multiple flashes with external flash

[rphoto]

Hi,

I love long exposures and I would like to try to take a picture in the dark, with a long exposure (let's say 20 seconds) and to shoot the flash 2 or 3 times. I would like to do it with a handheld flash that I'd trigger manually and that is not connected to my camera.
do these flashes even exist? (I own a panasonic dmc-fz100)

How can I achieve it otherwise? (I tried it yesterday, and used my old point and shoot as an external flash during the exposure)

thanks

[Doug Sundseth]

Nearly any speedlight or studio strobe will work. Just press the test button during the exposure and the flash will pop. (If you're shooting full power and your total exposure time is short, you might have an issue with recycle times, as some speedlights can take several seconds to recharge after a full-power pop.)

[scootermcq]

Doug is on the money there.

I have done this idea a few times with rear curtain sync and one "pop" to light the subject. I am trying to think of a time I would need 2 or 3 "pops" and nothing is coming to my simple mind. What is it you are trying to expose with the multiple firings?

[rphoto]

i was thinking about a model moving in a room with no light. with no flash and long exposure i should only get the subject's moving. if i pop a few flashes (let's say 3), i was hoping to get the same movement as before but also 3 spots where the body is still and clearer. ( at least I hope). if that works out I was thinking about bringing it outdoors to get the same effect in front of a skyline. i'm not sure it'll work, but i'd like to try

[sk66]

Should work....

Another reason to try such a thing would be to imitate a 3 light setup using only one strobe.

[inkista]

Originally Posted by sk66

Should work....

Another reason to try such a thing would be to imitate a 3 light setup using only one strobe.

Or 60 lights with only three. I can't find it, but I remember a Strobist post where someone had mounted three speedlights on a single pole (top, middle, bottom), and then walked around a really large subject (not sure if it was a car. My memory is teflon coated these days), and then popped the lights off as he walked around, about once a second. The final image looked like the subject was surrounded by an array of 60 stadium lights.