Non-TTL 2nd curtain sync in 580EXII ?

Does the 580EXII give you 2nd curtain sync in modes other than TTL ?
eg. Manual, Auto ?

I sold my 580EX1 and bought a Nissin Di866, primarily to get the auto mode which is a function I find useful. There are pros and cons, but overall I'm happy with that choice.
But then I wanted to use 2nd curtain and found that it was only available in TTL mode. That seems fundamentally dumb to me. Is the 580EXII just as dumb or can I use the auto mode with 2nd curtain ?

Steve.

Well I toggled between ETTL, M and Mutli. SCS icon stayed on in ETTL and M but not on Mutli.

The 580EXII allows 2nd curtain sync with E-TTL and Manual Power. Providing...

Yesterday I prepared the following notes for another purpose, but they may help here.
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2nd Curtain / Rear Curtain Sync – Hit or Myth?

2nd or rear curtain sync (2CS) is frequently misunderstood. A Flickr image search produces very few which actually required 2CS. They would have looked the same under 1CS. Yet the images are often distinctive, possibly because of the dramatic environment and the extra time spent to get the shot. Just not 2CS!

There are those who see Canon’s limitations with 2CS as a strong buying negative. But, is it? 2CS is required very rarely, and never for many photographers.

Each sensor pixel simply counts the photons reaching it, usually from the same point in the field of view. If nothing is moving in-view, it does not matter at all when the photons hit the sensor; the count simply increases to brighter. However, if the light from a spot moves to another pixel, a “light trail” of brighter pixels forms.

If that brighter trail lies over the well-lit subject, it will appear that the subject is moving in reverse. If the trail lies over the background, the subject will seem to be streaking forward.

So, the trick is to illuminate the subject so that its position is captured at the end of the shutter period. Before that, its existence in-frame is lost in the shadows.

Canon’s programming of 2CS requires certain settings:
• Can be in E-TTL or Manual flash modes
• Must be in a Creative mode
• Not in Multi (stroboscopic) or HS sync
• Shutter of 1/60th sec through to Bulb
• Not in Wireless mode (and therefore no group functions available)

There are also shoot requirements:
• Low light
• Subject moving across frame (not camera panning)
• Subject has light source or reflectance which shows in ambient light portion
• Subject and not background significantly lit by main flash

(One not-designed-for use - party photography where subjects relax after the preflash, then bam, the real shot.)

Without Wireless mode, the flash cannot be moved off-camera. Canon gear does not issue the 2CS “Fire!” instruction using the centre pin, but as digital code on a secondary pin. So a digital decoder is required in the chain – a built-in flash (e.g. 7D) or a Speedlite (or perhaps a compatible) in the shoe. Several work-arounds use an optical sensor (which must be Canon preflash aware) to react to a Canon on-camera flash which first decodes the data.

As far as I know, Pocket Wizards are the only third-party radio trigger manufacturer to implement an off-camera 2CS. Until now. The Pixel King trigger also appears to do 2CS with Mark II Speedlites in E-TTL or Manual, apparently by letting the camera think that it is a camera-mounted 2CS flash, but keeping its radio links open even when Wireless mode is Disabled.

Thanks. I agree with your misunderstood comments.
So no 2CS with Auto - The two are made for each other but neither Nissin or Canon do it. Of all the options, TTL makes the least sense IMHO.
Oh well. So be it. I still have the option of slaving off the popup but it all seems very convoluted.

With regards to using a preflash aware slave - You need to experiment a bit to find when the slave decides that it's missed the main flash and thinks it is seeing another preflash. For example, if it ignores a preflash and expects to get the main flash within a second or so, but you use a 5 second exposure (and 2CS), it will ignore the real flash, thinking that it's the preflash of the next shot.

Steve.