Advice on remote flash units please.

[Cuppa]

I watched someone taking photos of birds during the last light of the day today, using a 400mm zoom on full extension & a flash set up much closer to the birdbath where the subjects were visiting. The 'trigger' was mounted to the hot shoe of his camera (not a Sony) . He of course got shots I couldn't attempt. My new A7iii is the first camera I've owned since the day of film which doesn't have a built in flash.

However he was not happy with his flash because if he had his camera set on anything other than single shot, the flash would still only work with the first shot.

Are there flash units which can keep pace with rapid multi shots & if so what are some makes & models worth exploring & are there any pitfalls I should be aware of?

I will appreciate any assistance pointing me in the right direction

 

[Jeff A]

Cuppa, I don't know the answer to your question about flash unit capabilities but I don't believe you should feel too bad about the lack of built in flash because I doubt they have the power for outdoor work at any distance. That's my feeling but my knowledge of flash is very low, so take my words with a grain or more of salt.

 

[Deleted Member 5003]

Hi Cuppa,
in selecting speedflashes for remote setting or sitting on your camera and firing successively in line with your shutter burst speed or successive manual shots, you need to consider flashes that have a strobe function and/or a low refresh speed as well as check the number of
successive flashes your speedflash is capable of before overheating and causing damage to your speed flash (like melting). These details are normally given in the technical specs of whichever speedflash you want to purchase.

Depending on the number of speedflashes you have and if your flashes have commander fuctionality you can set one up to control your remote speedflashe(s) from the camera flash/commander or alternatively buy a trigger to sit on your camera(no flash function) and after setting up your remotes channels and function on the trigger each time you take a shot or shots your trigger will fire the remote flashes(normally groups of four or more in some cases.

If you buy flashes that do not have such functionality then you will need to have a dedicated trigger.

it is possible to use nikon flashes on sony cameras with a suitable sony to nikon hot shoe adapter which may be of interest to you as an ex Nikon
shooter.

Sony flashes are very expensive compared to third party market and Godox flashes are generally the preferred alternate speedflashes as they are designed to work with Sony cameras, the Sony wireless system and and the current Sony MI hotshoes(you need to check your A7 III if it has a MI shoe or a standard hot shoe.....i know all Sony cameras from the AR7 iv have MI shoes but cant speak for the A7 iii),

For example the latest Sony 60RM comes in at around $550 whilst its nearest Godox competitor the TT860 currently sells for around $230.

Godox triggers such as the X2T and X Pro(Commanders only) come in at around $50 to $150 each with the X Pro generally considered the better unit with a simpler remote flash set up window and layout.

Hope this helps......

 

[Deleted Member 5003]

As a further point in buying flashes they are normally rated with a G Number which is a measure of the power of the flash at 100m...for field shooting you will probably need to buy G60 or above which have a fairly high power for general shooting whilst if your shooting involves close quarters shooting you may get away with a lower G number in the G45 or lower range.

Strobe and studio lighting is another dimension, come in much more expensive and are usually best suited to studio set ups or outdoor non wildlife needs(city portraits, fashion and sometimes weddings etc etc....)

 

[mapleleaf56]

Hi Cuppa..
I use godox flash trigger for Sony the Godox S2T

Godox X2T-S TTL Wireless Flash Trigger for Sony, Bluetooth Connection, 1/8000s HSS, 5 Separate Group Buttons, Relocated Control-Wheel, New Hotshoe Locking, New AF Assist Light : Amazon.ca: Electronics

Godox X2T-S TTL Wireless Flash Trigger for Sony, Bluetooth Connection, 1/8000s HSS, 5 Separate Group Buttons, Relocated Control-Wheel, New Hotshoe Locking, New AF Assist Light : Amazon.ca: Electronics

www.amazon.ca

And I have 3 Godox tt685 ii, in fact 2 of them are from my Nikon days but work perfectly with any Godox flash trigger.
Also for continuous shooting with flash check out this YouTube video..

Continuous Shooting Flash for Sony Alpha Cameras w/ Godox Speedlight [ V860 III Multi Tutorial ]

Godox V860iii: https://amzn.to/3qS46yjThe Hyphenate does a detailed step by step tutorial on how use a Godox Speedlight Flash (V860 III) in Multi Mode to use...

m.youtube.com

 

[Cuppa]

Thanks for pointing me in the right direction folks. Seems I have a great deal to learn prior to any decision making, but your answers have provided me with a good starting point. Mapleleaf 56, I think that Godox trigger is the same as the one I observed being used & the video (have only seen a few seconds of it just now ) looks very promising.

 

[Cuppa]

Having now followed Mapleleaf's links & subsequently others I have learned about stuff I didn't know existed. More to the point I now find Deleted Member 5003's comments make more sense to me. Absolutely no criticism of your post Deleted Member 5003, just at the time you were a little ahead of me but now I understand what you were saying I also understand that you were giving me the basic info I needed. I imagine that most of the Godox speedlites would be adequate for my purposes & it is possible I will, after choosing one & learning to use it feel another may have been a better choice - a case of starting somewhere without experience. Nevertheless my initial thoughts lean toward the X2 trigger & the V860iii for what will effectively be an 'all rounder' flash set up. The improved menu of the V860iii over the ii feels like it's important for a speedlight beginner like me (previously unaware prior to this thread that a 'speedlight' was a thing).

This is a good forum.

I have a couple of follow up questions, not yet answered from my googling which hopefully someone can answer.

The X2 trigger has a hotshoe on top of it. Is this simply to be able to use an on camera flash as well as a remote one? At home somewhere I have an old flash with no smarts I once used when I had an Olympus OM1 film camera years ago. Could this be used on top of the X2 trigger along with a remote speed light (obviously not for multi 'burst' shots, but perhaps just to provide twin sources of light? ).

The V860iii mentions GN60 ... is this the G rating (distance/power) you mentioned Deleted Member 5003? I assume that this can be reduced if needing a close up shot?

 

[Deleted Member 5003]

Hi Cuppa,
the hotshoe on top of the X2, as you indicate, is the shoe to attach a separate speed light, if your speed light does not have both commander and flash capapability already....if your speedlight has integrated flash and commander capability you attach it direct to the camera MI shoe and set up for triggering for your camera mounted and remote flashes within the set-up LED window on your camera mounted flash.

I attach details of the Sony MI shoes on my Sony A1 and TI 685-s Godox flash (see first and second right images)....the 1st and second left images are of the older style Nikon SB-700 and SB40 speedflash shoes. You will need to check the compatibility of your Olympus flash to Sony's MI shoe system but i would guess it may not be compatible.....or at least not be able to be triggered remotely using the Sony digital comms system.

Mi stands for multi-interface and is designed to handle digital data including image/flash communications as well as audio data whereas the older shoes are designed for image/flash data only.

All the current Godox flashes have the shoe as shown second from the right(my TI-685-s flash) which is directly compatible with the sony cameras MI shoes from the AR7 iv and beyond as far as I am aware. You can buy "Pixel\' flash adapters which facilitate mounting Nikon flashes with the older shoes onto a sony camera with an MI shoe. They sit on the Sony MI shoe and the Nikon flash attaches to the adapter, they cost $20 or so........

The G rating is based upon the flash light at full power and whilst the rating of such a flash does not change, as you reduce required flash strength on the flash LED as follows 1/8....1/16....1/32...1/64 etc, you are not putting out so much light as you go down toward lowest power at 1/128 and 1/256 and will correspond to light levels from flashes of lower G ratings. The G rating is purely a means of rating/comparing the power of flashes from different manufacturers....in practice you set your required output from your flash on the flash LED directly or on the trigger LED if using remote flashes

Hope this helps.

View attachment 24661

 

[mapleleaf56]

Following on in this conversation, there is a small adapter that you can buy on Amazon that allows you to attach any brand speed light..

Pixel Hotshoe Adapter with Pc Port for Sony A7 A7S A7SII A7R A7RII A7II NEX6 RX1 RX1R RX10 RX100II HX50 A6000 A6300 to Canon Nikon Flash Speedlite and Flash Trigger : Amazon.ca: Electronics

Pixel Hotshoe Adapter with Pc Port for Sony A7 A7S A7SII A7R A7RII A7II NEX6 RX1 RX1R RX10 RX100II HX50 A6000 A6300 to Canon Nikon Flash Speedlite and Flash Trigger : Amazon.ca: Electronics

www.amazon.ca

 

[Deleted Member 5003]

Hi Keith,
yes I have one and it works Ok and i referred to it in my this morning communication to Cuppa.....

 

[Deleted Member 5003]

Just out of interest used my new louwa 85mm and nikon 200mm macro lenses focus stacking with my Sony A1 and D850 which has internal focus stacking...and it worked out quite well and i will publish in a day or two.......between 1/1 and 2/1 you need anywhere between 50-120 images minimum and photoshop whilst it is ok misses a lot unfortunately and requires a degree of masking/touch up to the merged image ...i am going for Helicon for future stacking however.

On the Sony with a tripod mounted slide rail and wired remote this worked well.......I will try burst shooting with my Sony in the field in a day or two....