Are there any compatibility issues with Canon 60D body and the Canon Speedlite 430EX?

Question

I have an opportunity to purchase a rarely used Canon Speedlite 430EX flash. I admit I know next to nothing about flashes but want to learn the basics with this one. I understand that this is an older unit and that a Canon flash should be compatible with lenses and body. I have a "newer" 60D body and Canon lenses. Will there be any compatibility issues?

Asked by Jakub

Answer

No. On the 430EX product page it says:

Compatible Cameras: All Canon EOS cameras...

Compatibility between Speedlites and bodies is very good within the Canon world. You don't always get 100% of all features, but the reason for this is generally obvious. For example, older bodies cannot program the radio trigger in the new 600EX-RT from within the camera's menus. But, you can program the optical trigger from the 5D Mk II menus. Further, it works as a normal on-camera flash on any EOS body, and it will work as a radio trigger if you set the triggering up using the on-flash controls.

The other direction — newer body, older Speedlite — tends to work without fuss, too. I've used an ancient 380EX on my 5D Mk II several times, for example. If you go with an old enough flash, like an EZ series, you will lose out on body features like E-TTL, but that should also be unsurprising.

Answered by Warren Young

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How can I optimise the lifetime of a Nikon speedlight?

Question

I have an SB-800. It's the newest Nikon strobe that will work with my F5. My F5 will probably outlast me (it probably has another 100,000 shutter actuations in it and I use less than 10 rolls a year, but I likely won't live another 278 years...).

What is my optimal strategy for making sure the SB-800 lives as long as possible?

Certainly storage advice suggests that if you don't use your speedlight much, you should take it out of storage every month or three, put batteries in and fire it a couple of times. But, my interpretation of this advice is that not to use the flash at all will shorten its life. I understand that. But what if I can choose to use the flash regularly, or not? Let's say I have two SB-800 stobes, A and B, and I store A in this way, taking it out and firing it monthly. Strobe B, on the other hand, I use every day or two (and carry with me).

Barring accidental damage, which strobe is likely to last longest, A or B? Why?

My question is essentially motivated by the fact that I could keep using my SB-800, or buy an SB-910 and mostly use that (effectively reserving the SB-800 for use with the F5).

Asked by James Youngman

Answer

Depends if you need CLS or not. (Don't even know if the F5 has CLS).

I'd keep the SB-800, and use it until it dies. The Strobist folks snap up all the good used Nikon strobes, but they are still tons cheaper than the SB-910 (and the Canon equivalent).

I consider strobes to be like tires on my car. Good to have good ones, but they are normal wear items, don't expect it to last decades.

That said, I have a 1970s vintage Vivitar 285 that still works, and it works fine on my Nikon F. But its voltage is too high for modern digital cameras.

Answered by Pat Farrell

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How to trigger AF-assist light on Canon Speedlites without firing the flash?

Question

Most of Canon Speedlites flashes have quite nice built-in AF-assist LED lights, which would are useful in low-light situations, even when one doesn't want to use flash in photos.

Is there any way to set the flash (or camera) to fire only AF-assist, and not the flash itself? Only way I know is to prefocus and then turn off the flash, which is not very practical.

Asked by che

Answer

Disable the flash in the camera settings. It still uses the AF-assist beam, but it will not fire the flash.

The setting is in different places depending on the camera, for example:

EOS 5D:
Menu > Custom Functions > 07

EOS 5D mk II:
Menu > Tools 3 > External Speedlite control > Flash function settings > Flash firing

EOS 550D / Rebel T2i / Kiss X4: Menu > Camera 1 > Flash control > Flash firing (it also works for built-in flash)

Answered by Guffa

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Why is the on-camera flash trying to pop up when using a D7000 with a MK930 Speedlite?

Question

So I decided to buy a cheap flash to experiment bouncing flash on walls or ceilings. I can't stand flash in pictures so I thought this would be a great way to try, and seeing these things are barely 60$ on eBay it wasn't much of an investment to see if I can deal with it.

Now I just put the flash on the camera, set it to "auto" and the pop-up flash tries to come out even though the flash is mounted on the camera. I thought that the "auto" mode would use the mounted flash instead of the pop-up flash, and then I could adjust the flash settings depending on what I want.

If I set it to "auto no flash" then the mounted flash doesn't fire.

Asked by ruinernix

Answer

When using a third party speedlight such as your NM930 there is no communication between the camera and flash so the camera has no idea the flash is there, so it pops up the onboard flash as usual. It will dutifully close the circuit across the hotshoe to fire the flash when the shutter opens but that's it.

If you use a Nikon flash the flash talks to the camera using extra contacts in order to set the flash power according to how much light from a preflash comes back down the lens.

The solution to your problem is to shoot manual or semi manual and set the power yourself (it's a bit hit and miss 'till you get the hang of it!)

Answered by Matt Grum

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Using a D7000 with a MK930 Speedlite. Why is the on-camera flash trying to pop-up?

Question

So I decided to buy a cheap flash to experiment bouncing flash on walls or ceilings. I can't stand flash in pictures so I thought this would be a great way to try, and seeing these things are barely 60$ on eBay it wasn't much of an investment to see if I can deal with it.

Now I just put the flash on the camera, set it to "auto" and the pop-up flash tries to come out even though the flash is mounted on the camera. I thought that the "auto" mode would use the mounted flash instead of the pop-up flash, and then I could adjust the flash settings depending on what I want.

If I set it to "auto no flash" then the mounted flash doesn't fire.

Any help would be appreciated! Thank you.

Asked by ruinernix

Answer

When using a third party speedlight such as your NM930 there is no communication between the camera and flash so the camera has no idea the flash is there, so it pops up the onboard flash as usual. It will dutifully close the circuit across the hotshoe to fire the flash when the shutter opens but that's it.

If you use a Nikon flash the flash talks to the camera using extra contacts in order to set the flash power according to how much light from a preflash comes back down the lens.

The solution to your problem is to shoot manual or semi manual and set the power yourself (it's a bit hit and miss 'till you get the hang of it!)

Answered by Matt Grum

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Is HyperSync possible with a flash on a PocketWizard Mini TT1?

Question

I recently bought a PocketWizard Mini TT1 and a Flex TT5. When attaching a 430EX on the FlexTT5, I can set the shutter at 1/8000 and still get a correct exposure thanks to HyperSync.

However, when attaching the 430EX on top of the TT1 (so, on-camera with the TT1 in between and without using the TT5), the camera doesn't let me choose shutter speeds faster than 1/200, as if there was no HyperSync.

With the TT5 this works (on-camera). Is this by design? Do I need to use the Flex to get HyperSync on the camera-mounted flash (with or without additional radio-triggered flash)?

EDIT: as it seems also the TT5 forces 1/200 after the first calibration shot.

I'd prefer to use the MiniTT1 in such a configuration as it is much smaller...

Answer

HyperSync is designed to work over radio. The hot-shoe on transceiver is pretty much directly connected to camera underneath - if you have a flash there, you have to enable HSS on it to use shutter speeds over X-sync.

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What will I be missing with Vivitar 285HV vs. LumoPro LP160 or Canon 580EX?

Question

I'm planning to get a hotshoe flash soon (I currently only have the onboard), and I have narrowed my choice down to several options, but I'm having a hard time deciding which way to go.

ETTL

This is probably the simpler option, and I think I would go ahead and buy the Canon Speedlite 580EX.

This would certainly work, but I have a limited budget, so I am considering a cheap (but decent quality) manual instead.

Manual

Mostly based on the lower cost, I am leaning towards these.

• Vivitar 285HV

• LumoPro LP160

My Question

There are two parts to this... First, is there anything important I'm going to miss by going with a manual flash? From what I can tell it simply makes it easier to use it in auto settings.

Second, is there any significant difference between the LumoPro and the Vivitar? Both are inside my budget, but the price difference is significant, so I want to make sure there's not something I'm missing.

Answer

I just picked up a LumoPro LP160 (about a week ago, in fact). I'm pretty happy with it so far. As Matt indicated, this flash will be manual only, but it works fine as an optical slave (triggered by an onboard flash), and it works fine on the hot-shoe with TTL metering or in manual mode. If you end up getting remote flash triggers (ex: Pocket Wizard or Cactus), this should work fine with those, too.

I've seen reviews that show its flash power at maybe one stop lower than the Canon 580, which is pretty good for $160. Some of the reviews talk about its recycle time (it's slower than the 580), but I haven't had a big problem with that - especially if you use less than 100% power, it doesn't take long at all to recycle. All-in-all, I think it's a steal for the price.

Incidentally, you may also want to add the Sigma EF-530 DG Super to your evaluation list. It's a little more expensive than the LumoPro, but it also adds many of the Canon 580's features (E-TTL II, for example). Again, it's not quite the same as the Canon, but it's close, and it's about half the price. I went with the LumoPro figuring I'd get the benefit of the flash in manual mode for now, and if I decide later that I really need a 580, I can still use the LumoPro as a slave.

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What lighting gear to get after my speedlight?

Question

I recently got a Nikon SB-700, and after spending some time trying (and failing) to take some high-key b/w portraits, I am quickly realizing that I need to significantly modify the light, because bounced lighting isn't really giving me the control I need.

I would prefer not to spend more than $100, so I would guess that umbrellas are the way to go. I am looking at kits like this: http://www.amazon.com/CowboyStudio-Photography-Continuous-Day-Light-Fluorescent/dp/B001G4DDE4/

My questions are:

1. Am I heading in the right direction?
2. Does it make sense to mix continuous light with flash like this to achieve high-key portraits?
3. How do I use a flash with the umbrella? More gear?

Thank you!

Answer

You're heading in the right direction!

There is a whole website/blog that talks about using small portable lighting gear for everyday use and getting the most out of simple elements. The "Strobist" site has many resources for what kind of kit to get and how to use it.

Here's the deep link for the basic kit that they say you'd do well to get for the starting shots: http://strobist.blogspot.com/2006/05/round-up-starving-student-off-camera.html

For my purposes, I started with some off camera triggers (optical triggers are fine, too), two flashes, two stands, one umbrella, and some gels. The rest of the diffusers, reflectors, and snoots/grids came from cobbled together bits from around the house. I use foam craft paper to act as larger bounce cards and flags.

For the rest of your questions about mixing continuous lighting with strobes, you just need to understand how light works with blending the short impulse with ambient light. This balance can be learned by trial and error as well as through some exercises. In the end, it's all about ISO, F stop, shutter speed. Each one controls the way that light comes into the camera and how the camera responds to it. In short, it does make sense to mix, so long as you know the color balance of your lighting and can control it. To that point, be prepared to gel your flash to match the color of your ambient light.

What I'd also suggest is getting together with other local photogs to practice settings and borrow gear. That will teach a lot about what effects modifiers may have and how to best use them. I've started going to a local meetup group and have learned tons in just a short while.

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Triggering Canon Speedlite manually

Question

I was planning to take a fake multiple-exposure picture: use a dark room, long exposure time, and manually trigger a flash for each exposure. But can I trigger my Canon Speedlite 430EX II manually without any extra gear?

This would be trivial if I had two camera bodies, but no such luck.

Of course there is the test button in the Speedlite unit. But exactly what does the test button do? How much flash power do I get this way; can it be adjusted by using the manual mode? Is it just a tiny burst of light so that I can see that the unit is alive, or can I use the test button to get consistent exposures?

Answer

Your test button should firing at whatever power you select manually. I can't speak to that specific model, but it has on a few different flash brands I've tried.

Its pretty easy to tell if it does.

• Just set it to high, take a picture and press the test button.

• Set it to low, take a picture and press the test button. Is there a big difference? Probably so.

You should get consistent exposures with it.

If for some crazy it doesn't, you can always electrically tape a couple of wires to the bottom pin and plate and just short the connection together with a momentary push button ( or just touching the wires together)- that's what the camera does.

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