[mojoe_24]

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I recently played around with an acquaintance's A7RIII and his lighting setup, which included a off camera flash in an umbrella and a couple continuous lighting panels, and had a great time messing around with things possible with flash. I'd like to find a flash I could use with my camera, a K3-II. I mostly shoot portraits and macros. I've been looking at a couple Yongnuo flashes, but I'm unsure what exactly I need. I've seen wireless triggers from Yongnuo, but a few of their flashes also say they are wireless, and then I know Cactus adn Phottix now has systems out as well.

Additionally, since I shoot a lot of macro, I was interested in a ring light. Would this work with a K3-II?

[stevebrot]

A lot depends on what you need. If strobist work with manual flash at x-sync speed or below is enough, a fairly simple setup will work nicely. I am not a huge flash guy, but have the following setup for that kind of work with my K-3:

• Two Yongnuo YN560-III speedlights (built-in RF wireless receivers)
• One Yongnuo YN560TX-II Flash Controller (Nikon flavor)

For P-TTL, HSS, and 2nd curtain sync my options are much more limited, as much by $$ as anything else:

• One Sigma EF-610DG Super (Pentax P-TTL flavor)
• The K-3 onboard flash (does not do HSS, but can command/master)
• Hot Shoe Adapter F (5-contact hot shoe pass-through + cable port on side)
• Off-Camera Shoe Adapter F (cable port serving 5-contact hot shoe on top)
• Sync Cord F 5P (way too short coiled 5-conductor cord). A self-assembled cord might be cheaper and easier to use.

Some interesting things can be done with this kit, including combining P-TTL with RF wireless remote operation of the Yongnuo speedlights. Sadly, HSS and 2nd curtain sync are not supported over Yongnuo RF wireless, but off-camera 2nd-curtain sync on the can be optically triggered from the Sigma or the on-board flash.

Oh, and yes, your camera will support a ring-light flash though finding the sweet spot of budget and features might prove elusive.


Steve

[Class A]

I've been looking at a couple Yongnuo flashes, but I'm unsure what exactly I need.

The YN560TX transmitter stevebrot mentioned will give you remote control over power levels and respective Yongnuo flashes have radio receivers built in which is very nice.

The downside of the Yongnuo system is that it isn't dedicated to Pentax and hence won't give you the option of using flash with a shutter speed higher than 1/180s.

If you want to do outdoor portraits with shallow DOF, you'll find that 1/180s is often not fast enough even at the lowest ISO setting. Then you either have to use neutral density filters (which come with a number of potential issues but are at the very least inconvenient to use) or you use HSS (high-speed-sync) flashes (which are not available for the Yongnuo system for Pentax).

Note, however, that when using HSS outdoors, you'll typically want to use multiple speedlights or a compatible strobe as a single speedlight will struggle to provide enough power in such conditions, in particular when used with a modifier.

I know Cactus and Phottix now has systems out as well.

Both of these support HSS and a number of extra features that you'll find useful one you advance beyond basic flash photography.

Beyond HSS, you have second-curtain sync and automated metering both of which are only available on trigger systems with Pentax dedication. The Cactus V6II has a host of further features like flash delay, group cycling, etc. which may seem exotic at first but can come in really handy when you need them.

I'm less familiar with the Phottix system but the Odin II is a very good trigger that has been available for Canikon for a long time already. Unfortunately, the Phottix system is rather limited in terms of what speedlights/strobes are supported for Pentax. The Cactus system is much more third-party friendly however that mostly matters if you already have flashes that you'd like to continue to use.

[mojoe_24]

Does the YN560TX work with the YN585EX? Was thinking maybe doing that combo since its fairly cheap off ebay to see how often I'll use thhem.

[FozzFoster]

The Cactus V6II has a host of further features like flash delay, group cycling, etc. which may seem exotic at first but can come in really handy when you need them.

I can't say enough good things about my Cactus V6II. I love using them for macro (off-camera flash) too, instead of my cheap LED Promaster RL-100 macro ring flash.

[stevebrot]

Does the YN560TX work with the YN585EX? Was thinking maybe doing that combo since its fairly cheap off ebay to see how often I'll use thhem.

RF wireless is not in the specs for the YN585EX, so the short answer is no, not without being attached to a wireless trigger such as the Yongnuo RF 603II or even a generic trigger.


Steve

[mojoe_24]

Would a Cactus V6II work with the YN585EX or would I need wireless triggers for that too? Just ask because the 585s seem pretty cheap on eBay. THe Cactus isn't that expensive so I may go that route, but it seems like I'd also need to get more expensive flashes for that.

[rr1736]

I use off camera flash if you go to to David Hobby's site : Strobist he has a wealth of good information about off camera flash and some recommendations on equipment

[FozzFoster]

Would a Cactus V6II work with the YN585EX or would I need wireless triggers for that too?

I'm not 100% sure, but Cactus markets themselves as being cross-brand compatible. So, you could fire Canon flashes remotely using a Pentax body, for example.
Even HSS works cross-brand.
I would be absolutely floored if they didn't work with the YN585EX.

Edit: Just for clarity, you need a Cactus unit on both the body and the flash.

[Kobie]

Would a Cactus V6II work with the YN585EX or would I need wireless triggers for that too? Just ask because the 585s seem pretty cheap on eBay. THe Cactus isn't that expensive so I may go that route, but it seems like I'd also need to get more expensive flashes for that.

I think some confusion ensued here regarding Yongnuo flashes.
The Yongnuo 560 III flash has a built in radio receiver and the Yongnuo 560 I/V has both a radio transmitter and receiver built in. So paired with just the 560 TX trigger or which ever other trigger from Yongnuo (I think the 602 works as well) they will work without the need for an additional radio receiver since it's already built into the flash(es).

The Pentax dedicated Yongnuo 585 EX does not have a built in radio receiver so it will only work optically as a slave but if I recall correctly it does work with the Pentax optical P-TTL off camera wireless mode. The flash does not support HSS though, either on camera or off.

I have the Shanny SN600FGZ and have used it without issue on camera in HSS and with Cactus V6II transceivers at all shutter speeds.

Here's a simple breakdown of options in general...

Yongnuo 560 series
1x 560 TX trigger
However many 560 III or I/V flashes you want to add.

Yongnuo 585EX
1x Trigger for the camera and 1x trigger for each flash (no HSS).

Cactus V6II
2x You need at least 2 of these (one for the camera and one for each flash).
Advantage is you can pretty much get whatever flash you want and it'll work for the most part since it's cross brand capable.
You can fire flashes from Pentax, Fuji, Nikon, Canon, Olympus, Panasonic, Shanny, Sigma, Metz.... with control of output, grouping etc from the camera body.
The Cactus V6II will allow wireless radio HSS with HSS capable flashes, such as Pentax, Metz, Shanny, NIkon, Canon, Sigma

[mojoe_24]

I think some confusion ensued here regarding Yongnuo flashes.
The Yongnuo 560 III flash has a built in radio receiver and the Yongnuo 560 I/V has both a radio transmitter and receiver built in. So paired with just the 560 TX trigger or which ever other trigger from Yongnuo (I think the 602 works as well) they will work without the need for an additional radio receiver since it's already built into the flash(es).

The Pentax dedicated Yongnuo 585 EX does not have a built in radio receiver so it will only work optically as a slave but if I recall correctly it does work with the Pentax optical P-TTL off camera wireless mode. The flash does not support HSS though, either on camera or off.

I have the Shanny SN600FGZ and have used it without issue on camera in HSS and with Cactus V6II transceivers at all shutter speeds.

Here's a simple breakdown of options in general...

Yongnuo 560 series
1x 560 TX trigger
However many 560 III or I/V flashes you want to add.

Yongnuo 585EX
1x Trigger for the camera and 1x trigger for each flash (no HSS).

Cactus V6II
2x You need at least 2 of these (one for the camera and one for each flash).
Advantage is you can pretty much get whatever flash you want and it'll work for the most part since it's cross brand capable.
You can fire flashes from Pentax, Fuji, Nikon, Canon, Olympus, Panasonic, Shanny, Sigma, Metz.... with control of output, grouping etc from the camera body.
The Cactus V6II will allow wireless radio HSS with HSS capable flashes, such as Pentax, Metz, Shanny, NIkon, Canon, Sigma

THanks for the clarification/round-up. I am planning on getting 2 flashes, so I may just go with the 560. Two flashes+trigger would be $160 versus going either of the other two routes. I wasn't aware that I'd need a Cactus for both the body and the flash. I might move to that down the line, but I think startign "cheap" might be worth it first. To see if I really get much use out of them.

[mojoe_24]

So I ended up buyinga YN560 IV. Unfortunately, it doesn't fir the K3-ii. Is there a hot shoe riser or something that I can use? The flash is too fat and hits the top of the camera so it can't sit on the hot shoe.

<E> Only positive is that I intend to use it off camera mostly. I bought two and a 560TX, which I've since discovered does fit. But I'd like to be able to use it on camera on occasions.

[stevebrot]

So I ended up buyinga YN560 IV. Unfortunately, it doesn't fir the K3-ii.

Well, that sucks. My YN560 III units have very little clearance on the K-3, but they do fit. I would not have guessed that the K-3II would be worse in that regards, but apparently the prism housing is just a little bit taller. I am not sure, but I think that Yongnuo uses very similar body design for all of their flashes. I wonder if the YN586EX has similar fit problems with the K-3II?


Steve

[neokind]

So I ended up buyinga YN560 IV. Unfortunately, it doesn't fir the K3-ii. Is there a hot shoe riser or something that I can use? The flash is too fat and hits the top of the camera so it can't sit on the hot shoe.

<E> Only positive is that I intend to use it off camera mostly. I bought two and a 560TX, which I've since discovered does fit. But I'd like to be able to use it on camera on occasions.

I had to return my 560IV for the same reason. I got a 585EX instead, and was assured it fit. It also hit the GPS housing, but I kept it anyway. I wanted it for off-camera use, so it didn't really matter to me. I ended up using the 603ii triggers and it worked just fine. The triggers do not touch the K3ii housing, just in case you were wondering. But all of the current Yongnuo flashes do, if I remember correctly.

[T Evergreen]

The YN585EX is a snug fit on the K-3 II (there is no daylight between the GPS housing and the flash), but it does fit and the flash works in P-TTL mode as it should.

Regarding the YN560IV not fitting the K-3 II, you can use a hot shoe adapter like this one -- SEAGULL SC-2 Flash Hot Shoe Adapter with PC Sync socket | eBay -- which lifts the flash well above the GPS housing. There is one problem, however, when using one of these adapters and that is you can't lock the adapter to the hot shoe on the camera. The adapter I have is a tight fit in the hot shoe and seems secure, but it is something to consider depending on how the camera/flash is being used.