OK, so all you nikon owners get to gloat right here. Nikon have got it right with their multiple flash setup, all their flashes have optical triggers, even the older SB24,26, so you pop your modern flash atop your DSLR or trigger it off camera in commander mode and off you go. It triggers the other units. Easy isn't it? And if you have the latest generation you can use the ingenious commander mode and fire them all off maintaining ETTL too. Brilliant!
Canon? What an arse it is!
Basically here is my experience of trying to cobble together something akin to what Nikon provide.
You can go the route that Canon would like you to take. Buy a 580ex and a few 4 series and you can use the 580ex as the master and the 4 series as slaves. But you also need to invest in a ST-E2 triggering device for your hotshoe That's £130! Total budget for a 580ex, ST-E2 and a couple of 4 series? Budget around £600.
There are a few routes you can go down if you are a Canon owner.
1. Use radio triggers. Don't buy a 580ex MKI. It does not have a PC port and is next to useless in this scenario. The 580exMKII is fine. But you don't have to buy Canon! You can fire any kind of flash you like off the hotshoe using radio triggers. Cactus, Elinchrome, Calumet, Pocketwizard to name a few. No ETTL but if you are trying to do creative off camera lighting would you really want ETTL? Do studio lights have ETTL? No don't be silly so you don't really need it. This way you can use any old flashgun you like so long as it has a PC port. You can clamp them on things, put them on stands all sorts of stuff and not a cable in sight. Just make sure it has a PC port.
2. Use the ST-E2 to trigger a canon flash and use optical slaves on the other flashes. This is the route I've had to go down because of the lack of a PC port on the 580ex MKI. Wein peanuts are the answer. Little optical devices that fit the ports on my two Vivitar flashes and allow me to trigger off the 580ex. That way I can trigger all three flashes. Or I could get a radio trigger and only use the two Vivitars but it seems a shame not to be able to include canon's own flash
3. Buy Nikon! No I'm not being silly. Use an ST-E2 to trigger the 580ex and buy a couple of old Nikon flashes. The SB24,26 era all have built in optical triggers just like the wein peanuts I had to add to the Vivitars. So you fire the Canon flash and the Nikons fire using their optical triggers.
I'm going to see how the Vivitars work with the Wein Peanuts over the next few months. If I have any trouble with them at all, I'm getting rid of the 580ex MkI and I'll get a MkII (I do need to keep one flash for ETTL on camera stuff for weddings) . Oh and some decent radio triggers for those days when I want creative flash lighting and Canon are not coming to the party!
I hope that helps those who find themselves in a similar boat when you want to add extra flash and don't want to spend £600 to do it. You can buy radio triggers on ebay for under £50. Calumet and Elinchrome are dearer and pocketwizards expensive. But with some Cactus ones off ebay and a couple of older flashguns you can start getting creative flash solutions for under £150. Just make sure the flashes have PC ports!
Canon? What an arse it is!
Basically here is my experience of trying to cobble together something akin to what Nikon provide.
You can go the route that Canon would like you to take. Buy a 580ex and a few 4 series and you can use the 580ex as the master and the 4 series as slaves. But you also need to invest in a ST-E2 triggering device for your hotshoe That's £130! Total budget for a 580ex, ST-E2 and a couple of 4 series? Budget around £600.
There are a few routes you can go down if you are a Canon owner.
1. Use radio triggers. Don't buy a 580ex MKI. It does not have a PC port and is next to useless in this scenario. The 580exMKII is fine. But you don't have to buy Canon! You can fire any kind of flash you like off the hotshoe using radio triggers. Cactus, Elinchrome, Calumet, Pocketwizard to name a few. No ETTL but if you are trying to do creative off camera lighting would you really want ETTL? Do studio lights have ETTL? No don't be silly so you don't really need it. This way you can use any old flashgun you like so long as it has a PC port. You can clamp them on things, put them on stands all sorts of stuff and not a cable in sight. Just make sure it has a PC port.
2. Use the ST-E2 to trigger a canon flash and use optical slaves on the other flashes. This is the route I've had to go down because of the lack of a PC port on the 580ex MKI. Wein peanuts are the answer. Little optical devices that fit the ports on my two Vivitar flashes and allow me to trigger off the 580ex. That way I can trigger all three flashes. Or I could get a radio trigger and only use the two Vivitars but it seems a shame not to be able to include canon's own flash
3. Buy Nikon! No I'm not being silly. Use an ST-E2 to trigger the 580ex and buy a couple of old Nikon flashes. The SB24,26 era all have built in optical triggers just like the wein peanuts I had to add to the Vivitars. So you fire the Canon flash and the Nikons fire using their optical triggers.
I'm going to see how the Vivitars work with the Wein Peanuts over the next few months. If I have any trouble with them at all, I'm getting rid of the 580ex MkI and I'll get a MkII (I do need to keep one flash for ETTL on camera stuff for weddings) . Oh and some decent radio triggers for those days when I want creative flash lighting and Canon are not coming to the party!
I hope that helps those who find themselves in a similar boat when you want to add extra flash and don't want to spend £600 to do it. You can buy radio triggers on ebay for under £50. Calumet and Elinchrome are dearer and pocketwizards expensive. But with some Cactus ones off ebay and a couple of older flashguns you can start getting creative flash solutions for under £150. Just make sure the flashes have PC ports!
