docgriz wrote:
Brian, looking forward to your review of the Odin. I hope it's every bit as good as the PW system for obviously much less money.
I hope so, too. They're on a slow boat from China, so it may be a few weeks, but I'll be sure to write an in-depth review -- with art -- when they arrive.
I almost bought the pocket wizards yesterday. but need to do more research. I don't understand the problems with the frequency. would love to hear what is the best option for getting flash off the camera and play with my new umbrellas. thank you.
skasol wrote:
I almost bought the pocket wizards yesterday. but need to do more research. I don't understand the problems with the frequency.
In order to maintain backward compatibility with the original Pocket Wizards, LPDesign kept the same frequency for the new ControlTL system. Unfortunately, some Canon flashes, and the 580EX II in particular, generate spurious emissions -- radio frequency interferance, or RFI -- at those frequencies. This wasn't a serious problem in the past, but the more-complex signalling required for the advanced command and control of the new system requires a cleaner signal path than the simple "fire now" sync only transmission of the old units.
The result is that with some Canon flashes, especially the 580EX II, the camera-to-flash range is reduced considerably from what it can be with the original PWs. For those who need greater range, PW offers two kinds of RFI shields as well as instructions on low- or no-cost methods -- such as careful antenna alignment, use of ferrite inhibitors on cords, etc. -- to get the most range possible out of their units.
If you typically have your slave flashes no more than 20 or 30 feet from the master, or if you use only 430EX II slaves at longer distances, then you may not have any issues at all. If you do have issues, adding the shields to the problem slaves may solve the problem.
The reason Radio Poppers, Phottix Odins, and other systems don't have these issues is because they operate at different frequencies -- 2.4GHz in many cases -- and the RFI from the flashes doesn't affect them.
BrianO wrote:
In order to maintain backward compatibility with the original Pocket Wizards, LPDesign kept the same frequency for the new ControlTL system. Unfortunately, some Canon flashes, and the 580EX II in particular, generate spurious emissions -- radio frequency interferance, or RFI -- at those frequencies. This wasn't a serious problem in the past, but the more-complex signalling required for the advanced command and control of the new system requires a cleaner signal path than the simple "fire now" sync only transmission of the old units.
The result is that with some Canon flashes, especially the 580EX II, the camera-to-flash range is reduced considerably from what it can be with the original PWs. For those who need greater range, PW offers two kinds of RFI shields as well as instructions on low- or no-cost methods -- such as careful antenna alignment, use of ferrite inhibitors on cords, etc. -- to get the most range possible out of their units.
If you typically have your slave flashes no more than 20 or 30 feet from the master, or if you use only 430EX II slaves at longer distances, then you may not have any issues at all. If you do have issues, adding the shields to the problem slaves may solve the problem.
The reason Radio Poppers, Phottix Odins, and other systems don't have these issues is because they operate at different frequencies -- 2.4GHz in many cases -- and the RFI from the flashes doesn't affect them....Show more →
Brian.
Thank you very much for the really good explanation. I almost bought a pw system for $350. I am only learning but want to buy a system that I can keep for a while. I will look at the link you provided for the other system.
Once more thank you for not only the advice but g
For taking the time to explain. I was expecting the typical " why don't you search it"
skasol wrote:
...Thank you very much for the really good explanation. ...I was expecting the typical " why don't you search it"
I hate it when people say that. I figure if I can take the time to read a question and give a reply, I can give the best reply I'm capable of. Just saying "Google it" or "Read the %!*$^@# manual" is just rude, in my opinion. (Although I have been known to point to a specific page of a manual from time to time.)
skasol wrote:
...I almost bought a pw system for $350.
I hope I didn't scare you away from the PWs; there are some advantages that might outweigh the disadvantages for you.
Not everyone needs long-range capability. Sometimes the need for radio triggers is based on the Speedlites being inside a softbox or behind a counter, for example, where the optical wireless won't work well, and short-range radio is fine in that situation.
If you want to use on-camera ETTL flash in addition to radio, PW's FlexTT5 and MiniTT1 will work, but the Phottix Odin won't -- the latter doesn't have a hot-shoe pass-through.
The MiniTT1 transmitter is really small, and it lays flat for a low profile on the camera; the Odin is pretty big, and it stands upright.
So...everything is a trade-off. You need to weigh the pros and cons of all the products out there and then choose the one that has more pros than cons for your particular situation.
BrianO wrote:
Unless I am mistaken, the Phottix Strato II will NOT allow you to change the flash power from the camera. As far as I know, it is a sync-only (or shutter release) transmitter/receiver system. You can turn groups on or off, but that is all. (On the plus side, there are four groups available, rather than only the usual three.)
The Phottix Odin, on the other hand, will allow power changes, and is capable of High Speed Sync and Rear Curtain Sync. (It's back to three groups, though.)
The author say's it's the best ttl trigger he has ever used for the Canon, even better than using Canon's built in optical master / slave setup. I find this encouraging, but if it's true then couldn't Canon get the same results with their system?
I use Pocket Wizard mini on the camera with an AC3 Zone Controller and FedEx for the receivers for the speedlites. I have four flexes currently or for each Canon Speedlite I have. But I plan on getting at least one more flex and at least one Pocket Wizard Plus II for use as a remote trigger and a receiver for my studio lights. Plus either another Plus II or a Multi Max.
