Here, have a chocolate

[WifeKidsandDog]

I haven't been getting out much so I've resorted to setting things up at home and using my 580 flash and monolight.

[Steve Foss]

You know, Cheryl, I've never had a sweet tooth, but you make chocolate look so good I can see myself going out and buying a box of them. Yeah, like I NEED to put on weight.

What are your techs on this? I'm assuming the 40D and 100 f2L, for starters.

[finnbay]

Nice lighting - well done! I'm with Steve. I usually prefer salt to sweets, but I think I could handle a couple of these!

[WifeKidsandDog]

Thanks guys!

Steve, I used my 17-40 at f/8, ISO 125. I love the minimum focus distance of that lens, it's very useful for product-type shots.

Anyway, I was happy with the lighting. I was trying to light it so there wasn't big glary spots so I had the 580 bouncing off to the side and the monolight going back into a silver umbrellas.

I have Elinchrom Skyports to fire the lights remotely. They work great and are a cheaper alternative to PocketWizards and I'm not tripping over a sync cord (and dropping my camera like I once did).

[Steve Foss]

Ah yes, the 17-40 is great at mfd. I use it that way for plants quite a lot.

I'd like to learn a bit more about the skyports. I'm working with indoor portraits and weddings more and more, and less expensive alternatives to the pocket wizards are very attractive.

[WifeKidsandDog]

Well, I was sold after a guy did a test and he had his flash over a football field away and could trigger it reliably. The newer 580 ex makes it easy as it has the PC port. I did have to buy a $2 little plug thing from Radio Shack to adjust the pin size to fit the 580 but other than that, transmitter on the hot shoe, plug the transmitter to the flash and off you go.

I did use the Canon ST-E2 IR transmitter, and it works great indoors and you retain ETTL, but relying on it outside is impossible.

[Dbl]

Great shot Cheryl! I am a die hard Pocket Wizard guy myself but there is a new product out there that will retain ETTL wireless on the Canon flash system called Radio Poppers. They will have three models, two that retain ETTL and the Jr model that will do the following;

• Non-TTL radio slave

• 2000-ft range

• $25 each

They are supposed to start shipping this month! If these things work as advertised it literally will turn the wireless flash world on its ear! The top of the line ETTL model retails at $175 which still puts it under a PW price.

[WifeKidsandDog]

Dan, are those the things some of the enterprising "strobists" were working on, I remember reading about that. Sounds great, particularly retaining ETTL.

[Dbl]

Yes they are, if you look at the Strobist site I think they have an update today.