iseeq4life wrote:
Does anyone find the PCB Cyber Sync Commander light meter useful? Is it anywhere nearly as good as a dedicated light meter like a [Sekonic]?
It's different. Unlike a Sekonic meter, which only reads the light, the CyberCommander controls the lights. So it's like a Sekonic flash meter combined with a Skyport transmitter. Sort of...
The CC is best used from the camera position as a reflected-light meter, whereas the Sekonic is an incident meter (some -- like my L-758DR -- also do reflected spot metering).
I don't have any PCB gear, but several members here who have multiple Alien Bees or Einsteins have said they find the CC very useful in the studio for adjusting the lights quickly and conveniently. (Many have said it's not so good at metering combined flash & continuous light.)
I'm now using the built-in flash controller on my 7D a lot for multi-Speedlite setups, and combined with the histogram and the LCD playback I get a lot of information about how the lights are working, but I still won't be giving up my Sekonic meter any time soon. The same may be true for the CC; it would be ideal to have both.
"The CC is best used from the camera position as a reflected-light meter, whereas the Sekonic is an incident meter (some -- like my L-758DR -- also do reflected spot......"
No, the CC has an incident light meter built in. You don't use it as a reflective meter at the camera. When using my Einsteins, I prefer the CC rather than my Sekonic 748DR. The CC was designed with the Einsteins in mind. Other lights also work just fine with the CC.
iseeq4life wrote:
Does anyone find the PCB Cyber Sync Commander light meter useful? Is it anywhere nearly as good as a dedicated light meter like a Seikonic?
I do not have Seikonic meter but have Minolta Auto meter, using cyber commander, I could not find ratio between how ambient and flash.
I am using CC on my both Einstein using CSXCV, I find very useful, to change the power level on the fly, on my camera what ever power I need to set based on my aperture requirement. When the Einstein in placed on light stand, with CC, I can get what ever power level I need between my main and fill light with touch of button from my saved light setting in CC.
Jim Sanderson wrote:
No, the CC has an incident light meter built in. You don't use it as a reflective meter at the camera.
I stand corrected. I was told be an AB user that one puts the CC on the hot shoe and everything is done from there, but I just checked the user manual and saw that I was misinformed.
It seems rather inconvenient to have to take the CC off the camera to meter the lights, then put it back on to act as a trigger, but I guess one would just get used to it (or use a seperate CS as trigger).
BrianO wrote:
I stand corrected. I was told be an AB user that one puts the CC on the hot shoe and everything is done from there, but I just checked the user manual and saw that I was misinformed.
It seems rather inconvenient to have to take the CC off the camera to meter the lights, then put it back on to act as a trigger, but I guess one would just get used to it (or use a seperate CS as trigger).
That would be inconvenient. Luckily, Buff makes a trigger transmitter that fits into the camera hot shoe and triggers the lights from the camera once they're set up. That way you can stick the CC in your pocket or wherever else is convenient and it works in conjunction with the trigger transmitter..
It seems rather inconvenient to have to take the CC off the camera to meter the lights, then put it back on to act as a trigger, but I guess one would just get used to it (or use a seperate CS as trigger).
Yes, you use a CS as the trigger on the camera and keep the CC on your person. I've pretty much relegated my Sekonic to situations that I am not using my Buff lights, but shooting ambient only.
Even in mixed lighting (which I do a lot of), the CC does measure the ambient. You can set it for a small number of specific shutter speeds and it integrates the ambient at those speeds (as any flash meter actually does). It's not as flexible in that area as a general-purpose exposure meter, but then, it's not a general purpose exposure meter--it's intended to be used purely as a flash-control meter.
