Can I use the Canon Speedlite 430EX II test button for manual flash during a long exposure?
Asked 6/17/2011
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I want to create a fake multiple-exposure image in a dark room by using a long shutter speed and firing a flash manually several times during one exposure. I have a Canon Speedlite 430EX II but no second camera body or extra trigger gear. Can the flash's test button be used for this? If so, does it fire at the manually selected power level, and is it consistent enough for repeatable exposures?
Originally by Photography Stack Exchange contributor. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
Photography Stack Exchange contributor
15y ago
2 Answers
6
Your test button should firing at whatever power you select manually. I can't speak to that specific model, but it has on a few different flash brands I've tried.
Its pretty easy to tell if it does.
Just set it to high, take a picture and press the test button.
Set it to low, take a picture and press the test button. Is there a big difference? Probably so.
You should get consistent exposures with it.
If for some crazy it doesn't, you can always electrically tape a couple of wires to the bottom pin and plate and just short the connection together with a momentary push button ( or just touching the wires together)- that's what the camera does.
Originally by user1917. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
user1917
15y ago
0
Generated from our catalog & community — verify before relying on it.
Yes. The flash’s test button is generally intended to fire the flash, not just a tiny indicator burst, and when the Speedlite is set to manual power it should fire at that selected power level. That means it can be used during a long exposure for repeatable manual pops.
A simple way to confirm is to set the flash to a high manual power, make a test shot using the test button, then repeat at a low manual power. If the brightness changes accordingly, the test button is firing at the chosen manual setting.
So for your planned dark-room, long-exposure setup, the test button should work as a practical no-extra-gear solution and should give consistent exposures as long as the flash is fully recycled between pops.
If needed, a flash can also be triggered by momentarily shorting the center contact to the shoe ground, but using the built-in test button is the simplest approach.
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