Pocket Wizard connection to 430ex

I am about to purchase a set of PW's. I was looking at the Plus II version since it is within my budget.

My question is how does my 430ex attach to the PW. I think I need a female hot shoe to miniphone adaptor, correct? (or is it a PC connection on the PW... or are there both jacks?)

Also, PW's lose the ability to use ettl, right? Do Radiopoppers lose ettl too if I went that route?

Other products or suggestions are welcome too.

Thanks.

For PW to 430EX I believe that you would need this: PW to 430EX Hotshoe

With the PWs you will not have ETTL.

You could also pop open the 430EX and put in a 1/8" mono jack for PC sync instead of using a hotshoe adapter. There are many people who do such mods for a small fee atop of parts, and it's much easier IMO then using a hotshoe adapter.

Also, I don't believe there are any RF flash triggers that retain E-TTL capabilities. I know the ST-E2 from Canon does, but that's an overpriced IR receiver that isn't nearly as reliable as PWs.

hudge wrote in post #5342737
For PW to 430EX I believe that you would need this: PW to 430EX Hotshoe

With the PWs you will not have ETTL.

Why no ETTL with the PWs? I'm very confused on that.

aepoc wrote in post #5695018
Why no ETTL with the PWs? I'm very confused on that.

PocketWizards simply propagate a sync signal. They know nothing about Canon's proprietary E-TTL signalling.

RadioPoppers do RF + E-TTL.

Because the PW is simply a remote trigger. There is no communication back to the camera other than "fire!". If you want remote ETTL, you need Canon's ST-E2.

Hrm. Which requires line of sight, and what's the distance on that ST-E2?

A 580EX is actually a more powerful E-TTL master than an ST-E2, as it gives you 3 slave groups (not 2), allows full manual control of each slave group, and can actually produce light

Those of you who are in the US should be taking advantage of RadioPoppers. They're brand new and I can't wait to pick one up when they're available in Australia.

www.radiopopper.com

linarms wrote in post #5695027
PocketWizards simply propagate a sync signal. They know nothing about Canon's proprietary E-TTL signalling.

RadioPoppers do RF + E-TTL.

That's just a misconception that the RadioPoppers can do ETTL. They don't. All they do is "sense" the IR command signal generated by the master like the ST-E2 and transmit that signal via RF over to the receiver unit which then converts the signal back to IR for the slave flash to see. It's the master that's actually doing all the ETTL processing. You can think of the RadioPopper more as a repeater relay.

Not to hijack, or de-rail the thread... but I'm looking to wirelessly trigger one flash, maybe two at some point. I have a 40D, and I already have a 430ex. Would the ST-E2 be my best bet? What's the range on it, does it work outside?

The ST-E2 is much less effective outside. It uses an IR signal that gets washed out outside. Indoors it works very well since the signal generally bounces around so line of sight is not generally an issue indoors. Outisde you really need to turn the flash(es) towards the ST-E2 and still it does not do well over distance outside. Thats all compounded if there is bright sun.

PacAce wrote in post #5695507
That's just a misconception that the RadioPoppers can do ETTL. They don't. All they do is "sense" the IR command signal generated by the master like the ST-E2 and transmit that signal via RF over to the receiver unit which then converts the signal back to IR for the slave flash to see. It's the master that's actually doing all the ETTL processing. You can think of the RadioPopper more as a repeater relay.

Replace "do" with "allow" then. The fact that RadioPoppers need to sit on a master device - ST-E2, 580EX, or a Nikon equivalent - says little about the functionality they provide. That functionality certainly comes at a price, but none of this gear is cheap -- even Pocket Wizards, which are only capable of "relaying" a simple pulse, are ridiculously expensive. Radio Poppers "relay" a much more complex signal for a similar price and only need a master device to deliver VERY reliable off-camera E-TTL!

I agree that confusion abounds about the need for a master device tho

Wasn't trying to perpetuate said confusion here

Thanks for the info David. Perhaps PWs are the way to go for me then. Do I set my flash in slave then? I'm not well versed in flash photography AT ALL; I'm a natural lighting guy.

NO you would just set your flash normally. The Canon Master and Slave settings are for use with their protocols. The PW's are simply triggering devices. Your flash essentially becomes a manual mode only flash with them. So you will need to set the mode to manual and adjust the power level accordingly (a light meter might be useful). To use multiple flashes you will need multiple triggers (PW's) or optical slave trigger devices (dont work that well) and you would set up each flash manually.

PW's are reliable triggers but they are expensive. You may want to try some of the cheap eBay triggers like the Cactus units. There are a million threads on here about them with mixed results. But they are inexpensive. I've used them in studio and never had an issue. Functionally they work the same as the PW's.

aepoc wrote in post #5695744
Thanks for the info David. Perhaps PWs are the way to go for me then. Do I set my flash in slave then? I'm not well versed in flash photography AT ALL; I'm a natural lighting guy.

Turn all wireless functions off and run your flash in manual mode if you're using it with a Pocket Wizard. And if you don't have a 580EX II or some other way of rigging up your flash to a sync cord, pick up a hot-shoe to PC sync adapter thingie. I have a couple of Hama ones for this.