Serious trouble it seems Cactus V2 Radio Trigger

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Tyke Tiler

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Tomas
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Hello, someone please help!

I have just received a cactus v2 radio trigger today and upon testing it out it appears to be doing something weird to my 30D. Here's a sample pic, its our apartment window with the flash gun aimed straight at it.

Trouble.jpg


I'm getting a huge black shadow across the images I take leaving only a small portion of the photograph visible. At first I though it was the position of the flash but eliminated that thought with moving the flash around a number of times.

When I remove the transmitter and shoot everything is as it should be. I've tried hooking up to the PC/SYNC socket and attached transmitter via the hot shoe and still this happens.

I know these triggers are cheap and unreliable but I've never heard of this happening before. Could it be a faulty transmitter? I havent a clue!

If someone knows anything or can help me out I would be most grateful.

Thanks for your time

All the best.
 
shutter speed 1/500 no chance!
slow it down max is prob around 1/200 or 1/250

what's happening is the flash is firing before the curtain is fully open
and at higher speeds the 2nd curtain departs before the first has arrived so you get a travelling slit!
 
QUOTE=mmcp42;534355]shutter speed 1/500 no chance!
slow it down max is prob around 1/200 or 1/250

what's happening is the flash is firing before the curtain is fully open
and at higher speeds the 2nd curtain departs before the first has arrived so you get a travelling slit![/QUOTE]

Mike your a champion and I am a muppet. Works fine now. I was so excited to try it out I think I just went a bit peculiar. Thanks for such a speedy response and taking the time out of your day to help a puddin.

Cheers again mate.
 
no probs
they say you learn from your mistakes
that's how I know so much :thinking:
 
mmcp42 said:
no probs
they say you learn from your mistakes
that's how I know so much :thinking:
Click to expand...

Cheers mate, I'm sure I've read on strobist that guys with pocket wizards were shooting at 1/1000th, is that mainly because pocket wizards are the lord and cactus units are not? or is it a much more compatible and able flash gun?
 
it's a camera thing
the highest shutter speed you can use is the highest speed at which the 2nd curtain moves only after the first has finished

some flash guns claim to get round this by firing pulses or strobes to effectively lengthen the flash duration

never been convinced - yet
 
mmcp42 said:
it's a camera thing
the highest shutter speed you can use is the highest speed at which the 2nd curtain moves only after the first has finished

some flash guns claim to get round this by firing pulses or strobes to effectively lengthen the flash duration

never been convinced - yet
Click to expand...

ah, I see, Many thanks for sharing a bit of know how. Muchly appreciated.
 
Hi Thomas,
May I know what flash gun are you using. Im also having trouble with my Cactus paired with 580EX II. It keeps activating the gun everytime it has recharged.
 
strobenewbie said:
Hi Thomas,
May I know what flash gun are you using. Im also having trouble with my Cactus paired with 580EX II. It keeps activating the gun everytime it has recharged.
Click to expand...

Hi,
I use two Nikon SB-28's and a Sigma 500 DG Super with a Canon 30D. Are you patching the two up via hot shoe adaptors and pc sync cables or from the hot shoe input on the receiver?

I've had to give up on the Cactus jobbies, for the cash they are good for experimentation and great for learning about lighting your scene with strobes but
I tried them out mainly to see if they could be used in a working environment, at less then £15 per receiver it was well worth a try, but sadly they are too unreliable.
Mis-firing is the first problem that crops up (about 6-7 out of ten shots mis fire with me) and then it's very likely that any local interference will cause them to fire too.

I chanced them on a job for a friend over the weekend, taking pics of teams of kids in ice skating schools in a very poorly lit ice rink, I was using all three flashes in close proximity, less than 10 metres apart.
It was quite frustrating but eventually I got the job done, the ice rink technicians in the dj booth made it a little more difficult by setting off my flashes with their radio equipment! Lots of mis-fires and random discharges. A total bummer if your working at 1/1 power and using rechargeable AA's.

My conclusion:
Home, personal use and any jobs where time isn't an issue (if that exists) then go ahead and try the Cactus triggers. I had read on Strobist that some clever spark had modified them by changing the CR2 battery to a pair of AA's and enlarged the antenna, increasing the range to 200 ft!
Although looking quite frail after the mod, costs were kept to a minimum.

If your a strobist on a budget them by all means give them a go, but if you have to get a job done quickly and efficiently then expect a variety of colourful problems.

If your not on a budget and you've been doing your homework, its one of the following choices for you:

Elinchrom Skyport's.
Bowens Pulsar's.
Pocket Wizard's.

The Skyport's are reasonably priced and the reviews are pretty much always good, there's a member of this forum "cherryrig", who has a good set of skyports and uses them very regulary, no probs or mis fires reported and cherryrig's photo's are pretty dam good too. Read cherryrigs review:
http://www.talkphotography.co.uk/forums/showthread.php?t=49056&highlight=radio+triggers

Bowens Pulsars.
http://www.bowens.co.uk/catalog/product_info.php?cPath=24_30&products_id=44
Good reviews online, many report that the sleek design is a favourite as they don't stick out above the camera like PW.
There were issues with close proximity mis-firing in 2004/2005, probably sorted out now but only a smidge cheaper than pocket wizards and the range is some-what shorter (100m). Cheapest place to buy is BH -photo in the states, even inc import duties and VAT!

Pocket Wizards:
Huge reliability ratings from photographers all over the world, plenty of info on the web just google 'Pocket Wizards'. Downside is the price, way to overpriced IMHO. Cheapest place on line is a chap called harbour48, selling on Ebay. Harbour48 is based in Quinton near Birmingham UK:
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/FOUR-Pocket-W...ryZ64354QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

All the best
Tomas
 
thanks for that helpful insight into your research tomas, saves me looking too hard into it:thumbs:
 
fletch5 said:
thanks for that helpful insight into your research tomas, saves me looking too hard into it:thumbs:
Click to expand...

Not a problem at all, We have spent so much time on the net to get the biggest bang out of our buck, I've ordered gear from Germany, Hong Kong and Adorama, MPEX in the states quite a few times over the past few months, great service and minimal VAT charges, just make sure you use courier like fedex or UPS for your delivery option, don't ever use USPS (United States Postal Service) USPS are the American version of Royal Mail :puke:, and will hand the parcel straight over to the worst department possible at British Customs and Excise when it lands in the UK, so your import tax, handling charge and VAT bill will be much larger than using a courier.

Fedex and UPS are great, provided you attach a customer note to your order with your phone number, they'll call you up before delivery and either for-warn you of a charge or ask the VAT to be paid via credit card. The parcel itself seems not to actually pass through the grubby mitts of UK customs and excise personnel, (who will open your parcel, feel it, grope it, rub it, stroke it, mash it, lose important bits and in some cases damage it) the courier pays the VAT/customs charges with your payment method without the cacky fingered ones bludgeoning anything and all is tickitty boo.
I can't guarantee that this will be the case all the time, customs and excise are as greedy as British banks.
I base this info on my personal experiences and we have been consistently burned with standard postal services but not with couriers.

Although it incures an additional expense, always use fed ex or UPS.
Buying from the States and Hong Kong hasn't got too many downsides, I've been faced with so many occasions of late which involved the 'buy the gear for the job' or 'turn down the work scenario'. After all, a plumber with one tool in his bag can't succeed in every eventuality regardless of weather warranties are valid in your country of origin. Most of the gear we've had to buy is going to pay for itself sooner rather than later. Right now I just want to get my rent paid and keep working consistently.

We ended up ordering a set of 4 wizards from the harbour48 chap. I'll let you know how good the service is and if there is anything to watch out for. They should be here tomorrow.

If you have any questions regarding over sea's suppliers or retailers, I let you know about our experiences. It's no trouble.

All the best.
 
Only just seen this thread. Sorry to be a plonker.. but why would the camera's shutterspeed change to slower once the cactus is on.. .and be fine when the cactus is taken off?
 
I think when the flash is mounted in the hotshoe the camera knows not to go faster than it's maximum sync speed...

Cheers for the info about the Harbour48 guy, I'm going to be getting some PWs soon.
 
Craikeybaby said:
I think when the flash is mounted in the hotshoe the camera knows not to go faster than it's maximum sync speed...

Cheers for the info about the Harbour48 guy, I'm going to be getting some PWs soon.
Click to expand...

Hey no worries, share and share alike.
Harbour48 were doing auctions, we lost an auction of £331 last week, this seemed to be the only auction that went for such a low price, we were out bid by £1! The rest of the auctions have been going for silly money, I don't know why but ebay seems to attract folk who are intent on winning a bid at any cost rather than buying as cheap as possible. The buy it now prices range from £419.99 to £439.99 on a set of four, quite a lot of strange folk with 'bid fever' have paid over £469 on the same set! Higher than the buy it now!

If you do decide to bid if auctions are available again, rather than buy them now, stear clear of the nutter's who want to pay anything.

As i mentioned previously, they should be here tomorrow, I'll be sure to post the result.

All the best
 
Having been in a similar situation with "budget" triggers in the past, all I can say is that the PW's, (although not cheap,) will be money very well spent. I am sure you will not be disappointed with them. Mine have yet to miss fire, ever, and the range is just incredible.:eek::thumbs:

Look forward to seeing how you find them too.
 
ianwilliams said:
Having been in a similar situation with "budget" triggers in the past, all I can say is that the PW's, (although not cheap,) will be money very well spent. I am sure you will not be disappointed with them. Mine have yet to miss fire, ever, and the range is just incredible.:eek::thumbs:

Look forward to seeing how you find them too.
Click to expand...

Thanks for the vote of confidence :thumbs: I'll be sure to report after a little trial session tomorrow.
I'm quite impressed at the range capability, only thing I'm worried about is that from 1600 feet, with good eye sight or a long lens, you may just be able to make out the facial features or get a good overall description of the thief who's got a 1600ft head start over you when it comes to nickin your gear!
:lol:
 
Tomas Whitehouse said:
Hi,
Are you patching the two up via hot shoe adaptors and pc sync cables or from the hot shoe input on the receiver?

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All the best
Tomas
Click to expand...

Hi Tomas,
Thanks for your reply. Youve provided so much information here about the triggers. Im going to have a read later.

I only tried to connect the flash on the reciever and when I switch the reciever on, it fires the flash continuously so I just removed the flash (im scared its going to damage my brand new flash ;) ). I just sent the cactus back to the seller today and hopefully he will give me a refund (as advertised in his auctions).
 
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