Slave to the Flash

[kreego]

A little experience is a dangerous thing, and my latest great idea is to start getting the flash off the camera, not just a few inches with a synch cord, but elsewhere in the room. Sooo, I got to inquiring about the nifty IR transmitter that works with the Canon 420EX, but suffered sticker shock (I'm over here in Euro-land) when I learned the price. A second 420EX or maybe a 580EX is right out of the picture (so to speak).

Need begets invention, so - seeing how I needed more light, and remembering that I had two old flashes from my Canon A-1 days, I got to wondering if perhaps there was a way to trigger flashes with some sort of optical trigger. If worse came to worse, I could get some cheap slave flashes, but first I'd like to try firing what I've got on hand - mainly a Vivitar 5600 with zoom head (this was THE flash to have in 1984), using my 420EX as the impulse source. I know - digital cameras have pre-flashes - but I'd be working straight manual, so one flash pop only.

So - is there something that would accomodate the Vivitar and send it an impulse when the 420EX fired? This is obscure - I know - but perhaps someone's tried this and survived?

Thanks!

K

[Jon]

I don't believe, and ICBW, that you can put the 420EX in completely manual mode, so that it doesn't fire a pre-flash. Wein makes a slave (http://www.bhphotovideo.com/bnh/controller/home?O=productlist&A=details&Q=&sku=263024&is=REG) for use with digital camera flashes which doesn't fire on the pre-flash, or you could try keeping the slave flashes far enough out of the way that the less-expensve optical slaves won't be triggered by the pre-flash, but only by the full flash.

[Huckaback Photo]

Hello Kreego
Its a fairly common thing to set this up with any flash that is fitted with normal PC terminal conection.
certainly vivitar used these type fit cables and as you will see my Metz 45 can be fired in this way.
all you need to buy is an inexpensive small slave cell attach to the pc lead , the camera fires built in flash or on camera flash to trigger .
there is also available a slave cell trigger which is like a hot shoe fit for flashes without the cable pc fit.
you can buy more than one slave of course .
many studio flash systems are used in this way and no direct cable to the camera as some older studio flash lights have to high a trigger voltage.

see image, hope this helps
Martin

[Huckaback Photo]

Forgot to mention i dont use 420 ex . but 550 and 580ex
certainly 550ex can be set to manual and low out put then 1 or 2 other flashes fired with slaves coul be triggered in this way.
as you see i use the Metz normally fired into a silver brolly
Cheers
Martin

[Jon]

The 420EX can't be set to manual on the flash. I don't use a G-series, so don't know if they have provisions for disabling E-TTL via the camera, but the DSLRs don't, so I wouldn't expect so. You might be able, at some effort, to tape over the communications contacts, leaving only the main 2 (center and shoe-side) so the camera thinks it's a dumb flash, but then you're shooting at full power and will need to calculate exposure using the GN.