Canon 580exII remote trigger?

[wsbII]

Hello,
I'm hoping someone can help me - I'm looking to invest in an upgraded flash for my canon XTi. I have been looking at the speedlite 430exII and the 580exII. Leaning toward the 580, but for a very specific reason - I want a flash that can be off the camera and triggered by the camera. I know line of sight can be an issue, but the ability at all is what I am looking for. It looks like the 430 requires additional equipment, but the 580 does not. Am I reading this right? Can someone confirm that the 580 can be triggered to fire by my camera even when the flash is not mounted on the camera without additional gear?
Thanks!
Bill

[RichardTaylor]

Your XTi (400D) needs additional hardware to control an external flash like the 580 EXII (A Canon 580 or ST -E2 will do it as will a number of third party products)

[inkista]

Originally Posted by wsbII

... I want a flash that can be off the camera and triggered by the camera. I know line of sight can be an issue, but the ability at all is what I am looking for. It looks like the 430 requires additional equipment, but the 580 does not. Am I reading this right? Can someone confirm that the 580 can be triggered to fire by my camera even when the flash is not mounted on the camera without additional gear?...

You read it wrong. As Richard says above, whatever speedlight you go for, 430EX II or 580EX II, Canon or 3rd party, you're going to need additional equipment. The XTi does not have a master in its pop-up flash, like the 7D and 60D do.

There are a number of different methods you can use, not just the light-based Canon system. The differences in the methods include the price for the equipment, the method of triggering, and the function that can be communicated from the camera to the flash.

The simplest (and cheaper methods) are typically manual only. This means the off-camera flash has to have a manual mode of some kind, where the power-level on the flash can be set even when it's not sitting on a hotshoe, but it has to be set manually (i.e., it won't automatically adjust) at the flash. There will be no "extra goodies" like high-speed sync (using a shutter speed faster than ~1/200s) or remote commanding (where you can adjust the power of the flash remotely from the camera).

The three main methods you can use for a manual connection are:

1) a sync cord that uses PC connectors, extension cord, mono 1/8" minijack cord (the same connector earphones use). The problem here with your camera is that you'll need a hotshoe adapter for the camera, and probably one for the flash, too. The 430EX II does not have a PC connector, the 580EX II does. You're limited by the length of the cable.

2) a "dumb" optical slave on the flash. Canon does not build these into their speedlights. Nikon does into their higher end flashes. A lot of cheap 3rd party manual-only flashes (LumoPro LP120, LP160, and speedlights from Yongnuo and NIssin) include one, built-in. This is a sensor that, when it sees a flash burst, causes the flash it's connected to to fire in sync. They can be set off by any flash burst, and you're limited by line of sight and range. If you get an add-on one, it can require a hotshoe adapter to connect to the flash.

3) radio triggers. Probably the most popular choice, with the best cost/value. A lot of the cheaper ones (Cactus V4s, RF-602s) connect directly to the hotshoes, so no adapters are needed. There are also no range or line of sight issues.

You can also use the proprietary infrared-based Canon system. This gives you eTTL (the ability for the camera to set the power on the flash based on through-the-lens (TTL) metering. This system also gives you high-speed sync (using fast shutter speeds) and remote commanding (which can be handy if you place a flash in an inaccessible spot). But it's light-based, so it's also limited by line-of-sight and range issues--particularly outside. It's like a tv-remote. This is expensive. It requires a master unit on the hotshoe to pop the remote flash. For a master, you'd need an additional ST-E2, 550EX, 580EX, or 580EX II, and your remote flash also has to be a Canon (some of the 3rd parties, like Nissins can also do this, but they cost about the same as the Canons).

The most expensive system is probably TTL-capable radio triggers. These triggers use radio to send the signal and bridge the proprietary signaling. If you use RadioPopper PXs, you'd need two RPs, and the Canon master unit as well as your flash. If you use PocketWizard TTL units, you'd only need a Flex-MiniTT1 on the hotshoe, and a Flex-TTL5 on the flash, and the remote flash has to be a Canon speedlight.

So, the question actually isn't as simple as 430EXII or 580EXII for off-camera work. If you're going to use a manual triggering method, then you can save a lot of money for other lighting gear (say, stands, umbrellas, soft boxes, whathaveyou) by going for a manual-only flash instead, since you won't have the other extra fancy features you'd buy the Canons for. A Lumopro LP120 or Nikon SB-24, or YongNuo YN-560 might be just as good, and cost half to a third as much (seriously. The YN-560s are $85 apiece).

If, however, you plan on doing any on-camera work, then the Canon speedlights are more worth the cost, since eTTL is a handy feature to have, particularly for bouncing and for run'n'gun event work (like weddings). AND they can be used off-camera as well.

[wsbII]

Thank you both. The insight is great and helps me know how to proceed!
Bill