T3i - 600EX-RT or Canon Speedlite 580EX II

[privatebydesign]

"but the x-sync is said to be still at full speed for many camera bodies like 5d2 no matter what Canon says."

I think if you actually test this extensively, like I have, you will find out that on the body the sync speed is fine, when using radio it is not 100% consistent, I have had shutter shadow at 1/250 and even a hint at 1/200 with three 600's and an ST-E3-RT when set to three groups on a 1Ds MkIII. But not every time, about one in fifty shots, this would lead me to conclude two things, internet chatter is practically worthless so test what you are going to do yourself, and Canon were actually right to put that one stop sync speed proviso in, and lets face it they could have disabled the pre 2012 cameras from doing it at all but they didn't, they just give you a gentle warning.

As for group mode, I'd love a firmware update for my 1Ds MkIII's to give me group mode, oh how happy I would be. Having said that the RT radio system as it is, even on pre 2012 bodies, gives you more control than the optical system did, particularly via the ST-E2.

 

[Marsu42]

"but the x-sync is said to be still at full speed for many camera bodies like 5d2 no matter what Canon says."

But not every time, about one in fifty shots, this would lead me to conclude two things, internet chatter is practically worthless so test what you are going to do yourself, and Canon were actually right to put that one stop sync speed proviso in

Thanks for the clarification, I didn't test it myself (that's why I wrote "is said to"). When I researched if to get the 5d2 or a newer model I didn't find any report of it *not* working with full speed ... but these people might have taken too few shots to realize the slight problem, or maybe your 1d3 does worse than the 5d2.

As for group mode: I'm expecting Yongnuo to reverse engineer the rt protocol rather sooner than later, and if they do maybe they'll release radio triggers that somehow support group mode on all Canon models... but at least then the rt system will cost 1/3 of Canon's price.

 

[privatebydesign]

The 1Ds MkIII is rated to a genuine 1/250 sync speed, as opposed to the hopeful 1/200 of the 5D MkII that often doesn't actually sync anywhere over 1/160 with other radio triggers either. So I doubt it is my camera, but it could be.

I don't believe the 600EX-RT is overpriced, it is $499 at the moment, cheaper than the 580EX was and cheaper than the SB910 is, and neither of them have radio. The cheapest full functioning ETTL compatible radio is around $100 per flash, with other solutions being much more expensive.

Third parties reverse engineering is a double edged sword, if they get too good at it Canon will break the protocols. Now the Phottix Odin system seems like a really interesting buy with a great feature set, but as wiith all third parties, keeping up with Canon's gotcha's will be ever more difficult, and more frustrating for the owners.

I am not a rich guy, but I am very happy to have chosen and invested in the Canon RT system. I am sure doggie will enjoy his new purchase, though I was reluctant to recommend a flash hat cost more than his camera......