Maybe... I'll have to try again.
I have often used a dumb flash on the hotshoe and put the 360/540s in slave 2 mode before getting remote triggers. I'll have to check again, but I am pretty sure I've used x-sync in the past.

Still, without being in slave mode to begin with, the one flash connected via hotshoe to the remote trigger should fire without added delay.

Regarding what aspect? I often go between slave modes 1 and 2 for various tasks. I'm not sure to what, exactly, you are referring.

I just looked up those pages anyway. I checked both printed manual pages 49-50, and the PDF pages 49-50 (i.e. manual pages 48-49) I don't see anything regarding sync speeds.

Of course my PDF is all tilted and looks like a third grader photocopied it.
(I did not keep the original manual since have the PDF).
But perhaps something is missing from the "high quality" PDF?

he, he, been reading more about these. Why couldn't any of these web sites appear on my searches before I bought the darned things?

Anyway, it seems the sync speed is a bit slower than a lot of people like.
I have seen some say to stay below 1/160s.
I'm just surprised because quite a few people are also getting 1/250 with good results.
The demo camera used when I first used these was working at 1/250s so I (foolishly?) expected the device would work well with the K10D's slower sync speed.

I can live with 1/160. But is anyone else out there getting better results with them? Don?

Maybe I'll try replacing the transmitter battery. Range seems a bit short, so perhaps the battery is a dud?

OK, having some trouble with the sync speed on my K10D and wondering if I'm doing something wrong or is the camera having problems?

I had picked up a Cactus II and it would barely sync over 1/100s. (black bar creeping in from the bottom of the frame).

I picked up the Skyport wireless remotes from Elinchrom. They are supposed to have great sync speeds, but again, I have to sync below 1/160th. At 1/160 I start to see slight darkening of th bottom of the frame.
At 1/180, the bottom is definitely black.

I tried Manual and X-sync modes.

Yet with wire less PTTL between theK10 and the 540/360 flashes, I get no such effect at 1/180 second. (not in high speed mode)

It sounds like some people are seeing similar issues with other brand cameras, but since their sync speed goes to 1/500s, they are seeing issues until they drop to 1/250s.

Is this just an accepted shortcoming of this type of shutter system when used with remote flashes?

Images are nearly acceptable at 1/160s and certainly higher than the CactusII at 1/125. Plus I get about 50m outdoor range (shorter than the 120m advertised, but better than the 9m I got with the CactusII).


Anyway, any ideas would be appreciated. Thanks.

I love this photo, but I have to be honest that it probably doesn't fit the theme since it is not really local. (the signs would give that away )
Unfortunately we only have the big box stores around here.
Perhaps some day I'll move to Florence or nearby -- it was a fantastic place to visit. (it was local at the time but I certainly understand if it has to be disqualified from the theme.)

If you are planning on photographing animals, I would tell you to not bother trying wire less flash. Any animals I've tried to photograph have quicker response to light than most people I've met.

A lot of people don't seem bothered or even notice, but with all the pre-flashes required for metering and wire less flash communication, you'll need a pretty dumb, slow, blind and/or tame animal in order to get a photo with its eyes open. (or with the animal still in the frame)

I would even recommend staying away from the 360/540 simply because I don't believe you can turn off the pre-flashes for metering. Anyone know if Manual mode bypasses metering - does it behave differently than the pop-up flash in this regard?? (I believe even manual still causes pre-flashes. Always caused troubles for syncing studio strobes, so I suspect pre-flashes even in full manual).

You may need to get a pc-sync cable and adapters in order to bypass any PTTL comms and force only the single flash required for lighting. But then you have to manually calculate or practice to get the right amount of flash, etc... May not seem the easiest route for a beginner, but may be less frustrating than wondering why so many of your shots are of the tail end of your subject. (Will likely give more consistent lighting/exposure anyway)

I like the radio remote triggers because they work like PC sync. Again, no metering pre-flash, so I get much less response to the flash when photographing dogs, for instance.

Some people have great luck with the Cactus II, (a.k.a ebay tirggers).
Personally, I found the range more limited and the sync speed much lower than advertised (barely up to 30feet and 1/100-1/125s).

A benefit is they use radio rather than IR, so no issues with line of sight.
Although probably not much of an issue with studio work?? (I never used IR, so not sure how well they do or do not work for any given situation.)

CactusII remotes are also very cheap. It may be worth trying before investing in more expensive methods, if you do not need 100% guarantee on every shot. If you do, I'd spend the extra money on "proven" technology.

Out of frustration, I ended up going with Elinchrom Skyport remotes. Not as expensive as PWs yet smaller.


Another "cheap" method is use a low power non-PTTL flash in your hot shoe and slave the other strobes off that. Only issue is that the light from the hot-shoe flash has the potential to affect your image.

I'm rather surprised you've got it to work at all, that being the non-PTTL strobe working off the final flash after all of the metering flashes and PTTL communication flashes occurred.

When it does work, you will not notice the effect of the pop-up flash. I've only noticed it for the first time myself when firing into a mirror.

All I can think of for the strobe not firing as expected is that the non-PTTL strobe was either blocked from or otherwise positioned such that it was cut off from the lower power PTTL communication flashes in prior uses?

Silly question perhaps, but did you possibly have the strobe further away or otherwise positioned such that it may not have seen all the pre-flash stuff before?

Thats good to hear. I'm looking forward to using them.
Its likely going to be a few weeks until I get my strobes back and give the triggers a good workout.
I'm using the universal receiver, so at least I have options while my strobes are out for repair. Now I just have to figure out how to hook them up to my 360 and 540 flashes. (Dunno if the skyports came with the wrong cable, but the PC sync has a smaller headphone style jack on the other end than the other sync cables, so it won't even fit the receiver. Argh...)

I'll have to have a go at what sort of distance/range I can get from the Skyport triggers, as the 360/540 are much more portable.

Maybe some day I can afford the RX line. The remote capabilities with that combo are quite nice. Throw in the USB capability with the computer software and you have quite an amazing setup.

Oh yeah, one more thing about wireless PTTL flash in regards to your example images... your pop-up flash will always flash that last time to cause the final sync signal.

Normally it is quite low power and does not contribute to your image, assuming you have it configured to not contribute.
BUT, it does fire. So anything very close - like your hand in the example photo, or highly reflective surfaces - may show some effect of your pop-up flash regardless of the mode you have configured.

As it was once so eloquently put to me: Once all the metering information is done, how else would the other flashes know exactly when to fire?
I always thought there was complex timing involved. Nope... just more flashing lights.