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Forum: Flashes, Lighting, and Studio 11-04-2023, 01:06 AM

settings for use with Flashpoint wireless trigger
Posted By inkista

Replies: 5
Views: 676

I'm not a Pentax shooter, but I've got a lot of experience with Godox/Flashpoint. :D Just wanted to confirm that pschlute's advice is sound. Typically, you need to set up the camera as if the transmitter were an on-camera speedlight you were using directly on the hotshoe, not a wireless master unit. (Only Canon bodies can fully control Godox gear with their wireless flash menus). All control over the flash should be done on the Godox transmitter, not the camera menus.

Looking through the KP's user manual, I'd say "Flash On" is your safest bet.

Forum: Flashes, Lighting, and Studio 10-31-2023, 02:31 PM

remotely trigger a Metz m400
Posted By inkista

Replies: 6
Views: 569

Godox triggers will only get TTL/HSS with their own Godox speedlights, or for Canon/Nikon/Sony flashes with the X1R-C/N/S attached. There's no way to work a legacy Pentax flash into a Godox lighting scheme and still retain TTL/HSS/remote power control. The speedlight will become manual-only.

And on an M400, that's problematic, because the M400 doesn't have physical controls on it to set power, it relies on camera communication for that. Which it won't have if it isn't being used with P-TTL compatible radio triggers.

Probably simpler to get a Godox TT350-P to work with a Godox transmitter for off-camera and save the M400 for on-camera flash.

Forum: Flashes, Lighting, and Studio 10-31-2023, 02:28 PM

X2T-P received: first tests and first disappointment
Posted By inkista

Replies: 38
Views: 7,927

Could be all you need to get the X2T-P to work is tape off the non-sync contacts on the hotshoe. The sync contact is the big one in the center of the hotshoe.

Huh. That's unexpected. Adorama is listing it as a pre-order. Maybe someone at B&H set the order status incorrectly?

Forum: Flashes, Lighting, and Studio 07-08-2023, 05:53 PM

Cross-brand current production hot shoe flashes - any confirmed damage?
Posted By inkista

Replies: 9
Views: 675

As someone who's used a Nikon SB-26 on her Canon, Olympus, and Fuji gear :), let's just say, you're probably not going to damage anything if the hotshoe flash isn't really old vintage gear that can possibly have a really high sync voltage. If it's digital era gear from the mid-2000s or newer, your sync voltage is very likely below 5V, and it's safe and you won't fry your camera. And most cameras today have higher sync voltage limits (around 250V in the case of Canon and Nikon) than the 6V most folks were warned about because of the first-generation Canon bodies and G-series cameras that had that low a limit and got immortalized on the botzilla page.

The only usual issue is accidental contact on pins/contacts other than sync (more of an issue with Nikon gear, where some of the contact placement is similar to Pentax's but not identical) than with other brands. But for total safety, just tape off everything but the big center contact on the hotshoe, and you'll be fine. The big center contact is for sync and is part of an ISO standard, so that's why it's universal and fine to use. But this is also why, used cross-brand, you can only fire a flash, and you'll have to use it in M and below sync speed and make any settings changes on the flash itself. TTL, HSS, camera menu control all take place on the other pins/contacts.

And there probably is an issue with Sony MIS gear (multi-interface shoe) fitting appropriately into a more traditional ISO hotshoe, because of the front edge contacts. AFAIK, they can make it so that the sync pin won't hit the sync contact if you try to use it on a more traditional hotshoe. Upcoming Canon multifunction shoe gear (like the EL-5) may have similar issues for the same reason (see B&H image of its foot)

Forum: Flashes, Lighting, and Studio 07-04-2023, 11:43 PM

Advice on getting a flash
Posted By inkista

Replies: 22
Views: 1,330

For me? Not much. It only applies to direct bare flash with the flash on-camera, and sometimes the camera/flash don't account for crop factor if you're not shooting full frame, so the zoom setting may not actually match the focal length of the lens you're using.

The only time I find it important is if I'm using Godox flash gear over radio, if I can't set the flash to auto Zoom, I have no remote zoom control. I.e., the TT600 cannot be remotely zoomed manually, without the Auto zoom setting.

Forum: Flashes, Lighting, and Studio 03-17-2023, 11:09 PM

Best currently available ring flash for Pentax DFA 100/2.8 macro
Posted By inkista

Replies: 22
Views: 1,723

To me, that's more if you want an on-camera beauty dish or a ring flash for fashion shooting. And you have to also already own the AD200 and a transmitter. Kind of big and expensive.

I'd actually point to the Godox MF12 and maybe an XPro II-P if you just wanted a TTL twin flash setup for macro. No mention of HSS in the specs, though, and the battery is integrated, which is a PITA. The MF12s have built-in radio triggering, but can also do "dumb" optical S1/S2 triggering, and individually are tiny. It's kind of a blatant copy of the Nikon R1C1. :)

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.

Forum: Flashes, Lighting, and Studio 02-25-2023, 02:37 PM

Flash compatibility issues.
Posted By inkista

Replies: 23
Views: 1,353

Yongnuo RF-603 II triggers are specced with a 300V sync limit; they raised it from the former 12V limit on the RF-603 iirc (I may not). Granted, a 283/285 can still go over that, so modding them to lower that still makes sense.

Forum: Flashes, Lighting, and Studio 02-17-2023, 07:38 PM

New Godox XPro II flash triggers
Posted By inkista

Replies: 19
Views: 2,179

Yup. The Flashpoint R2 Pro II and SPT (single-pin transceiver) are both Adorama exclusives, so not readily available or affordable outside the US.

Outside the US, the Xpro II is probably the closest you can easily get to an R2 Pro II, or at least its Bluetooth and SCAN functions.

And, some folks still prefer the XPro group button arrangement vs. the R2 Pro II arcing them around the wheel and SET button, and anecdotally there are stories of (mostly Nikon) folks having misfire issues with the R2 Pro II they don't with the XPro.

Forum: Flashes, Lighting, and Studio 02-10-2023, 10:19 PM

New Godox XPro II flash triggers
Posted By inkista

Replies: 19
Views: 2,179

Wow. Good news! The initial announcement I saw didn't mention a Pentax version at all (which is why I didn't post about it here—why rub salt in the wound?), nor does the Godox website product page for the Xpro II. Also, the Leica shooters are still paying $130 for their version. The usual red-dot premium, I suppose.

Yes it's new on the XPro, not new on the X2T and the Flashpoint R2 Pro II. Whether you want to use the app when it requires you to create a login, give it your smartphone's phone number, and give it access to your location information to use it is a completely different thing. (eyeroll).

Near as I can suss out from looking at the user manuals, nothing super-substantial was added, but it's mainly upgrading to be on a par with the V1/V860 III/TT685 II and X2T/R2 Pro II feature set.

Slide lock instead of screw lock

ID code displayed on main screen

If sync delay is set indicator on main screen

New graphical function menu

Single-pin mode

SCAN function (to find least-crowded channels)

Bluetooth capability (to use with app)

SHOOT function rearranged: no more APP setting, but now a new L-858 mode for the Sekonic RT-GX unit.

USB-C (not micro USB)

Channel and MULTI are now function settings.

Sync now called (wrongly [eyeroll]) PC Jack [someone needs to explain to them that PC stands for Prontor-Compur, not just any sync jack]

Step function now can define either decimal (#.#) or ratio display (1/#), and set minimal power limit, as well as 0.3EV or 0.1EV units [XPro required firmware update to do this]

TCM also updated with more options for the light to define as the base.

New TEST Button setting (TRIGGER / SHUTTER). No idea what that means. [grin].

You can save presets under the USER function (similar to the old Godox app).

Modelling lamp control expanded (adjust the modelling lamp of each light separately in Proportional and Percentage

And Wes Perry mentions it also inherits the X2T's ability to turn a group on/off simply by double-tapping the group button.

Also of no interest to you Pentaxians, but Canon folks are hearing the XPro II-C is going to fix the TTL+HSS issue with the EOS R bodies.

---------- Post added 02-10-23 at 09:22 PM ----------

You sure you're not looking at a listing for the Leica version? in the US, the XProL II is $130, while the other versions are $90.

Forum: Flashes, Lighting, and Studio 02-06-2023, 06:01 PM

Godox V860iii
Posted By inkista

Replies: 22
Views: 2,505

Yup. Most of the folks raving about it are Profoto users who are happier they can include their less expensive gear. For them, the price of a Raven is the same as an Air TTL transmitter. :D But TLC Fusion are the only ones who've cracked a few technical issues nobody else has (e.g., the Canon R5/R6 issue with TTL+HSS problem is that Canon's introduced variable power preflashes into their TTL flow), and the new company is basically a lot of PocketWizard RF geniuses who were clearly chafing under the restrictions that they had to work to maintain backwards compatibility with the older PW units. The Raven is their chance to do a whole new clean-slate design. And the touchscreen UI is unique and remarkable.

Their Sync view feature:

You Tube

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is the slickest I've seen by several degrees, for adjusting tail-sync (hypersync, supersync, etc. etc.) timing. On Godox gear, you just put the delay in by ms, shoot chimp, adjust, and repeat until you hone in on the timing you want. PocketWizard it's even worse, you have to use desktop software to program in the change to the PW unit. The way they visualize the pulse and then allow you to change the timing start/end times is really simple and useful for those who want to use faster than sync shutter speeds, but not lose power to HSS pulsing.

Forum: Flashes, Lighting, and Studio 02-05-2023, 09:17 PM

Godox V860iii
Posted By inkista

Replies: 22
Views: 2,505

Yes, but it is also something other 3rd party flash systems also offer: Nissin's Air 10, Profoto's Air TTL, and the Westcott/Jinbei RT system all do this. Only the Jinbei/Westcott/Rollei/etc. system goes one better and does cross-brand on-camera as well via a "universal TTL" foot (similar to the Cactus V6 II's, though, obviously, the Sony users need an additional adapter to get those front contacts they need on the foot), where the same transmitter/speedlight unit can be used directly on different brand hotshoes with TTL/HSS. But most of those systems don't support Pentax, so aren't of much interest around these parts. :D

And then there's that funky Fusion TLC Raven transmitter, which lets you mix together any two of the following triggering systems: Profoto, Paul Buff, Godox, or PocketWizard. So far they only support Canon and Nikon, but say they'll be adding more camera brands as well as more strobe brands to their system.

Forum: Flashes, Lighting, and Studio 02-02-2023, 04:04 AM

Godox V860iii
Posted By inkista

Replies: 22
Views: 2,505

They definitely do original design/engineering work on their gear, but reverse-engineering is also how they figuring out the hotshoe communication protocol with the cameras. And it's why they often don't have 100% compatibility (see: Panasonic banding issue, Sony TTL underexposure issue, R5/R6 TTL+HSS issue, etc.) It's not like Canon/Nikon/Sony/Fuji/Pentax licenses their electronic hotshoe communication protocol. (MFT and L-mount, that's a different story, but given the HSS issues Panasonic has with Godox indicates they're still being reverse-engineered to me). "Reverse-engineering" doesn't necessarily mean a simple clone or copy.

And compare the TT685 to the Canon 600EX-RT. That's almost a straight copy, down to the buttons, dials, menus, and LCD as well as function. With the TT685-C, there was a lot of additional function on it no other TT685 "flavor" had (like Groups D&E, Gr mode, and full two-way camera menu/flash communication), as well as smart optical wireless triggering. The Godox X system communication protocol is pretty clearly based on Canon's RT system.

Forum: Flashes, Lighting, and Studio 01-31-2023, 10:39 PM

Godox V860iii
Posted By inkista

Replies: 22
Views: 2,505

If you have a spare battery, did you try swapping it? It could be the battery pack is bad rather than the flash. I would also check the charge level on the battery. And make sure the battery's not swollen/going bad. But it's more probably there's a cold solder join or possibly a bad component that's messing up the works.

Unlikely. The V860 III is basically just a V1-P with a traditional fresnel head, an LED lamp in the body and the added M/TTL physical switch. But otherwise, pretty much the same, and the V1-P was never reported as having this issue.

Just me, but don't blame Godox for a crappy retailer. Blame Godox for not offering support to US customers so that you have to rely on the retailer. But around the interwebz a lot of us always tell anybody purchasing Godox to do so from a reputable retailer you know covers the warranty period for the gear. Any of the retailers who rebrand Godox to a house brand will do this (the whole point of the rebranding is so they can more easily identify who purchased from them and who didn't), such as the Flashpoint gear on Adorama or the Pixapro gear on essentialphotos. And other retailers like B&H and Lencarta also offer support without rebranding. Most reputable retailers do.

And a lot of pros who need to always have a working copy will simply purchase two copies so they'll have one for backup.

Just saying. Godox is still low-cost reverse-engineered Chinese gear. It's half the cost of other OEM radio-equipped speedlights (hell, 1/4 the cost in the case of the Canon EL-1). The low pricetags gotta come from somewhere, and it's generally support, QA and testing. The chances of getting a lemon copy vary more than with an OEM company like Pentax. That doesn't mean you'll always get a lemon (most people don't or the gear wouldn't be so highly recommended everywhere. I've owned six Godox speedlights, and one only stopped functioning properly after 2.5 years because I did something really stupid that broke it (forced the head to rotate farther than it's designed to). My luck is good. That doesn't mean I don't expect at some point to have to deal with a lemon return like you. I know how cheap Chinese gear gets made.

Just saying. Hammer on the retailer you purchased it from, and use your credit card company if you have to and dispute the charge.

Forum: Flashes, Lighting, and Studio 12-10-2022, 02:21 PM

Difference between Wireless Master & Control settings on AF-360FGZ
Posted By inkista

Replies: 5
Views: 796

I am not a Pentax shooter or an AF-360FGZ user, but I used to be a professional tech writer, so I can puzzle out user manuals. :) From what I gather on page 45, both modes are for using the AF-360FGZ as an on-camera wireless master unit. You use M if you also want to use the AF360FGZ as an on-camera flash; you use C if you only want to use it as a wireless controller, but not as a flash (i.e., you don't want it to fire).

Forum: Flashes, Lighting, and Studio 11-01-2022, 11:39 PM

Two flashes mounted on one camera???
Posted By inkista

Replies: 18
Views: 1,354

I can't help thinking this is what a Godox MF12 is for. :)

Forum: Flashes, Lighting, and Studio 10-22-2022, 03:57 PM

Metz 58 af-2 not firing
Posted By inkista

Replies: 10
Views: 1,270

Actually, as someone who got an EE/CS degree in the '80s [grin] :) "hacker" was originally a derogatory term for a programmer who wrote bad inelegant code: IOW, a hack, someone who would rely on brute-force algorithms rather that something faster/smarter. Since most early hacking was brute-force style, that's why the term was applied, and later became the generic term for someone attempting to break through security. The white hat/black hat distinction came a lot later.

As for Hobby, he was doing the speedlight off-camera thing for the Baltimore Sun Times back in film days, probably around the late '80s/early '90s, when most folks still assumed you only lit off-camera with studio strobes (he just got tired of hauling his monolights out on assignments). And he's certainly the first person to write about doing so, particularly with PocketWizards. Just because the Strobist blog started in 2006, that doesn't mean that's when he started using speedlights off-camera. :D

Forum: Flashes, Lighting, and Studio 10-21-2022, 03:30 PM

Metz 58 af-2 not firing
Posted By inkista

Replies: 10
Views: 1,270

Yes, yes, we all know about the brand names, but IMO, speedlight is now the kleenex of flashes: It's the brand name that's become the generic one and has graduated to lowercase usage. And David Hobby has the additional excuse of having been a long-time Nikon shooter. :)

I would also posit that the guy who revolutionized/popularized using speedlights for off-camera flash lighting, studio-style, might know just a wee bit more about flash and flash technology than the average. And his knowledge of analog electronics is solid. HIs advice on how to rebuild the oxide layer in your strobe's capacitor, and the difference between how you do it from a speedlight vs. a monolight is good reading.

Also, as someone who was a technical writer professionally for over a quarter of a century and can nitpick word usage long past the time when anyone else would have dropped it, I'd also say that I far prefer using speedlight to "hotshoe flash" or "cobra flash." One word is stronger than two when describing a specific thing.

Now if I could only persuade everyone that that bit on the bottom of a speedlight is actually a foot, not a hotshoe (the shoe is the foot goes into, be it hot or cold), I'd be a happy woman. (sigh). Godox, I blame your weak English translation for starting the spread of this and B&H and Adorama for echoing it [primarily in listings for replacement foot assemblies, calling them replacement hotshoes], and now even Rob Hall (who really should know better) is calling it a shoe. [eyeroll]. At least Godox finally stopped calling every sync port under the sun a "PC sync port"—even if it's 2.5mm or 3.5mm (eyeroll).

Oh, and the current game of internet telephone that's got so-called 'experts' calling slow-sync flash "dragging the shutter"? That needs to die the fiery death of a thousand suns.

Forum: Flashes, Lighting, and Studio 10-15-2022, 03:25 PM

Metz 58 af-2 not firing
Posted By inkista

Replies: 10
Views: 1,270

Dunno if this is useful information, but:

Strobist: How to Keep Your Old Flash from Exploding

Forum: Flashes, Lighting, and Studio 08-07-2022, 09:28 PM

Portable Flash System for Portraits - Australia Road Trip
Posted By inkista

Replies: 21
Views: 2,455

Um. You do know this is a Pentax board, right? The Canon Strobists congregate more over on POTN. :)

Godox. Particularly for Canon shooters, since I suspect the Godox X system was reverse engineered off Canon RT gear. I moved from Yongnuo YN-622 gear to Godox gear when I added Panasonic mirrorless cameras to my Canon dSLR gear.

It's because the 5Dii is a pre-2012 body [before the 600EX-RT came out]. The Canon wireless flash communication protocol added a lot of features for the RT system (Groups D&E, Gr mode etc.) and the 5Dii can't actually communicate any of that by itself. Until the XPro-C came out as a transmitter, you did not have access to those features with a 5Dii. If you're looking at XT16, XT32, or X1T listings that's why the 5Dii isn't on the compatibility list.

I use a 5Dii with an Xpro-C transmitter, and it works fine.

There were similar issues with the Yongnuo YN-622C transceivers and the 5Dii wasn't compatible with group/M power control until the YN-622C-TX came out.

Personally, I say go for Godox gear, not Yongnuo for the following reasons:

Godox's 2.4 GHz X system is unified. All the 2.4 GHz radio gear Godox makes for strobes (aside from the FC16 triggers) are in this system. It integrates manual and TTL speedlights, AC-powered manual monolight, and the li-ion battery-powered TTL/HSS AD Witstro strobes. The system supports TTL/HSS for Canon, Nikon, Sony, Fuji, Olympus/Panasonic, and Pentax. And that support works (mostly) cross-brand.

Yongnuo is failing at integrating their three? four? different mostly-incompatible triggerings systems. If you add in the manual YN-560 speedlights, you lose TTL/HSS compatibility with the TTL ones. Only the latest newest models are integrated, and the only systems supported are Canon, Nikon, and Sony, and cross-brand signalling doesn't necessarily work for all of it. Yongnuo also makes only one model light in their YN-560-TX Pro system that's bigger than a speedlight: the YN200, which is a cheaper copy of the Godox AD200, only with a fixed barebulb head, not an interchangeable head.

Finding what's compatible with what with Yongnuo gear can be insanely difficult. They have a YN-560/60x manual triggering system, a 622 TTL/HSS system, a Canon RT clone system, and now a Sony TTL/HSS system. And it's not necessarily self-evident which speedlight models are in which systems (aside from the RT ones that always have RT in their name).

In addition, Godox gear is often rebranded by more reputable retailers so they can tell who bought it from them, and offer customer/warranty support (e.g., Adorama's Flashpoint R2 gear is Godox's X system).

So, just me? If you're not a pro, consider getting the TT685 II-C ($130). It's a TTL/HSS full-sized speedlight for Canon. It also has a built-in radio transceiver. If you've never used a flash before, put aside plans for going Strobist, and master on-camera bounce flash first. It's a lot easier to grasp the basics of flash metering, flash exposure, and flash/ambient balance, as well as basic control over the intensity, direction, quality and (with gels) the color of the light if all you have to buy and master at first is a speedlight, a black sheet of black craft foam and a rubber band, and some gels. David Hobby assumed everybody had already hit the limits of on-camera bounce flash before finding the Strobist. He's also not going to teach you on-camera flash. TTL, or bounce technique. Neil van Niekerk will.

THEN you get a lighstand, a bracket or umbrella swivel, an XPro-C or Flashpoint R2 Pro II-C or transmitter, and a softbox or umbrella, and you start with a one-light Strobist setup. Hold off on proliferating lights/stands/modifiers until you can previsualize what this combination is going to do before you do it. Get enough sense of how this all works so that by the time you do want a second light, you'll know if you need bigger guns than speedlights or not, because that can have a knock on effect on the size/weight/cost of your stands and modifiers, too.

Good luck. Welcome to a brighter world!

Forum: Flashes, Lighting, and Studio 07-15-2022, 06:50 PM

K5 ii with off-camera flash in softbox
Posted By inkista

Replies: 11
Views: 723

You can get simple triggers, like Godox FC16 or Yongnuo RF603 II triggers. If there's a Nikon version, you'll probably want that one, since standby signalling can work between Pentax and Nikon triggers.

But. If you use the Shanny in manual on a radio trigger or in a "dumb" optical slave mode, the only communication you will have is to tell the flash to fire in sync. "Manual" doesn't just mean you have to use the flash in M mode (not TTL), but also that you have to adjust the power/zoom, etc. directly on the flash using its own physical controls, while keeping your shutter speed at or below your camera body's sync speed (K-5ii, that would be 1/180s).

If your softbox is mounted on a bracket with the flash behind it, then this shouldn't be an issue. But there are some softboxes where the flash is completely within the softbox, and to make any adjustment, you'd have to rip open the softbox and then close it back up again. A lot less convenient.

If you want to avoid this, you could also consider trading in your Shanny for something like a Godox speedlight (say a TT600 for $65), which has a built-in radio transceiver that allows for remote power, group, and HSS control over the speedlight, and keep the Shanny for on-camera bounce flash.

Forum: Flashes, Lighting, and Studio 07-15-2022, 05:24 PM

Cactus V6? V6 II? Something else? (warning: Fuji + Pentax content)
Posted By inkista

Replies: 22
Views: 1,663

Just me, but consider Godox (then again I drank the Godox/Strobist kool-aid long ago and I'm this board's resident Godox wonk, so keep that in mind. Godox's system can support TTL and HSS for both Fuji and Pentax with the same lights. The only thing that has to match the camera brand is going to be whichever unit(s) go on-camera to act as a radio transmitter (transmitter or speedlight).

Other systems have similar cross-brand TTL support (Westcott FJ/Jinbei RT, Profoto Air, Nissin Air, Broncolor TRS.2, etc.) But AFAIK, while they all support Canon, Nikon, Sony, and Fuji, none of them support Pentax P-TTL. I think the only three cross-brand TTL radio triggers that support Pentax P-TTL are Godox X, Phottix Odin II, and the Elinchrom Pro. And of these three, Godox is the lowest-cost.

Godox supports cross-brand TTL for Canon, Nikon, Sony, Fuji, micro four-thirds (Olympus/Panasonic) and Pentax. And soon Leica. But. Pentax's support is probably the most spotty in terms of products (i.e., there's no V350, TT685, TT685 II, or V860 II for Pentax in the speedlight lineup and no X1T transmitter). But this and the larger-than-speedlight strobe options, both manual AC-powered monolights and battery-powered TTL/HSS strobes (both monolights and pack and heads) are why the Godox system gets so widely recommended.

A modular mini battery-powered TTL/HSS strobe like an AD200 that's designed solely for off-camera use has been something of a game changer. It has 3x the light output of a speedlight and can use a fresnel, bare bulb, round, or extension head. Also a dual bracket to combine two bulbs and two bodies to form one 400 Ws studio strobe with LED modeling lights.

For Godox this would not be usable from Fuji or Pentax as a TTL/HSS radio slave, even with an X1R-C receiver attached to its foot. Could only be used as a manual slave (i.e., you could fire it, but all settings would have to be made directly on the camera). BTW, Nissin actually has its own radio system, now built into the i60A and Di700. Maybe also their potato masher flash.

Ditto. Godox isn't friendly to legacy gear the way the Cactus X-TTL system is. OTOH, Godox is still making flash gear, and has a very wide user base.

But also:

These were/are great workhorse flashes but they're manual with an autothyristor, and maaay (unlikely) be old enough to have scary-high sync voltages that might (or might not) fry digital-era gear. And used remotely with radio triggers, whether TTL capable or not, most likely the only function you can get is sync (firing them) and not any kind of settings changes, other than maybe using the autothyristor for power control.

In contrast, a $65 Godox TT600 single-pin manual speedlight , (while it's manual-only on a hothose) as a radio slave in Godox's system would give you remote group on/off, M power control (by group), and HSS (high-speed sync, also called FP/focal plane flash) capability when used with, say a Godox XPro-F (Fuji) or an Xpro-P (Pentax).

The X-H1's sync speed is 1/250s. The K-5ii's is 1/180s. So, you'd still need to care about HSS to get 1/500s with flash.

Actually, here's the fun part with Godox. While the transmitter needs to match the camera brand, the flash may not. It only needs to match if you want TTL/HSS with the flash on-camera directly attached to the camera hotshoe.

But I shoot Canon (5Dii), Panasonic (GX7), and Fuji (X100T). I have an Xpro-C, an XPro-O, and an XPro-F. I also have a TT685-C speedlight that's TTL/HSS on the 5Dii. All three of these gear combos can remotely control my firmware upgraded TT685-C to fire it, turn groups on/off, adjust an M power level by group, use TTL and HSS, and adjust the zoom by group. I also have Groups A-C support for the -O and -F transmitters, Groups A-E for the -C transmitter. However. There are some caveats that are flavor-specific.

The TT350/V350 mini speedlights are not designed with cross-brand TTL in mind. Some combos work (Nikon/Sony), others don't (Canon/Olympus). I have no idea about Fuji/Pentax. You are likely to get sync, possibly group and power control, but HSS is more iffy, and TTL may be completely out.

Secondly, only the V860 II (all flavors) and the AD Witstro lights got P-TTL compatibility upgrades. Of all the versions of the TT685, only the Canon one got the P-TTL firmware upgrade. So you can't grab a TT685-F and use it in TTL with an XPro-P. You can use the V860 II-F with the XPro-P in TTL. And the three newer models: the V1, V860 III, and TT685 II should all work cross-brand for Fuji and Pentax.

Godox gear can work as manual-only triggering with film gear. Even medium format bodies.

They are cheap Chinese gear, however, where you are relying on the retailer you purchased from fro customer support and warranty coverage with replacement units, so most of us in the US recommend finding a reputable dealer, like B&H or Adorama (who rebrands the Godox X system gear as Flashpoint R2 gear) that will offer that.

Forum: Flashes, Lighting, and Studio 05-16-2022, 09:06 PM

Bare Bulb Flash
Posted By inkista

Replies: 5
Views: 1,013

No. The purpose is to throw light out in all directions. If you're in a small room, that means bounce back from all directions and that can mean nice soft light (if you've shielded the subject from direct light from the flash). Inside a modifier (e.g., octa), it can mean filling the modifier more completely (wider spread) and evenly; round heads on speedlights do this too. Most studio strobes use bare bulbs.

Fresnel heads on typical speedlights are designed to concentrate and focus the light from a bulb and throw it farther, but it can only be sent in one direction (forward), and the fresnel lens itself will cause hotspots.

Bare direct flash, however, will still be as hard, regardless of which head is used.

Forum: Flashes, Lighting, and Studio 05-04-2022, 02:39 PM

About my new external flash...
Posted By inkista

Replies: 13
Views: 1,387

The TT600 is a single-pin manual-only speedlight. It has no TTL capabilities for the camera/transmitter to control. You can only use it in M. And you can only adjust the power in M from the transmitter (though you could I suppose set the Group to TTL; it will only fire at full power that way, though).

Cameras react different to having flash or not having flash, but the XPro-P on the camera hotshoe should have acted as if you had an on-camera speedlight. But Auto ISO is never really a great idea with flash, because of how cameras tend to react to thinking you've got some ambient settings that are really really dark. :)

This is just me, but honestly, a TT600 isn't the greatest choice for a first/only speedlight, no matter what David Hobby writes. It's better as a 2nd, 3rd, or 4th off-camera only speedlight. But you want at least one unit you can use on or off-camera. Or at least in TTL. The V1-P, V860 III-P, or TT350-P are your only Godox choices as a Pentax shooter (unlike all the other brands who also get $110 TT685 options). But you could, if you plan to use this flash off-camera all the time) have also used a TT685-C, firmware upgraded to speak P-TTL off-camera (its foot remains Canon-dedicated, though), and gotten TTL control over your off-camera flash.

First thing to wrap your head around is that whenever you take a flash image, you're combining two exposures in every shot, because you have two different sources of illumination: the ambient (all the existing light that isn't the flash) and the flash.

Ambient exposure is controlled by iso, aperture, and shutter speed. This you should already know and be comfortable shooting in M before you start up with flash, because the automated system in your camera uses a meter that can only read the ambient light (what's in the scene) before you take the shot. It cannot measure your flash because the burst hasn't happened yet. The reason I say TTL makes it easier is that with TTL, the camera can put the flash into the scene while it's metering with a "preflash", and then adjust the power on the flash to match your other settings. But it can only do that with a flash that speaks P-TTL.

Flash exposure, however, is controlled by iso, aperture, power, and distance. Shutter speed only affects the ambient because the flash burst is much faster than your shutter speed, so leaving the shutter open for longer only gathers more light for the ambient.

Because of these two different sets of controls, you can have two different exposure levels in each image based on the two different light sources. You can balance your flash against the ambient at any combination that's within your flash's power range.

When you rely on automated exposure modes (aperture or shutter priority) on your camera, the camera is most likely going to default to "fill flash"; where most of your exposure comes from the ambient, and only a little from the flash to "fill-in" shadows in bright sunlight. This is a very common use of pop-up flashes and what the camera is designed to default to. If you want to change this, you typically have to be in either the M or P modes on the camera.

Also there is an additional "gotcha" when it comes to shutter speed, which is that every focal-plane shutter has a flash sync speed limit. For most digital cameras, it's around 1/200s. With a K-70, it's 1/180s. Go faster than this without engaging high-speed sync (HSS) mode, and you'll get banding because one or both of the curtains will still be covering part of the sensor when the flash burst goes off. If you do engage HSS, then the flash has to pulse to form a continuous light during the whole of the exposure, and you lose about -2EV of flash power to this. So most folks stick at or slightly below sync speed if they can, to conserve power.

A very typical trick to do flash outdoors with someone is to drag them into the shade, meter and slightly underexpose for the ambient, and then add the flash to light them a little brighter so they "pop" in the frame. But what power setting to use depends on what iso and aperture you're using, how you want to balance the flash against the ambient, and how big/powerful your flash is. If I'm inside, I tend to ballpark iso 400, f/4, and 1/4 power at sync speed, simply because mnemonically it's easy to remember all-4s. :D Then I chimp, and adjust. With experience, you get to sense what range of power you may need for a given set of settings.

But, as I said, TTL can be a lot easier, particularly at first. You do also need to learn to operate a flash in M, though, just as you need to know how to operate your camera in M, so you can get a sense of what's actually going on. Both Neil van Niekerk's Tangents website, and David Hobby's Strobist website are great places to start.

I typically say start with Tangents and learn on-camera bounce flash first, since it only involves buying and learning a speedlight at first. But the lack of TTL on a TT600 might make that a bit more frustrating than it would be with a V860 III-P ($230) or TT350-P ($85), and the TT350 only swivels 270º which is a completely different PITA for bounce flash. So, possibly starting with the Strobist's Lighting 101 is a better starting point for you.

Forum: Flashes, Lighting, and Studio 04-10-2022, 10:01 PM

Good quality studio flash?
Posted By inkista

Replies: 5
Views: 902

How small? Are you sure you need something as big/powerful as a 300 Ws monolight? (And you will need AC power nearby to run them).

Small tabletop shooting doesn't often require the power/light output and spread of a big monolight, and may even require lower light levels than those types of strobes can give. These $100-ish 300 Ws studio strobes typically limit the minimum power level ot 1/32. But are roughly 4x more powerful than a speedlight, so this would be like not being able to use any power levels below 1/8 on a speedlight. Completely useful for portrait photography, but possibly overpowered for macro.

Not as bullet-proof as the more expensive name brands (not a lot of customer support/warranty repair), but if you're budget-limited, you could also look at the Godox 2.4GHz radio-triggering system. Look maybe at Godox's MS300/MS200 or, possibly using a Godox speedlight Strobist-style with a Godox transmitter. Or. If you plan on doing a lot of on-location shooting, the more expensive Godox AD lights are battery-powered.

The Neewer on that list doesn't have built-in radio triggering. But it does have a 9-stop range, so you can turn it down a lot lower (1 to 1/512).
The Walimex Newcomers look okay, but they're no-name, and there's no way to figure out what might be compatible with the same radio triggers. 100 Ws isn't that much more powerful than a speedlight and a whole lot less portable :), and 300 Ws/400 Ws with a 1/32 limit might be too much power.

Forum: Flashes, Lighting, and Studio 03-17-2022, 02:22 PM

X2T pass through shoe
Posted By inkista

Replies: 5
Views: 1,476

I haven't done it (I use XPros), but stacking a manual trigger should work. Given that the hotshoe on top of an X2T-P is single-contact, TTL triggers won't be able to have full communication.

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