Can you use flash with continuous shooting?

68lbs

68lbs

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April 2008
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No
...as per the title.

I have my 400D permanently set to 'continuous shooting', so with a gentle touch I can take one shot, or hold for multiple shots without changing.

When I was trying some water droplets the other day I noticed the flash only fired once so i'd get just blank frames for the 2nd, 3rd, shot etc.

Is there a way to make the flash fire multiple flashes? And if so, is there a limit as to how many, or how powerful it can be?

The flash is a 580EX II.
 
the flash needs time to recycle its capacitor thats why you can get it to work. I think on the 430 and 580 you can get a burst of flashes but someone might want to correct me on that
 
:agree:

Its usually down to the flash recycle (recharge time).

I'm not sure if the 400D limits the max flash speed, but it wont prevent you taking 3.5 shots a second (or whatever your burst speed is).

However what can limit it is if you are shooting 5ths of a second then you cannot get more than 5 shots in a second.
 
The 580EX will do, press the >>> button on the back!! It depends on the strength of the flashes, batteries in use etc as to just how many you get! I think! :)
 
Thanks guys, will check that out tonite.

purpleclouds said:
It depends on the strength of the flashes, batteries in use etc as to just how many you get! I think! :)
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Batteries in use? Should I be using anything special? I was a little surprised it didn't come with rechargeables and a charger, so I've just stuck in some duracell's and not had to change them yet.
 
68lbs said:
Thanks guys, will check that out tonite.



Batteries in use? Should I be using anything special? I was a little surprised it didn't come with rechargeables and a charger, so I've just stuck in some duracell's and not had to change them yet.
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Duracell will be fine....cheap 25p for 4 might struggle! ;)
 
68lbs said:
Batteries in use? Should I be using anything special? I was a little surprised it didn't come with rechargeables and a charger, so I've just stuck in some duracell's and not had to change them yet.
Click to expand...

Personal experience - When I bought my flashgun I also bout rechargable batteries. Result? Used flashgun (About half dozen shots), put flashgun away. Went to use it again 2 weeks later, batteries had discharged.

Switched to using Duracells. Result? Batteries seem to last forever! Have used the flashgun a few times over the last few seeks, probably taking about 50 shots in all. Went to do a gig at the House of Lords the other night, knowing I'd need to use the flashgun all the time, and took 2 spare sets of batteries. Took 150 shots that night and the 2 spare sets of batteries are still in my bag, untouched!


As for your original question, as far as I know, the flash needs time to recharge after each shot which is why you're getting dark subsequent exposures. I think the onboard flash is quicker to recharge as it is less powerful, but I still doubt it would be quick enough. (Actually, have just tested with my camera (Sony A700) and it won't continuous shoot with the onbard flash up)
 
It depends on the power setting you have the flash at. If you are using full power then no. If you have it on manual at, say, 1/16 power then it should recycle fast enough to take a few continuous shots, however, it's probably not advisable to keep firing away for 10 or 20 shots, even if the flash will do it as you risk causing it damage.

This applies to a flashgun....not to the onboard flash ;)
 
out of interest as my 580EX II will be ordered soon. I have 8x 2700mAh batteries to use with it. Are there any better batteries to use to reduce the cycle times?
 
33L said:
out of interest as my 580EX II will be ordered soon. I have 8x 2700mAh batteries to use with it. Are there any better batteries to use to reduce the cycle times?
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Watch out for the 3200 mAh and such like on Fleabay, a lot are fakes......
 
Flash In The Pan said:
It depends on the power setting you have the flash at. If you are using full power then no. If you have it on manual at, say, 1/16 power then it should recycle fast enough to take a few continuous shots, however, it's probably not advisable to keep firing away for 10 or 20 shots, even if the flash will do it as you risk causing it damage.

This applies to a flashgun....not to the onboard flash ;)
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Aww, now I've got to unpack me camera and flashgun again to give it a go! :D
 
Flash In The Pan said:
It depends on the power setting you have the flash at. If you are using full power then no. If you have it on manual at, say, 1/16 power then it should recycle fast enough to take a few continuous shots, however, it's probably not advisable to keep firing away for 10 or 20 shots, even if the flash will do it as you risk causing it damage.

This applies to a flashgun....not to the onboard flash ;)
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Good point you can "cook" a flashgun if you use it too much. The internal flash bulb thing gets very hot and can melt itself/surroundings
 
Are there not circuits in your flash to prevent this happening?
 
thats quite funny! maybe the canon's have the built in! :D
 
I have the quantum+1 powerpack on a 550ex ...shoot all day and quick repower :)
 
fabs said:
Personal experience - When I bought my flashgun I also bout rechargable batteries. Result? Used flashgun (About half dozen shots), put flashgun away. Went to use it again 2 weeks later, batteries had discharged.
Click to expand...

You need the new slow discharge NiMh's like the Uniross Hybrio or Sony Eneloop. Slightly lower capacity than regular NiMh's but discharge really slowly (about 15% discharge in a year), ideal for someone who keeps them stored most of the time. They self-discharge so slowly that they are even sold fully charged and ready to go!

Flashy
 
KIPAX said:
I have the quantum+1 powerpack on a 550ex ...shoot all day and quick repower :)
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i have this (2 x 550ex)but also the metz 45cl4 (which is way way faster than the canon)and with this you can do 8fps for around 3 seconds at 400 iso you can do 5 metres at f2.8, but it must be connected to a fully charged quantum turbo, and do this on a dry day only as it kicks out 330volts straight to the flash head. you can get an old non ttl metz for around £75 and the turbo for £75-100 on fleabay...
 
I have had the same problem with my 580II so have ordered Uniross Sprint 1 Hour Battery Charger + 4 x AA 2700 mAh , £10 posted, so will update when they arrive. :D
 
Normal disposable batteries are really crap for quick recycle times which is what you need when wanting to shoot continuous. You do need some decent rechargeables, 2700mAh+ ideally and even then you will not be able to fire at 1/1 continuous. i can happily shoot at 1/4 for 2 or 3 seconds, 3fps with decent batteries with my 430EX
 
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