[wed7]

Any recommended triggers and receivers for beginners?

Thank you.
Alvin

[Anvh]

What do you want to trigger?

[bobpur]

I have recently purchased 3 Yonguno RF-603N tranceivers , work as transmitter or receivers for flash and also will work as remote trigger for
the camera.
Work very well on my Pentax K10, Kx, Q and Nikon D300
Came with the remote trigger wire for the Nikon but other connectors are available. Standard AAA batteries as well.

[Docrwm]

CowboyStudio FM Radio Trigger NPT-04 reviews - Pentax Camera Accessory Review Database

[bdery]

If you want to trigger flashes remotely, and do not want to spend a fortune, consider:

Yongnuo YN-04 II if you can still find them, no fuss, reliable, have a hotshoe on the emitter side
Cowboy studio NPT-04 : inexpensive, seem to work well, no hotshoe on the emitter however
Yongnuo RF-603N : a bit more expensive, more features, apparently sync faster than 1/160 is complex

I've heard of a brand named Aputure, maybe they're qorth looking into too.

[NeverSatisfied]

Phottix Ares are pretty economical as well. They have the ability to fire on individual channels, or, a "Fire All" option, which makes them a little more versatile. I like the fact that they use AA batteries, so for your flashes and triggers there is commonality. (Doubt they'd eat through that many batteries though.) No switches to fiddle with, all controls are buttons (except for on/off), which have a pretty good-quality feel to them. Supposedly they have about a 200 foot range, although I can't confirm that yet. Basic, but very affordable.

[Sol Invictus]

The Cactus V5s are another affordable option.

I've used Cactus V5s for a while and they are a mixed bag. A few days after purchasing them, the TX/RX knob fell off and had to be glued back on. The construction doesn't inspire a lot of confidence. The cold shoe attachment is also finicky and hard to turn. They have performed flawlessly for the last year however so I can't complain too much. They have excellent range and let you choose somewhere around 12 channels, extremely convenient for multiple light setups.

I've just ordered Apurture Trigmaster Plus IIs and will post a review here once I receive them.

[wed7]

Thanks for the input guys, I have two Metz (50 & 58v1) flashgun

How about for light modifiers? I am thinking of getting a beauty dish with grid but I people told me that I should start with a shoot through umbrella as my beginner's kit apart from what I already have.

Any website you can recommend for strobist?

Thank you.

[ploetzlich]

The Photek Softliter 60" is a good option.

[bdery]

How about for light modifiers? I am thinking of getting a beauty dish with grid but I people told me that I should start with a shoot through umbrella as my beginner's kit apart from what I already have.

Indeed, start with the basics. One umbrella, ideally a backdrop, then get a second umbrella and you can make numerous months of experiments with just that. THEN get to gobos and decide if a softbox serves you better than the umbrellas (or just block part of the flash output to duplicate the softbox's effect). Then refine your style and go with the fancy stuff.

Any website you can recommend for strobist?

Strobist

[klh]

http://neilvn.com/tangents/

This is a great one for showing a fantastic portrait and then explaining how it is done.

[wed7]

thank you for the help

[kenyee]

Another option for remote triggers is Radiopopper JrX Studios...they'll let you remotely control power if you put your Nikon-compatible Metzs' in TTL mode. More reliable than Cactus triggers and doesn't need your shutter speed slowed down to 1/125 like the RF603's.

And ditto the softlighter...

[demp10]

+1 for Cactus V5.

They can be used both to trigger flashes, and with the proper cable to trigger the camera's shutter. You can fire the first 4 channels (out of 16) either independently or together making very convenient to fire and measure the light output in a multi flash setup without turning units on and off. They tolerate high voltages so they are safe with older flashes (like Vivitar 283).

Very affordable too. I think they were $65 for a pair.

[crossmr]

I've heard of a brand named Aputure, maybe they're qorth looking into too.

https://www.pentaxforums.com/forums/pentax-flashes-lighting-technique/213273-...t-died-me.html

My opinion is this:
I got unlucky getting a defective set..
after using them in the studio this week..
they aren't bad, but the basic receivers go to sleep really quickly. The pros can't wake them up. You need the basic trigger to do a test flash to wake them back up. I like the idea, the functionality, but had some bad luck with the set I got.