly used lenses include the Canon 15-85mm, 70-300mm L, 100mm macro, 50mm f/1.8 STM and Sigma 8-16mm. I regularly provide people with advice when it comes to photography: composition, techniques, what gear to buy, etc.
However I consider myself only at a ‘intermediate level’ when it comes to flash photography. I have owned a Nissin Di866mkii for about 5 years but have used it relatively infrequently. I learned all of its functions (it is a great flash – with a lot of bang for the buck – e.g. master functionality, sub-flash, high GN, etc). I bought the Nissin Di866mkii new online for about half the price that the 580EX II was selling for at that time.
I have recently decided to expand my skills in the area of flash & artificial lighting. In recent weeks I purchased three second hand Canon Flashes (2 x 430EXII and 1 x 430EX) from 3 sellers for great prices (around AUD$100 each). These 3 new Canon flashes are in great condition and work perfectly, both mounted on my 7D and 350D, as well as off camera. Each is controlled from my 7D flash menu and inbuilt flash being the ‘master optical trigger’. The 3 flashes also function as slaves with my Nissin 866ii as master.
Currently photography is ‘just’ a hobby (a very passionate one). I have a full time job working in middle management in the Australian Government. I often help out friends by taking photos at birthdays, celebrations, parties, weddings, church events, camps, etc. But mainly photography is for my own interest and enjoyment. Most times I have been given gifts or tokens of appreciation. I may look into setting up a part-time photography business.
Ok… so onto the ‘where from here’ and ‘how will flash photography’ fit into my photography.
I foresee there being advantages to using radio triggers, particularly in the bright Australian sun which impacts the operation of or, the effective range of optical triggers. As I understand, optical triggers are either pre-flash and/or infra-red signals from the master to the slave/s.
1) So my first question is, is this correct?
Or can someone explain to me in better detail, about pre-flash and/or infra-red signals? (Particularly in relation to the flashes that I have).
Or does it depend on my 7D’s flash vs having my Nissin as master?
I realise that by using radio triggers both greatly extends the effective range the slaves can operate from the master, as well as reduces issues of the slaves’ optical receivers needing to be in line of sight (and facing towards) the master flash. Although neither my Nissin 866ii nor any of the Canon 430EX/ii flashes can rotate 360 degrees around, the good thing is the Nissin can rotate 180 degrees on the other side that my Canon flashes can (so I sort of have that covered, in a way).
Both on my Canon 7D and via the Nissin menu, I can set and individually adjust 3 groups of slaves, which I find really handy and both a flexible arrangement. When using bounced and/or off-camera flash photography, I set all my flashes to manual mode and set my camera main dial to M (e.g. 1/200sec, f/8 at various low ISOs). I find this easier and more controlled than using the unpredictability of TTL or other settings.
On a few occasions I have used HSS – and I really want to use that more in the future. Thankfully all my flashes support HSS, which can be handy for fill lighting in brighter outdoor lighting. I also have dabbled a few times in strobe lighting / stroboscopic flash, and may use this in the future, but I expect very rarely.
So, as you can probably gather I am looking at what are suitable triggers to get. I have spent several hours for the past few weeks looking at the various options with their pros and cons. At this stage I’m leaning to getting up to 4x Cactus v6 triggers, as they offer the mix of features and functions I am looking for. These include build quality, ease of use, compatibility with a wide range of cameras and flashes (even different brands, if I understand well) – and operating range. I came across this interesting article which hints the Cactus v6mkii is around the corner (so I may wait for that!) http://www.amateurphotographer.co.uk/latest/photo-news/sony-users-soon-able-to-shoot-any-brand-of-flash-cactus-v6-mk-ii-72595
However in the meantime, I have some additional questions that will help me be best informed.
2) Do current users of the Cactus v6 have any compatibility issues or functionality limitations with any of my current gear?
3) I may buy a Canon 80D in the future… are there any users who have used Cactus triggers on this body yet – and can share their experiences? Particularly in relation to using the in-camera menu vs the Cactus menu. Do I understand correctly that with the Cactus a user can have more groups than in the 80D (which is limited to ‘just’ groups A:B)?
4) Can full manual control be maintained no matter the combination of flashes and camera with Cactus v6 triggers?
5) How does the ‘benchmarking process work’? Is it genuinely useful or just a marketing ‘gimmick’? (To my mind, this could be very useful when someone has flashes with varying power outlets).
For what it’s worth, I have found my Nissin 866ii to be very similar in power output to my 430EX(ii) flashes, i.e. 1/1 (full) flash on all is very close… whereas having the Nissin on 1/2 power is noticeably less bright than having my 430EX(ii) flashes at 1/1. Some people reports third-party flashes are somewhat optimistic in their guide number (GN) rating.
6) In terms of multi-purpose light diffusers, what would you recommend, particularly if it can be kept relatively small / light / portable?
7) Any other advice you can give me? (Would be really appreciated!)
Again, many thanks in advance!
Paul 8)
I would like some advice on flash photography. Firstly, a quick introduction of myself and my current gear, for context. (Please bear with me, and thanks in advance for reading and your responses).
With over 20 years of photography experience, (the most recent 12 years with Canon DSLRs), I consider myself an advanced amateur level. I have taken photos from many genres, mainly concentrating on landscape, wildlife, nature macro and occasional ‘event’ (e.g. camps, celebrations, functions). I am a middle-aged married guy living in Australia.
I own a Canon 7D, 400D and 350D. I use the 7D for 98% of my current photography (the 350D was my main camera from 2005 till late 2009 – when I purchased the 7D). The 400D I purchased second hand a few weeks ago. My mainly used lenses include the Canon 15-85mm, 70-300mm L, 100mm macro, 50mm f/1.8 STM and Sigma 8-16mm. I regularly provide people with advice when it comes to photography: composition, techniques, what gear to buy, etc.
However I consider myself only at a ‘intermediate level’ when it comes to flash photography. I have owned a Nissin Di866mkii for about 5 years but have used it relatively infrequently. I learned all of its functions (it is a great flash – with a lot of bang for the buck – e.g. master functionality, sub-flash, high GN, etc). I bought the Nissin Di866mkii new online for about half the price that the 580EX II was selling for at that time.
I have recently decided to expand my skills in the area of flash & artificial lighting. In recent weeks I purchased three second hand Canon Flashes (2 x 430EXII and 1 x 430EX) from 3 sellers for great prices (around AUD$100 each). These 3 new Canon flashes are in great condition and work perfectly, both mounted on my 7D and 350D, as well as off camera. Each is controlled from my 7D flash menu and inbuilt flash being the ‘master optical trigger’. The 3 flashes also function as slaves with my Nissin 866ii as master.
Currently photography is ‘just’ a hobby (a very passionate one). I have a full time job working in middle management in the Australian Government. I often help out friends by taking photos at birthdays, celebrations, parties, weddings, church events, camps, etc. But mainly photography is for my own interest and enjoyment. Most times I have been given gifts or tokens of appreciation. I may look into setting up a part-time photography business.
Ok… so onto the ‘where from here’ and ‘how will flash photography’ fit into my photography.
I foresee there being advantages to using radio triggers, particularly in the bright Australian sun which impacts the operation of or, the effective range of optical triggers. As I understand, optical triggers are either pre-flash and/or infra-red signals from the master to the slave/s.
1) So my first question is, is this correct?
Or can someone explain to me in better detail, about pre-flash and/or infra-red signals? (Particularly in relation to the flashes that I have).
Or does it depend on my 7D’s flash vs having my Nissin as master?
I realise that by using radio triggers both greatly extends the effective range the slaves can operate from the master, as well as reduces issues of the slaves’ optical receivers needing to be in line of sight (and facing towards) the master flash. Although neither my Nissin 866ii nor any of the Canon 430EX/ii flashes can rotate 360 degrees around, the good thing is the Nissin can rotate 180 degrees on the other side that my Canon flashes can (so I sort of have that covered, in a way).
Both on my Canon 7D and via the Nissin menu, I can set and individually adjust 3 groups of slaves, which I find really handy and both a flexible arrangement. When using bounced and/or off-camera flash photography, I set all my flashes to manual mode and set my camera main dial to M (e.g. 1/200sec, f/8 at various low ISOs). I find this easier and more controlled than using the unpredictability of TTL or other settings.
On a few occasions I have used HSS – and I really want to use that more in the future. Thankfully all my flashes support HSS, which can be handy for fill lighting in brighter outdoor lighting. I also have dabbled a few times in strobe lighting / stroboscopic flash, and may use this in the future, but I expect very rarely.
So, as you can probably gather I am looking at what are suitable triggers to get. I have spent several hours for the past few weeks looking at the various options with their pros and cons. At this stage I’m leaning to getting up to 4x Cactus v6 triggers, as they offer the mix of features and functions I am looking for. These include build quality, ease of use, compatibility with a wide range of cameras and flashes (even different brands, if I understand well) – and operating range. I came across this interesting article which hints the Cactus v6mkii is around the corner (so I may wait for that!) http://www.amateurphotographer.co.uk/latest/photo-news/sony-users-soon-able-to-shoot-any-brand-of-flash-cactus-v6-mk-ii-72595
However in the meantime, I have some additional questions that will help me be best informed.
2) Do current users of the Cactus v6 have any compatibility issues or functionality limitations with any of my current gear?
3) I may buy a Canon 80D in the future… are there any users who have used Cactus triggers on this body yet – and can share their experiences? Particularly in relation to using the in-camera menu vs the Cactus menu. Do I understand correctly that with the Cactus a user can have more groups than in the 80D (which is limited to ‘just’ groups A:B)?
4) Can full manual control be maintained no matter the combination of flashes and camera with Cactus v6 triggers?
5) How does the ‘benchmarking process work’? Is it genuinely useful or just a marketing ‘gimmick’? (To my mind, this could be very useful when someone has flashes with varying power outlets).
For what it’s worth, I have found my Nissin 866ii to be very similar in power output to my 430EX(ii) flashes, i.e. 1/1 (full) flash on all is very close… whereas having the Nissin on 1/2 power is noticeably less bright than having my 430EX(ii) flashes at 1/1. Some people reports third-party flashes are somewhat optimistic in their guide number (GN) rating.
6) In terms of multi-purpose light diffusers, what would you recommend, particularly if it can be kept relatively small / light / portable?
7) Any other advice you can give me? (Would be really appreciated!)
Again, many thanks in advance!
Paul 8)